Research report | 2/26/18
SNS Research Brief 43. Social Media and Political Polarization
2/26/18
By many measures, Americans have become increasingly politically polarized in recent decades. Many authors attribute this trend, in part, to the rise of social media and the Internet. However, what do we really know about the role of digital media in driving this trend? This report summarizes some of the latest research on digital media and, more specifically, the role of social media for political polarization. In addition, the author analyzes how the development of the political polarization is related to news consumption via Internet and social media using data from the American National Election Study.
Author
Matthew Gentzkow, Professor of Economics, Stanford University.
Other research report on Democracy and society
Research report Democracy and societyIncreasing Productivity through Education and Innovation
Despite rapid technological progress, productivity growth has slowed across advanced economies. In Sweden, as in other advanced economies, productivity growth has been...
Research report Democracy and societySNS Democracy Council Report 2026: The Swedish Riksdag and Democracy
Swedish parliamentary democracy functions well in several respects. Parliament legislates at a stable pace and the scrutiny by the Committee on the...
Research report Democracy and societyDeterminants of Recidivism: How Criminal Justice Interactions and the Post-Release Environment Affect Repeat Offending
Over four out of ten of all individuals previously convicted of a crime return to criminal activities within a few years’ time. To reduce the risk of recidivism and the resulting costs to society, it is important to identify what factors causally impact reoffending. This, in turn, offers the basis for more evidence-based criminal justice policies, as argued by economist Randi Hjalmarson in a new SNS report.
Research report Democracy and societyBusiness Owners and Consumers Against the Mafia
Organized crime is becoming a growing problem for Swedish companies. A new SNS report shows that the efforts to combat the mafia in Italy may offer us valuable lessons. In Italy, the so-called “three legs” – political commitment, adequate laws and civil society engagement – have played a key role in terms of successfully combatting the mafia, writes political scientist Carina Gunnarson.