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Selective Media Exposure Theory Report

The Effects of Selective Media Exposure

Selective media exposure can influence one’s political ideology. Statista (2023) reports that Fox News is one of the United States’ most viewed cable news networks, in which they gain 2.2 million viewers during primetime. Fox News is infamously known to be a rightwing news channel that has occasionally spread misinformation (Gabbatt, 2022). Those who watch Fox News are most likely to align with these political views. On the other hand, a report shows that most democrats use CNN as a trustworthy news source as opposed to Fox News (Sanders, 2020). Again, this is likely due to CNN confirming the biases that these viewers may have. 

This is not just an occurrence with news channels, but since social media has taken off, Facebook has become a source for news. Pew Research Center (2021) has found that one-third of U.S. adults rely on Facebook as a news source. As convenient as this may sound, one of the ongoing issues with news on Facebook is the spread of misinformation. Insider reports, “that posts from sources known for putting out misinformation got six times more likes, shares, and interactions on the platform compared to posts from more reputable news sources” (Hamilton, 2021). These sources feed off of the engagement as much as those who consume and believe it. 

This convenience comes at another cost. Similar to Facebook, Twitter is another social media news source. Another PEW Research Center report (2021) demonstrates that nearly seven-in-ten twitter users in the United States use the app and website as a news source. The appeal of getting news from social media as opposed to reading the newspaper or watching the news is that headlines can give the general idea. However, this is the demise of many as they are not thoroughly reading the articles as a headline can be misleading or taken out of context. This is most likely why Twitter has the new Context feature, which basically warns users under posts to read before they form an opinion (Malik, 2022). 

Selective media exposure is also not just about news, but simply media consumption and mood. One’s mood can have an effect on their media consumption and vice versa. People have various sources of entertainment that can dictate their mood such as music, movies, tv, books, etc. (Robinson et al., 2017). Thus, mood management relates to selective media exposure.

It is beneficial for people to do their own research before aligning their views with a seemingly convincing article or news program. Misinformation and agenda-setting are factors that can affect credibility. Seeking out news from numerous news sources can also allow people to be open-minded. 

References

Gabbatt, A. (2022, April 11). What happens when a group of Fox News viewers watch CNN for a month?. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/media/2022/apr/11/fox-news-viewers-watch-cnn-study 

Hamilton, I. A. (2021, September 6). Facebook posts from misinformation sources get 6 times more engagement than reputable news sites, new study says. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/facebook-study-misinformation-six-times-more-engaged-with-than-news-2021-9 

Malik, A. (2022, December 12). Twitter begins rolling out its community notes feature globally. TechCrunch. https://techcrunch.com/2022/12/12/twitter-begins-rolling-out-its-community-notes-feature-globally/#:~:text=Image%20Credits%3A%20Twitter&text=The%20feature%20allows%20users%20to,the%20context%20to%20be%20helpful. 

Mitchell, A., Shearer, E., & Stocking, G. (2022, April 28). News on twitter: Consumed by most users and trusted by many. Pew Research Center’s Journalism Project. https://www.pewresearch.org/journalism/2021/11/15/news-on-twitter-consumed-by-most-users-and-trusted-by-many/ 

Perez, S. (2021, September 20). Study finds half of Americans get news on social media, but percentage has dropped. TechCrunch. https://techcrunch.com/2021/09/20/study-finds-half-of-americans-get-news-on-social-media-but-percentage-has-dropped/ 

Robinson, M. J., & Knobloch-Westerwick, S. (2017, March 29). Mood’s role in selective exposure to health and risk information. Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Communication. https://oxfordre.com/communication/display/10.1093/acrefore/9780190228613.001.0001/acrefore-9780190228613-e-525;jsessionid=C0ECA8E800FB46AE4B10D8755E958937?rskey=k5FF4i&result=2 

Sanders, L. (2020, June 18). The difference between which news outlets Republicans and ... - yougov. YouGov. https://today.yougov.com/topics/entertainment/articles-reports/2020/06/18/trust-news-republican-democrat-poll 

Watson, A. (2023, March 28). U.S. most-watched news network 2023. Statista. https://www.statista.com/statistics/373814/cable-news-network-viewership-usa/#:~:text=In%20February%202023%2C%20Fox%20News,primetime%20viewers%20in%20that%20period. 

 

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I think that Selective Exposure Theory is a practice that almost everyone partakes in. An example of such that comes to mind is people who have a preference when it comes to their favorite news channel. Fox News is often associated with republicans, whereas a channel like CNN is the opposite of this. This is also applicable towards social media sites like Twitter. People get to choose who they want to follow, which in turn they are exposed to media that they want to see.  When it comes to hedonic use of apps and media consumption, I do not think it is necessarily bad to be selective. It also makes sense as to why this is a common practice. Why would someone want to listen to or watch something that challenges or opposes their beliefs?  However, I do think there are downsides to selective exposure. Seeking information that conforms to your beliefs can lead to biases. In addition, you are limiting yourself with the knowledge or news that could possibly benefit you even if the ne...
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