Exposure to News, Political Comedy, and Entertainment Talk Shows: Concern about Security and Political Mistrust

Previous research has demonstrated that exposure to news media increases viewers' concerns about national security, as well as their mistrust of politicians and government. However, the contribution of entertainment media to security concerns and trust in government has received only scant attention in previous research, conducted mainly in the American context. The current investigation explores possible associations between exposure to news and political entertainment and concern about security and political mistrust using survey data (n = 512) collected in Israel in the aftermath of the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah conflict. Results demonstrate that exposure to entertainment talk shows was related to greater concern about security and high levels of political trust, while exposure to political comedy was related to reduced concerns about security and lower levels of political trust. News exposure was not significantly related to security concerns and political trust.