3RD-PERSON EFFECTS OF NEWS COVERAGE - ORIENTATIONS TOWARD MEDIA

This research focused on empirical connections between third-person ef fects and media orientations - general beliefs about news and characte ristic uses of the news media. The study examined the contributions of three groups of independent variables, including political factors, m edia schemas, and media use, to third-person effects. Results of regre ssion analyses suggest that each of the three groups of variables is m odestly related to the magnitude of third-person effects, but none ind ividually has great predictive power or necessarily alters third-perso n effects in a given news scenario. Finally, the mechanisms by which d ifferent variables influence the magnitude of third-person effects cle arly vary. Over all, the results suggest only modest connections betwe en individual differences in media orientations and the tendency to ex hibit third-person effects.