Doctoral Dissertation Research in Political Science: How Civic Journalism Influences Political Learning and Deliberation

University Of North Carolina At Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill NC

Investigators

Abstract

Democratic theorists argue that two of the hallmarks of good citizenship are an informed citizenry and rational, critical public discourse about policy issues. While these normative ideals have fueled considerable research in political science, journalists also have begun to draw on democratic theory to justify a dramatic change in coverage in of politics. This approach is called civic journalism and one of its defining features is an emphasis on issues and the abandonment of "horse-race" coverage in reporting on politics. Survey research aimed at evaluating the effect of civic journalism on learning has yielded conflicting results, and scholars have yet to measure the movement's influence on deliberation. Using experiments and experimental focus groups, this research project will assess the effects of civic journalism and horse-race coverage on political learning and deliberation. These are the central research questions: First, do individuals learn more from the issue coverage that is characteristic of civic journalism, horse race coverage or a combination of the two frames? Second, at the individual level, how does the use of this information vary by frame when readers discuss the material they have read? Third, at the group level, is issue information more likely to generate the wide-ranging, consensus-seeking deliberation prized by democratic theorists? This Doctoral Dissertation Research Support award advances the study of media effects on political learning and discourse in four ways: First, drawing on the social psychological and political science literatures, this research articulates and tests a cognitive and affective framework for a catalyst theory of media effects. Second, the research extends the literature on framing. Third, through the use of an experiment, this project further isolates the effects of the issue coverage that forms the core of civic journalism. Fourth, this project uses experimental focus groups to extend the application of theories of opinion formation and democratic deliberation. The research should enhance substantially our understanding of the topic.