Articles by Rebecca Scheffauer
Journalism, 2023
Research has shown positive attitudes toward journalists and their roles foster prodemocratic out... more Research has shown positive attitudes toward journalists and their roles foster prodemocratic outcomes. With the rise of social media as news sources, algorithms operate as gatekeepers, which may alter linkages between public opinion, journalists, and media trust. However, results from a panel-survey conducted in the U.S. underline citizens' preference for journalist gatekeeping in fueling trust in traditional and social media news. Conversely, preference for algorithmic news selection does not affect people's levels of trust. Furthermore, traditional news use moderates this relationship as those who report higher traditional news use and a preference for professional news gatekeeping trust
Telematics and Informatics, 2023
With the rise of the internet and social media, many people find their news online, often only in... more With the rise of the internet and social media, many people find their news online, often only incidentally. Burgeoning research in this line of inquiry has explored the connection between incidental exposure to news (INE) and participatory political behaviors. However, certain peculiarities still need to be addressed in this area. Working with panel survey data from the United States, in this study, we uncover the relationship between incidental news exposure and political consumerism as well as nuances thereof. While there is a positive connection between overall INE and consumerism, our findings reveal that different effects emerge depending on the place of incidental exposure (on social media, traditional media, or online), thus highlighting that the focus on social media INE applied in many studies needs to be broadened. Furthermore, we find differences between those who boycott and buycott, challenging the traditional composition of the political consumerism measurement.
Mass Communication and Society, 2023
News organizations require sustainable business models with reliable revenue streams to perform t... more News organizations require sustainable business models with reliable revenue streams to perform their intended function in liberal democracies. Since the digital transition, however, many citizens have considerably shown high reluctance to pay for digital content, consequently jeopardizing journalists’ watchdog role and substantially eroding media independence. Based on a two-wave panel survey from the United States, this study seeks to investigate the antecedents of readers’ paying behavior for news, focusing on the role of social media news use and media skepticism. Findings reveal that users’ frequency of social media news use is associated with future paying behavior, while higher levels of media skepticism significantly inhibit readers’ payment. The analyses also show that while those reporting low media skepticism are initially more inclined to pay for news, high levels of social media news use function to largely overcome this gap. The study argues that the role of social media in delivering news should be redefined in light of the new paid content strategies implemented by news organizations.
Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 2023
Research on the origin, dissemination, and support of conspiracy theories has skyrocketed. Studie... more Research on the origin, dissemination, and support of conspiracy theories has skyrocketed. Studies reveal how individual antecedents such as people's personality traits, intrinsic motivations, and broad social-psychological processes explain this phenomenon. Fewer studies, however, explored the role of cable news exposure. This study casts a new light on how exposure to Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC relate to people's levels of general conspiracy mentality fueled by the belief in "secret-plotting orchestrated by powerful others." Results from K-mean cluster algorithms, ordinary least squares (OLS) causalautoregressive regressions, and cross-lagged panel structural equation model tests show Fox News exposure fosters people's conspiracy mentality.
Online Information Review, 2021
Papers by Rebecca Scheffauer
Profesional de la información, 2024
Technological media effects scholarship in the field of journalism and communication is experienc... more Technological media effects scholarship in the field of journalism and communication is experiencing a reinvigorated blooming due to the role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and algorithm-based information. From news production to distribution and consumption, the whole journalistic chain of information media ecosystems and the principles that govern them have all been deeply transformed with the advent of AI and algorithmic tools. Drawing from wellestablished normative principles that have guided the journalistic profession, this paper seeks to synthesize the current state of research on AI and algorithm-based news by providing a principle-based theoretical framework of news media. In doing so, the paper organizes a comparison between algorithmic news versus non-algorithmic news according to three foundational pillars sustaining journalism research: news production, selection, and effects thereof.
Drawing on a Spanish representative two-wave panel survey, this study examines the role predictin... more Drawing on a Spanish representative two-wave panel survey, this study examines the role predicting the intent for paying for news of (a) a culture of free mindset, and (b) pay for news injustice. Findings suggest that both variables negatively predict citizens’ intent to pay for public affairs information. Furthermore, the study also advances the moderating role of political interest on these effects, which increases the intentions to pay for news, particularly for those who report low levels of culture of free mindset and pay for news injustice.
Online Information Review, 2021
Book Reviews by Rebecca Scheffauer
The International Journal of Press/Politics, 2022
With Politics and Political Elites in Latin America, the reader is offered insights into topics r... more With Politics and Political Elites in Latin America, the reader is offered insights into topics related to politics in 18 countries. Structured in two parts, Democracy and Institutions and Case Studies, a total of 14 chapters covers key areas to better understand today's complex Latin American political context, including: political ambition, political institutions, and satisfaction with democracy. All studies draw from the Parliamentary Elites in Latin America (PELA) dataset curated by the University of Salamanca. The dataset includes interviews with politicians for over 20 years, allowing scientists to explore a unique set of aspects of democracy and political life. Moving slightly away from the thematic distribution offered by the book, we would like to discuss the main arguments presented by focusing on three specific areas within the first section of the book: elites, legislators, and legislative elites. Then, we will discuss the case studies. Elites The role of political elites across diverse democratic settings has gathered consistent attention in political communication literature for decades (e.g. Cotta et al. 2017; Eldersveld 1989). However, few efforts are geographically comprehensive within Latin America. In this book, five chapters focus on political elites represented in the PELA dataset, encompassing interviews with legislators in lower chambers. The first chapter by Barragán et al. details the PELA project, serving as an introductory basis for other studies presented. With a lack of research on the subject, a systematic interview question protocol was devised to study political elites. The authors lay Book Review
Books by Rebecca Scheffauer
For over two decades, political communication research hashailed the potentially reinvigorating e... more For over two decades, political communication research hashailed the potentially reinvigorating effect of social media ondemocracy. Social media was expected to provide new opportunitiesfor people to learn about politics and public affairs, and to participatepolitically. Building on two systematic literature reviews on socialmedia, and its effects on political participation and knowledge(2000–2020), and introducing empirical evidence drawing on fouroriginal US survey datasets expanding over a decade (2009–2019), thisElement contends that social media has only partially fulfilled this tenet,producing a Social Media Democracy Mirage. That is, social media haveled to a socio-political paradox in which people are more participatorythan ever, yet not necessarily more informed.
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Articles by Rebecca Scheffauer
Papers by Rebecca Scheffauer
Book Reviews by Rebecca Scheffauer
Books by Rebecca Scheffauer