Sixth International Conference on Communication & Media Studies

Abstract

Advanced democracies are experiencing a legitimacy crisis with declining levels of trust in politicians, political parties, and the parliament. Communication scholars accentuate the role of television news for the spread of negativity, claiming that the audience is influenced by an increased focus on political strategy and a horse-race during political elections. By framing politicians as inattentive and absent from public interest, television news contributes to a state of videomalaise. A competing perspective claim that educated individuals critically evaluate the information presented by the media, which provide to a virtuous circle. Educated individuals are repeatedly described as critical, absorbent toward political information, and with a general interest in television news. My main research question is: How is political trust distributed according to the consumption of television news among educated individuals? I observe that none have examined this relationship among individuals with various educational attainments, or attempting to mimic a randomized control trial to obtain results with greater certainty. Applying single-level regression analysis and propensity score matching permits an examination comparable to the original findings of a state of videomalaise. Survey data collected by the European Social Survey allows an investigation that stretches across five media systems. The results suggest the absence of an educational effect, at least when measuring education in years and explaining political trust solely as trust in political institutions.