Relationship of media usage to attitudes toward police

The present study examined the contribution of exposure to entertainment and news media to attitudes toward police. Using a survey of young adults (N = 321), various media repertoires as well as other contributory variables, such as race and political affiliation, were regressed on theoretically derived attitudes toward police. Significant major predictor variables included race (African Americans), political point of view (liberal) and liberal media news outlets such as CNN and news satire shows ("The Daily Show"), all significantly associated with negative attitudes toward police. More positive associations were found for exposure to mainstream local and national TV news outlets. Practical and theoretical implications are discussed.