Julia Metag

Framing Emerging Technologies: Risk Perceptions of Nanotechnology in the German Press

Nanotechnology cannot be directly experienced and observed—all that people know about it and their interpretations and opinions are mainly based on information from the mass media. Therefore, this first systematic study of the German media coverage about nanotechnology aims to analyse the media frames of this emerging technology. It comprises a standardized content analysis of nine print media from 2000 to 2008, which shows that the German media framing is predominantly very positive, specifically emphasizing the medical and economic benefits of nanotechnology. There is hardly any critical coverage opposing this one-sided perspective of progress. This result corresponds to the international media coverage.

Why Do Candidates Use Online Media in Constituency Campaigning? An Application of the Theory of Planned behavior

ABSTRACT Campaigners are increasingly citing the Web as an important election tool for candidates and parties to communicate with voters; however, to what extent is this rhetoric matched to reality? Evidence suggests there is something of a gap in the importance attributed to the medium and the extent to which it is actually adopted. Most studies of the drivers of Web campaigning to date have focused on the environmental factors and personal resources that determine individuals’ use of the medium. We argue here that such models miss a key layer of explanation in accounting for web uptake by politicians—that of individual attitudes and subjective assessments of the value of the Internet as a campaign tool. More specifically, by applying the Theory of Planned Behavior, we account for patterns of Web campaign activity among candidates in a German state level election. We test our model on survey data and an independent audit of Web use by candidates. Our findings confirm that there is a large discrepancy between the intention to use Web campaigning and actual adoption. Furthermore, the theory is confirmed as a useful explanatory of the Web campaigning that does occur, although the individual components of the theory vary in importance.

Global warming’s five Germanys: A typology of Germans’ views on climate change and patterns of media use and information:

People’s attitudes toward climate change differ, and these differences may correspond to distinct patterns of media use and information seeking. However, studies extending analyses of attitude types and their specific media diets to countries beyond the United States are lacking. We use a secondary analysis of survey data from Germany to identify attitudes toward climate change among the German public and specify those segments of the population based on their media use and information seeking. Similar to the Global Warming’s Six Americas study, we find distinct attitudes (Global Warming’s Five Germanys) that differ in climate change–related perceptions as well as in media use and communicative behavior. These findings can help tailor communication campaigns regarding climate change to specific audiences.

The special case of Switzerland: Swiss politicians on Twitter

We analyse the use of Twitter in political communication in Switzerland because, in comparison with other democracies, Switzerland with its strong federalism, fragmented party system, small country size and semi-professional politicians can be seen as the least-likely critical case, thus creating unique conditions for the use of social media. The study investigates the individual characteristics of Swiss Members of Parliament that could influence social media usage. Thus, the study contributes to the debate about equalization and normalization with respect to Twitter as a relevant microblogging channel for political communication and to the significance of country-specific conditions for the adoption of innovations in political online communication. The study explains the shift from equalization towards normalization with the diffusion of innovations theory.

Perceptions of Climate Change Imagery: Evoked Salience and Self-Efficacy in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria

Prevalent in mass media worldwide, climate change imagery appears to be similar across countries. Replicating a study from the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia, we analyze whether these images are perceived in similar ways cross-nationally by studying Germany, Switzerland, and Austria. A total of 75 respondents sorted images with respect to their perceptions of salience and self-efficacy (Q method). They associated images of climate change impacts most strongly with salience, while they related imagery of renewable energies and mobility to self-efficacy. These findings suggest that perceptions of climate change visuals are largely consistent cross-culturally. They indicate that imagery that is frequently used in media is rarely associated with feelings of salience or self-efficacy.

Technophobia towards emerging technologies? A comparative analysis of the media coverage of nanotechnology in Austria, Switzerland and Germany

This article examines, through a systematic study of the German, Swiss and Austrian media framing of nanotechnology, whether the concept of a journalistic negativity bias applies to the media coverage of nanotechnology. According to this objectivist approach of risk communication, the media coverage of emerging technologies used to be comparatively too negative. However, the concept has been debated through studies revealing a positivity bias and approaches focusing on contextual elements of journalism. A standardized content analysis of German, Swiss and Austrian print media from 2000 to 2009 analyzes whether negativity bias applies to the media coverage of nanotechnology. We find the media coverage to be predominantly very positive with barely any critical coverage opposing this one-sided perspective of progress. The hypothesis of journalistic technophobia and negativity bias is not supported by the media coverage of nanotechnology. Rather, the results suggest that the media are promoting new technologies.

The different audiences of science communication: A segmentation analysis of the Swiss population’s perceptions of science and their information and media use patterns:

Few studies have assessed whether populations can be divided into segments with different perceptions of science. We provide such an analysis and assess whether these segments exhibit specific patterns of media and information use. Based on representative survey data from Switzerland, we use latent class analysis to reconstruct four segments: the “Sciencephiles,” with strong interest for science, extensive knowledge, and a pronounced belief in its potential, who use a variety of sources intensively; the “Critically Interested,” also with strong interest and support for science but with less trust in it, who use similar sources but are more cautious toward them; the “Passive Supporters” with moderate levels of interest, trust, and knowledge and tempered perceptions of science, who use fewer sources; and the “Disengaged,” who are not interested in science, do not know much about it, harbor critical views toward it, and encounter it—if at all—mostly through television.

Journalists’ Use of Political Tweets: Functions for journalistic work and the role of perceived influences

Many politicians as well as journalists are using Twitter regularly and are connected on the microblogging platform. We use the agenda-building approach as conceptual background because political tweets can serve as information subsidies if they are used by journalists, indicating an agenda-building influence by politicians. It has not yet been systematically investigated which functions of a political tweet make it more likely for it to be used by a journalist and to which extent the journalist’s Twitter network plays a role in this process. We analyze which functions of political tweets explain their use as information subsidies and integrate the influence of the journalists’ Twitter networks. The study is based on a unique combination of an online survey of Swiss journalists in 2014 with an analysis of the journalists’ Twitter metrics. It demonstrates that political tweets are most likely to be used by journalists if they can quote the politicians’ tweets, which fosters their significance as information subsidies. Also, journalists who have many politicians as followers perceive that they can influence politicians they do not know personally. This underscores that if the Twitter network is included in the analysis of agenda-building processes, potential reciprocal influences can be detected.

Brute force effects of mass media presence and social media activity on electoral outcome

ABSTRACT In this study, we analyze whether the mere volume of presence in mass media and the mere volume of activity on social media convey advantages to candidates in parliamentary elections. Based on the theoretical model of bounded rationality, we call these potential effects brute force effects. During the last month of the election campaign of the Swiss federal election of 2015, we tracked the presence of all 873 candidates in the canton of Zurich, the most populous canton, in a broad sample of mass media. Additionally, we tracked those candidates’ activity on Facebook and Twitter. The results of our multilevel Bayesian estimates show that mass media presence has a consistent nontrivial impact on different aspects of electoral outcome. Furthermore, social media activity also has a nontrivial impact, but only in terms of resonance (reactions to candidates’ social media activity). Overall, our results suggest that brute force effects of of mass media presence and social media activity can have substantial impact on voting behavior.

How journalists verify user-generated content during terrorist crises. Analyzing Twitter communication during the Brussels attacks

Social media, and Twitter in particular, have become important sources for journalists in times of crises. User-generated content (UGC) can provide journalists with on-site information and material they otherwise would not have access to. But how they source and verify UGC has not yet been systematically analyzed. This study analyzes sourcing and verification practices on Twitter during the Brussels attacks in March 2016. Based on quantitative content analysis, we identified (1) the journalists and news organizations sourcing during the attacks, (2) classified different forms of sourcing and verification requests, and (3) analyzed the sourced UGC. Results show that sourcing on Twitter has become a global phenomenon. During the first hours of the attack, journalists rely on UGC. Their sourcing and verification practices vary widely and often lack basic verification procedures, which leads to a discussion about the ethical implications of sourcing practices.