This paper investigates the relationship between media bias and the influence of the media on voting in the context of newspaper endorsements. We first develop a simple econometric model in which voters choose candidates under uncertainty and rely on endorsements from better informed sources. Newspapers are potentially biased in favor of one of the candidates and voters thus rationally account for the credibility of any endorsements. Our primary empirical finding is that endorsements are influential in the sense that voters are more likely to support the recommended candidate after publication of the endorsement. The degree of this influence, however, depends upon the credibility of the endorsement. In this way, endorsements for the Democratic candidate from left-leaning newspapers are less influential than are endorsements from neutral or right-leaning newspapers, and likewise for endorsements for the Republican. These findings suggest that voters do rely on the media for information during campaigns but that the extent of this reliance depends upon the degree and direction of any bias.
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Paper provided by National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc in its series NBER Working Papers with number
14445.
Length: Date of creation: Oct 2008 Date of revision: Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:14445
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Simeon Djankov & Caralee McLiesh & Tatiana Nenova & Andrei Shleifer, 2001.
"Who Owns the Media?,"
NBER Working Papers
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[Downloadable!] (restricted)
Jeffrey Milyo & Tim Groseclose, 2005.
"A Measure of Media Bias,"
Working Papers
0501, Department of Economics, University of Missouri, revised 25 Aug 2005.
[Downloadable!]
Sendhil Mullainathan & Andrei Shleifer, 2005.
"The Market for News,"
American Economic Review,
American Economic Association, vol. 95(4), pages 1031-1053, September.
[Downloadable!]
Gene M. Grossman & Elhanan Helpman, 1999.
"Competing for Endorsements,"
American Economic Review,
American Economic Association, vol. 89(3), pages 501-524, June.
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