Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: The purpose of my study is to examine the accuracy of survey-based self-reports of news exposure. Previous research has shown that people’s self-reports can differ considerably from independent assessments of media use such as newspaper circulation (Price/Zaller 1993). These past research efforts do not go beyond anecdotal evidence, however. My goal is to assess the accuracy of self-reported TV news exposure more systematically. I use Nielsen data as a benchmark to which survey self-reports can be compared.
The Annenberg National Election Study (ANES), which was conducted as a rolling cross-section with independent random samples for each day of the year 2000, includes an appropriate question about respondents’ exposure to the nightly network news “in the past week.” This question was asked in all ANES interviews and can thus be used to calculate weekly survey-based estimates of the network news audience for the entire year. These survey estimates are compared to weekly Nielsen audience estimates. I also compare ANES and Nielsen estimates of debate audiences in 2000.
Results show severe over-reporting of news exposure. Survey estimates of network news exposure follow trends in Nielsen ratings relatively well, but exaggerate exposure by a factor of three. To make matters worse, the extent of this bias is not constant across time or individuals. For example, self-reported exposure to debates declines as time passes (but remains higher than Nielsen estimates suggest.) Faulty self-reports emerge not as a result of flawed survey design, but because people simply cannot recall or estimate their own news exposure.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: The network-dominated era placed significant constraints on mass political information seeking, thereby reducing the potential for selective exposure. There is some concern, however, that the Internet fosters selectivity by allowing people to more easily filter out information they might disagree with. We suspect, however, that the flexibility of this information environment will facilitate selectivity under some circumstances but undermine it in others. In line with the seminal work in selective exposure presented by Sears and Freedman (1967), we predict that the web will be used to search for balanced political information when people are motivated to do so. This motivation comes from the interaction of two factors: individual differences and situational emotional triggers. In two separate experiments, we find that anxiety boosts balanced information seeking among those who are highly invested in politics (strong partisans) or those who perceive the information available to them to be useful. Non-partisans and those who do not perceive the information to be useful respond to anxiety by withdrawing from information they disagree with. These findings reaffirm Sears and Freedman’s earlier insights, and demonstrate that the Internet is likely to have neither universally positive nor negative effects on political information seeking in contemporary society.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: This study examines a) smokers’ selective exposure to and selective perception of anti-tobacco campaigns and b) the moderating role of level of campaign exposure on subsequent selective perception processes. Using nationally representative survey data related to youth’s exposure and reception of several anti-tobacco campaigns in the U.S., this study found people’s tendency of selective perception but not selective exposure. Specifically, smoking status affected people’s degrees of campaign message disparagement but not their degree of campaign exposure. In addition, degree of campaign exposure affected the extent to which people engage in selective perception. The difference in message disparagement between non-smokers and smokers was larger among people who reported higher campaign exposure. Implications of selective processes for campaign effects are discussed.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: According to the mere exposure effect (Zajonc 1968), the mere unreinforced presentation of product placements can increase brand liking. In an experiment, we manipulated placement prominence and placement frequency for an externally and internally valid stimulus. As results indicate, a mere exposure effect can only be observed for frequently presented subtle placements, but not for prominent placements. The reason is that prominent placements lead to high placement recall which impedes positive attitudinal effects.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: Interracial exposure (p*) indices have been widely-used in studies of residential racial segregation. However, a recent pilot study raised serious issues about the use of these indices, because they are based on the mean statistic, which may yield misleading results in the case of skewed distributions, as is often the case with census tract racial compositions. An alternative median exposure index (p*-md) is proposed, and mean and median indices of white-to-African American and African American-to-white exposure are compared for the fifty largest metropolitan areas in the United States. The analysis shows that the two measures produce different results, and that these differences are maximized in those areas that are most segregated and, for African American-to-white exposure, in areas where the largest number of African Americans live. This creates significant problems in the interpretation and use of mean exposure indices, and in most cases, the median exposure index yields a result more representative of the residential neighborhood exposure of the majority of whites and African Americans.