Polarizing Impact of Internet-based News

Polarizing Impact of Internet-based News
Student’s Name
Institution
Research Paper Summary
In their article, Tewksbury and Riles (2015) examine how exposure to news on the internet can perpetuate polarization. The information that people consume through the internet play a key role in influencing individual deliberation and decision making. People rely significantly on information and opinions from news outlets and when the news sources share imperfect information, there is a threat to the political knowledge held by the audience.
People in the contemporary age either select the content and channels they consume their news from or use those that are available to them. People prefer certain media content based on some predispositions that influence their news consumption pattern. People’s selection of the media content is influenced by their age, sex, education, and income. This selection is also influenced by their dispositions as people tend to avoid content that threatens their dispositions. When people select their news media sources, they choose among the various outlets, each having specialized on particular issues.
The consumption of news based on aspects such as race, political party, and socioeconomic status means that a systematic separation among people occurs. This means that there is a potential to increase polarization when people consume different sets of news over the internet. Selective news exposure means that people from different political and social groups, who already have diverging opinions and perceptions, can identify and follow news content that aligns with their predispositions.
The researchers expected that with an elevated consumption of news over the internet, there would be increased polarization among people of different income groups regarding social and economic policies. The study...