I knew that British politicians groveled before Murdoch, but I too doubted that his papers had that big an effect on voting patterns. I was wrong.
…we exploit a rare change in communication flows—the endorsement switch to the Labour Party by several prominent British newspapers before the 1997 United Kingdom general election—to study the persuasive power of the news media…By comparing readers of newspapers that switched endorsements to similar individuals who did not read these newspapers, we estimate that these papers persuaded a considerable share of their readers to vote for Labour. Depending on the statistical approach, the point estimates vary from about 10% to as high as 25% of readers.
goblue72
More evidence as to why Sullivan doesn’t allow comments – every data-free assertion of his would be torn to shreds before the hour was out.
geg6
This is so obvious that I’m shocked and amazed it has to be re-iterated over and over and over. Nellie Bly and Catherine Graham are glad they are dead. William Randolph Hearst is thinking Americans are even bigger suckers at this turn of the century than they were at the last. And I’d wager he may be right.
Violet
Oh thank goodness the Monkey Cage post is a response to that ridiculous Sully post today. I was hoping it wasn’t just a coincidence.
If newspapers didn’t influence people, those that ran them wouldn’t waste any space and money on opinion columns and editorializing the news. Trying to argue otherwise is like saying advertisements or commercials don’t influence people. If they didn’t, no one would spend any effort or money making them. They work. That’s why they exist.
TX Expat
That’s remarkable. I’d like to see a similar study done on the effect of fox over here. Not so much for swinging elections since they’re wholly in the tank for R’s but for more of a radicalization effect.
sukabi
I wonder how that translates over here… you know that mystical 27% that continually shows up in the polls? It could be that they’re part of the group below…. it would be interesting to study the correlation between types of media consumption and mental illness…
An unprecedented 1 in 66 Americans is a diagnosed psychotic
Cat Lady
Would someone please explain to me like I’m five years old why we should care what Sully thinks? He’s a mostly wrong unselfaware drama queen. What am I missing?
Donuf
Who cares that it makes plants grow?
TX Expat
@sukabi:
Yes, the 27%. What I’d like to know is whether that number has remained steady over time, with their intensity/participation levels increasing since the advent of Fox or were there fewer of them in the 1970’s, say, I dunno, 16%?
Paging Rick Perlstein. Rick Perlstein to the white courtesy phone please.
Ol' Dirty DougJ
Not meant as an anti-Sully post, I was surprised by the findings.
Head Bulshytt Talker in Chief of the Temple of Libertarianism(superluminar)
@DougJ
I think you’re wrong about this. The murdoch papers didn’t have much effect on politicians but their influence was felt in in other ways..
Ed Marshall
@Head Bulshytt Talker in Chief of the Temple of Libertarianism(superluminar):
The study shows that endorsements have an effect on voters.
trollhattan
@ DougJ
“Not everyone”
Also, too, this scandal has legs well beyond what I ever expected or dreamed of. I remain skeptical it will cross the pond with adequate force to dent his empire here to any great extent. Pity.
Comrade Kevin
It’s weird for me about The Sun. From the first time I ever saw it, as an 8-year-old visiting relatives in Ireland back in the early 70’s, I’ve had an automatic reaction of revulsion to that “newspaper”.
gocart mozart
Velvet Underground reference. What do I win?