Media Coverage of Immigration and the Polarization of Attitudes

Sarah Schneider-Strawczynski () and Jérôme Valette
Additional contact information
Sarah Schneider-Strawczynski: University of Exeter

No 16681, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: This paper investigates the effect of media coverage on immigration attitudes. It combines data on immigration coverage in French television with individual panel data from 2013 to 2017 that records respondents' preferred television channel and attitudes toward immigration. The analysis focuses on within-individual variations over time, addressing ideological self-selection into channels. We find that increased coverage of immigration polarizes attitudes, with initially moderate individuals becoming more likely to report extremely positive and negative attitudes. This polarization is mainly driven by an increase in the salience of immigration, which reactivates preexisting prejudices, rather than persuasion effects from biased news consumption.

Keywords: polarization; media; immigration; salience (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D8 F22 L82 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 111 pages
Date: 2023-12
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-int and nep-pol
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

Published - published in: American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 2025, 17 (1), 337–368

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https://docs.iza.org/dp16681.pdf (application/pdf)

Related works:
Journal Article: Media Coverage of Immigration and the Polarization of Attitudes (2025)
Working Paper: Media Coverage of Immigration and the Polarization of Attitudes (2025)
Working Paper: Media Coverage of Immigration and the Polarization of Attitudes (2025)
Working Paper: Media Coverage of Immigration and the Polarization of Attitudes (2024)
Working Paper: Media Coverage of Immigration and the Polarization of Attitudes (2021)
Working Paper: Media Coverage of Immigration and the Polarization of Attitudes (2021)
Working Paper: Media Coverage of Immigration and the Polarization of Attitudes (2021)
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