E-lections: Voting Behavior and the Internet

被引:140
作者
Falck, Oliver [1 ,2 ]
Gold, Robert [3 ]
Heblich, Stephan [4 ,5 ,6 ]
机构
[1] Univ Munich, Leibniz Inst Econ Res, Ifo Inst, D-81679 Munich, Germany
[2] CESifo, Munich, Germany
[3] Kiel Inst World Econ, D-24105 Kiel, Germany
[4] Univ Bristol, Dept Econ, Bristol BS8 1TN, Avon, England
[5] IZA, CESifo, Munich, Germany
[6] SERC, Madras, Tamil Nadu, India
关键词
BROAD-BAND; MEDIA BIAS; COMPETITION; COVERAGE; WAGES;
D O I
10.1257/aer.104.7.2238
中图分类号
F [经济];
学科分类号
02 ;
摘要
This paper analyzes the effects on voting behavior of information disseminated over the Internet. We address endogeneity in Internet availability by exploiting regional and technological peculiarities of the preexisting voice telephony network that hindered the roll-out of fixed-line infrastructure for high-speed Internet. We find negative effects of Internet availability on voter turnout, which we relate to a crowding-out of TV consumption and increased entertainment consumption. We find no evidence that the Internet systematically benefits specific parties, suggesting ideological self-segregation in online information consumption. Robustness tests, including placebo estimations from the pre-Internet period, support a causal interpretation of our results.
引用
收藏
页码:2238 / 2265
页数:28
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