Media and Policy

Faruk Gul and Wolfgang Pesendorfer
Additional contact information
Faruk Gul: Princeton University
Wolfgang Pesendorfer: Princeton University

Working Papers from Princeton University. Economics Department.

Abstract: We identify a mechanism through which media concentration reduces political polarization and media competition (via specialization) increases polarization. This mechanism may help explain the patterns of US Congressional polarization. To avoid offending potential customers, a concentrated media seldom makes clear-cut endorsements and, as a result, provides little information. This leads to the convergence of party policy positions. Under competition, media companies specialize to a narrow ideological spectrum and, as a result, can offer strong endorsements without risk of offending customers. This leads to the divergence of party’s policy positions, that is, political polarization.

Keywords: Media; Party Policies (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D73 D78 L82 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2012-09
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.princeton.edu/~pesendor/media.pdf

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:pri:econom:2012-2

Access Statistics for this paper

More papers in Working Papers from Princeton University. Economics Department. Contact information at EDIRC.
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Bobray Bordelon ().