1. News on the net: credibility, selective exposure, and racial prejudice
- Author
-
Melican, Debra Burns and Dixon, Travis L.
- Subjects
Television broadcasting of news -- Social aspects ,Television broadcasting of news -- Demographic aspects ,Television broadcasting of news -- Services ,Web sites -- Services ,Web sites -- Social aspects ,Web sites -- Demographic aspects ,Racism -- Analysis ,Racism -- Media coverage ,Journalism -- Objectivity ,Journalism -- Evaluation ,Company Web site/Web page ,Telecommunications industry - Abstract
An online survey was conducted to assess the perception of credibility of various forms of news media, including Internet news sites associated with traditional forms of media and nontraditional Internet news sites. The survey also explored a possible link between news media credibility and scores on a modern racism scale. This study found that people held differential perceptions of Internet news credibility. Specifically, nontraditional Internet sources were perceived as far less credible than all other news sources. After controlling for a number of factors, the results suggest that those who view non-traditional Internet news sources as more credible than traditional media also score higher on a modern racism scale. The theoretical implications of these findings are discussed, with a focus on the Internet as a safe haven for divergent, even racist, beliefs. Keywords: credibility; Internet; news; race; racism
- Published
- 2008