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Communication Professor on Partisans Media Habits

January 31, 2012

Communication Professor on Partisans Media Habits

R. Kelly Garrett, assistant professor of communication, is co-author of a new study that shows most political partisans don't avoid news and opinion sources that contradict their own beliefs, contrary to conventional wisdom.

While the internet has given users the opportunity to consume only information that they already agree with, this research suggests people aren't doing that.  In fact, the more that self-described liberals and conservatives visited online sources supportive of their beliefs, the more likely they were to also view opposition websites, as well as general news sites.

Garrett conducted the study with Dustin Carnahan and Emily Lynch, graduate students in political science. Their results appear online in the journal Political Behavior and will be published in a future print edition.

"People aren't systematically avoiding websites that challenge their political views," said Garrett. "They certainly are inclined to seek out sources that reinforce their views, but the more they do that, the more likely they are to at least sample sources that challenge their opinion."

Read the rest of the story, courtesy of Jeff Grabmeier, office of research communications. http://researchnews.osu.edu/archive/selectexp.htm