Accept No Substitutes!...Well, Maybe Some: Online Political Information Credibility and Media Substitution Thomas J. Johnson, Ph.D. Amon G. Carter, Jr. Centennial Professor University of Texas at Austin Barbara K. Kaye, Ph.D. University of Tennessee at Knoxville Aimee Meader University of Texas at Austin

Media Substitution Theory If two media are functionally equivalent and serve the same purpose consumers will select the one that best meets their needs (substitution) Media Supplementation Theory If individuals see different media as serving different functions they will use both media to gratify their different needs (supplementation)

Problem Statement This study investigates whether perceptions of credibility of alternative sources affect judgments of credibility and the amount of time spent on traditionally delivered sources (broadcast television news and newspapers) after controlling for demographic and political variables.

Alternative Sources of News *Political Sites *Political Blogs *Parody News Shows * Talk Radio

Characteristics of Alternative Media *Powered by ordinary citizens rather than by professionals *Challenge existing power structures *Provide a platform for the views of citizen groups *Solicit feedback through open forums *Attempt to mobilize citizens through in-depth politicized social commentary

Alternative Media *Appeals to niche audience *Attracts like-minded followers Messages judged of higher quality Messages judged more credible *Credibility could increase with more exposure Reliance linked with perceived trustworthiness

Research Questions RQ1: To what degree does credibility of alternative sources (political websites, political blogs, parody news programs and talk radio) influence credibility of traditionally delivered newspapers and broadcast television news after controlling for political and demographic variables? RQ2: To what degree does credibility of alternative sources (political websites, political blogs, parody news programs and talk radio) influence the amount of the time spent with traditionally delivered newspapers and broadcast television news after controlling for political and demographic variables?

Study Variables Media Credibility: Believability, fairness, accuracy, and depth of information. Time Spent with Traditional Media Political Attributes Knowledge about and interest in politics Knowledge about and interest in the 2008 presidential campaign Demographics Age Income Education Gender

RegressionsRegressions The dependent variables were credibility and reliance on traditional media

For Both Regressions… Block One: Gender, age, education, income Block Two: Political interest, political knowledge, election interest, election knowledge, trust, self-efficacy, political ideology, strength of party ties Block Three: Credibility of alternative sources (political sites, political blogs, parody news programs, talk radio)

Credibility of Traditional & Alternative Media *Political blogs are ranked the most credible source for political news (m=12.3 credibility index, range 4-20) *Political websites as the next highest in credibility (m=11.7). *Traditionally delivered newspapers (m=10.7) *Talk radio (m=9.9) *Parody news programs (m=8.9) *Broadcast television news (m=8.9)

Do perceptions of credibility of alternative sources of political news predict credibility of traditional sources of news? Broadcast Television News Credibility is positively influenced by credibility of parody news programs (  =.37, p<.001) and talk radio (  =.07, p<.001) Credibility is negatively predicted by the credibility of political blogs (  =-.13, p<.001

Do perceptions of credibility of alternative sources of political news predict credibility of traditional sources of news? Newspapers Judgments of high credibility of printed newspapers is predicted by high credibility of parody news programs (  =.39, p<.00) Higher judgments of credibility of political sites (  =-.07, p<.001) and political blogs (  =-.04, p<.05) lead to lower assessments of newspaper credibility.

Time Spent with Traditional Media Broadcast TV News Higher levels of credibility of parody news shows (  =.16, p<.001) and talk radio (  =.05, p<.01), but lower credibility of political blogs (  =-.20 p<.001), lead to more time spent watching broadcast television news. Newspapers The amount of time spent with newspapers is predicted by high credibility of parody news sites (  =.21, p<.001), but low credibility of political blogs (  =-.13, p<.001).

Political Websites Credibility of political websites had no influence on time spent with traditional media Respondents who deem parody news programs as highly credible have increased the amount of time they spend watching broadcast television news and reading printed newspapers Parody News Talk Radio Talk radio has no effect on time spent with newspapers. Talk radio is not at substitute for newspapers Talk radio credibility increases time spent with broadcast news

RegressionsRegressions Do perceptions of credibility of alternative sources of political information predict credibility of traditional media? YES Do credibility assessments of alternative sources of political information influence time spent with traditional media? YES: Parody News NO: Talk Radio & Political Websites

Traditional Sources of News People have reduced the amount of time they spend watching television news and reading printed newspapers since they began using the Internet.

Future Studies & Limitations Reverse Order? Drops in credibility and time spent with traditional media might boost credibility of alternative news sources Brand vs. Genre: It is unclear, whether respondents were judging the credibility of brand sources, such as Huffington Post or New York Times, rather than the genre. Future Studies: Researchers should include additional sources of political information, such as social network sites and news aggregators