News Recommendations from Social Media Opinion Leaders: Effects on Media Trust and Information Seeking |
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| Authors: | Jason Turcotte Chance York Jacob Irving Rosanne M Scholl Raymond J Pingree |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Department of Communication, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, CA 91768;2. School of Journalism and Mass Communication, Kent State University, Kent, OH;3. Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA;4. Manship School of Mass Communication, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA |
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| Abstract: | Polls show a strong decline in public trust of traditional news outlets; however, social media offers new avenues for receiving news content. This experiment used the Facebook API to manipulate whether a news story appeared to have been posted on Facebook by one of the respondent's real‐life Facebook friends. Results show that social media recommendations improve levels of media trust, and also make people want to follow more news from that particular media outlet in the future. Moreover, these effects are amplified when the real‐life friend sharing the story on social media is perceived as an opinion leader. Implications for democracy and the news business are discussed. |
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| Keywords: | Social Media News Media Effects Experiment Opinion Leader Media Trust Two‐Step Flow Interpersonal Communication |
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