**Principal Investigator(s):**
**Emily Thorson**
Syracuse University
Email: [eathorso@maxwell.syr.edu][1]
Home page: [https://www.maxwell.syr.edu/psc/Thorson,_Emily/][2]
**Sample size**: 2118
**Field period**: 05/14/2019-01/10/2020
**Abstract**
This project is part of a study designed to examine how the media cover the issue of misinformation and how exposure to this coverage affects beliefs and attitudes. It replicates and expands on a previous experiment showing that exposure to news coverage of misinformation makes people less trusting of news on social media, but increases trust in print media. The results of these studies offer some reassurance about the potential for media coverage of misinformation to erode public trust.
**Hypotheses**
H1A: Increasing the salience of misinformation will decrease trust in news from social media.
H1B: Increasing the salience of misinformation will increase trust in mainstream news sources.
H2A: Increasing the salience of misinformation on social media will increase trust in mainstream news sources.
H2B: Increasing the salience of misinformation on social media will decrease trust in social media news sources.
**Experimental Manipulations**
The experiment is a 2 (social media mention) x 2 (question order) experiment in which participants are made aware of the volume of media coverage of misinformation, then asked about their trust in media.
**Outcomes**
The two dependent variables of interest are “trust in social media” (an index of trust in Facebook and Twitter) and “trust in mainstream news sources” (an index of trust in local newspapers, national newspapers, and network TV news)
**Summary of Results**
Exposure to the misinformation cue significantly decreases trust in news from social media, and increases trust in print media.
There is no effect of the social media cue.
**References**
Thorson, Emily. How News Coverage of Misinformation Shapes Attitudes (under review)
[1]: mailto:eathorso@maxwell.syr.edu
[2]: https://www.maxwell.syr.edu/psc/Thorson,_Emily/
