Suchergebnisse

This study combines empirical political communication research models with theoretical accounts provided by the theory of communicative action to expand the understanding of how communication matters for democratic political functioning, particularly under conditions of social instability. Building on the Habermasian distinction between strategic orientations versus understanding orientations in conversation, the author explores the role of conversation orientations as antecedents to political engagement. Examination of conversation orientations in Colombia, a society characterized by social conflict, provides evidence of the democratic benefits of orientations toward reaching understanding and the deleterious effects of strategic orientations for political involvement, associational membership, and ultimately participation, as well as the importance of including conversation orientations as explanatory factors in models that seek to explain political involvement. These findings speak to the potential for communicative rationality to transcend the use of force and bring about action coordination based on understanding in communities experiencing civil strife.

This paper empirically explores the role of media and political conversation as antecedents to political engagement, a set of political attitudes and behaviors. Political engagement was operationalized as political interest, political knowledge, political efficacy, associational membership, and civic and political participation. The relationships of conversation, news and entertainment media uses were examined in the context of a tumultuous society. Statistical analyses suggest that the consumption of news media and political conversation are positively related to all aspects of political engagement. On the other hand, certain entertainment media uses are negatively related. The relevance of media use and political conversation to explain political engagement is discussed and their potential to predict support for democracy is explored. ; Este estudio explora empíricamente el rol de los medios de comunicación y la conversación política como fundamento de una serie de actitudes y omportamientos políticos. Estar involucrado en política es concebido en términos de interés político, conocimiento político, eficacia política, membresía en asociaciones cívicas, así como de participación cívica y política. Las relaciones entre conversación política, medios masivos de comunicación (noticias y entretenimiento) y participación, son examinadas en el contexto de una sociedad que experimenta problemas para la coordinación de la acción colectiva. Los análisis estadísticos realizados como parte de este estudio sugieren que la conversación política y el consumo de noticias están relacionados positivamente con la participación política, mientras que ciertas formas masivas de entretenimiento tienen un efecto negativo. La importancia para la participación ciudadana de los medios masivos de comunicación, así como de la conversación política es analizada; así mismo, se explora su potencial para explicar actitudes fundamentales sobre actitudes democráticas.

False consensus, or biased projection of one's opinion onto others, has repeatedly been described by political communication scholars as a derivative of selective exposure to attitude-consistent information. This study proposes a distinctive approach to understanding the phenomenon by suggesting "perceived threat" as a motivational factor that contributes to self-serving estimates of public opinion. Based on a nationally representative sample of U.S. adults, we test a path model in which political ideology relates to false consensus regarding the issue of immigration through cognitive assessments of communication environment and perceived immigration threat. Results suggest that the relationship between cognition and false consensus may not be direct but instead works through motivational factors when one perceives threat, and that conservatives are more sensitive to outgroup threat and thus are more likely to overestimate public consensus for their attitudes on immigration than their ideological counterparts. Implications of these findings are discussed.

Gráficas, tablas ; Quizá en ningún campo del accionar humano la transformación tecnológica de finales del siglo XX y principios del XXI no haya sido tan manifiesta como en el de las comunicaciones. La conexión informática en redes habilitada por sistemas computacionales (internet), la irrupción de la telefonía móvil y el desarrollo de tecnologías que facilitan la comunicación horizontal (redes sociales en línea) han cambiado de manera significativa la manera como vivimos, trabajamos y aprendemos. En este capítulo examinamos los efectos de esta transformación digital y las inquietudes que esta genera sobre la cohesión del sistema político, la polarización política y la distribución de noticias falsas y desinformación. ; Probably in no field of human action the technological transformation of the late twentieth and early twenty-first century has been as manifest as in communications. The connection in networks enabled by computer systems (internet), the emergence of mobile telephony and the development of technologies that facilitate horizontal communication (online social networks) have changed significantly the way we live, work and learn. In this chapter, we examine the effects of this digital transformation and the concerns it has generated on the cohesion of the political system, political polarization and the distribution of fake news and misinformation.

The use of social media sites for political expression has added a new layer to the study of political discussion. In this type of user-generated content applications, interpersonal and mass-mediated types of communication converge in one medium. Therefore, in this study, we bring together insights from interpersonal communication theories and mass communication models that predict online expression, adding explanatory power to this form of political participation. Specifically, we contribute to the understanding of social media political expression by examining the influence of communication competence and expected outcomes on expressive behaviors. Results of a representative survey of the adult urban population of Colombian Facebook (n = 598) and Twitter (n = 185) users, suggest that social media communication competence and expected status, novelty, and social outcomes influence political expression on social media. Furthermore, users' social media political expression expected outcomes through Facebook and Twitter differ. This study illustrates the important role that interpersonal communication factors have for social media political discussion, and the difference between users' expectations when they express their political views through different social media platforms.

We extend the study of political extremity to an evolving media landscape. We differentiate between political and non-political uses of both "traditional" and "new" media, and situate political extremity within a new conceptualization of public– egocentric publics –a meso-level phenomenon enabled by new communication technologies that overcomes the traditional dichotomy of small groups and mass publics. Testing the relationship between information, expression, and extremity in Colombia, a sociopolitical context with high levels of polarization and distrust, we find that traditional media use is mostly unrelated to the tested forms of extremity: party-, ideology-, or issue-based. In turn, expressive Internet use is related to extremity and—contrary to what some commentators have feared—this relationship is negative. Lower extremity associated with online expression is consistent with the notion of egocentric publics advanced in this article. The results underscore the importance of differentiating between various media formats in political communication research, reveal the media correlates of various forms of extremity can take, and provide evidence that the emerging publics made possible by new media are not necessarily polarizing.

One of the most understudied aspects of the spiral of silence theory is the influence on opinion expression of different social structures anchored in geopolitical units, such as cities or states. This study evaluates political opinion expression after an election by relying on national survey data collected in Colombia (Latin America) and using multilevel analytic techniques to assess geopolitical and individual contexts of influence. Results provide evidence that a disagreeable national context—an election outcome contrary to one's preference—matters in explaining citizens' political expression. In addition, individual-level variables in the form of self-censorship were studied. Rather than an individual's level of self-censorship contributing to expression inhibition, it appears that aggregate city levels of self-censorship affect the likelihood of an individual expressing his or her opinion after a presidential election.

The communication mediation model asserts that the effects of news use on political participation are mostly indirect, mediated through discussion. Recent research has shown that this mediation process is stronger in countries where freedom of the press and expression are also greater. Relying on data collected during election cycles in seventeen countries between 2013 and 2018, we examine how additional country-level factors, including political freedom and digital infrastructure, moderate the indirect relationship between news use and political participation via political talk. Results provide evidence that these factors condition both outcomes, but in different ways. For protest, two of three country-level indices moderate individual-level variation in the pathway between political talk and protest. For voting, two of three country-level indices moderate aggregate-level variation in the pathway between news use and political talk. Results are discussed in light of their implications for the communication mediation model and comparative political communication research.

This study examines the role that group consciousness plays in driving corrective action. Drawing from an online survey of Latinos in the United States ( N = 588), it tests the relationships among group consciousness, perceived media bias, proattitudinal selective exposure, and political participation. Results show support for a serial mediation model where the relationship between group consciousness and political participation runs through perceptions of media bias and proattitudinal selective exposure. Proattitudinal selective exposure also mediates the relationship between group consciousness and political participation independently. Theoretical contributions to corrective action and the role of minority groups in American politics are discussed.

This study integrates theories of mass-media effects with research on relative deprivation to explore the relationship between media exposure, perceptions of inequality, and political outcomes. Based on a representative sample of the Colombian adult population (N = 1,031), this study shows a negative relationship between news exposure and perceptions of income inequality but also a positive link between entertainment content and citizens' understanding of income gaps. Moreover, our findings suggest that more realistic perceptions of inequality, shaped by media exposure, are positively associated with redistributive policy and participation behaviors, with a moderating role of socioeconomic stratum.