Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2017
Abstract
On contemporary online news sites, readers are simultaneously exposed to journalistic articles and social reactions toward these messages. Two online experiments (N = 252) addressed whether negative user reactions can attenuate the persuasive influence of the main article, and whether these effects depend on the reputation of the original source. Results showed a selective consideration of user-generated content: Readers took into account comments with high argument quality and ratings of a credible website but did not follow others’ opinions if the comments merely contained subjective evaluations. On less reputable websites, user reactions were less influential. Findings are discussed with regard to the interplay of multiple sources.
Recommended Citation
Winter, S., Krämer, N. C., & Liang, Y. (2017). User-generated opinion: How reader reactions and source reputation influence the effects of online news. SCM Studies in Communication and Media, 6(3), 240–261. https://doi.org/10.5771/2192-4007-2017-3-240
Copyright
Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.
Included in
Communication Technology and New Media Commons, Critical and Cultural Studies Commons, Journalism Studies Commons, Mass Communication Commons, Other Communication Commons, Social Influence and Political Communication Commons, Social Media Commons
Comments
This article was originally published in SCM Studies in Communication and Media, volume 6, issue 3, in 2017. DOI: 10.5771/2192-4007-2017-3-240