Silvia Majó-Vázquez thus found that reading news via mobile phones leads to more diverse news consumption. This difference is partly explained by the fact that news brand recognition, or ‘brand awareness,’ is lower on mobile phones and tablets. In addition, mobile devices are often used on the move, for instance during commuting or when people are engaged in other activities. Majó-Vázquez: ‘These conditions mean that users spend less time and attention filtering news that does not match their personal beliefs, which in turn leads to greater exposure to “cross-cutting content”, or news that highlights different points of view.
Traditional media versus digital media
The results are part of a larger project, where Majó-Vázquez and colleagues in the US, Singapore, Hong Kong and Spain are collecting digital data for 24 countries from 2014 to 2024. The aim of the project is to understand how online news consumption takes place in different media systems and what role political ideology plays in how citizens consume news . ‘Contrary to what most scientists think, traditional news media still play a central role in news consumption versus digital media,’ explains the communication scientist, ‘During major events, such as elections, in countries like France, the UK or Germany, they are still the main news providers. These media, usually newspapers and broadcasters, tend to be more internally diverse, or in other words, they offer content aimed at a wider audience and therefore less extreme.'
Interestingly, the study also shows that the audience's political ideology is neither the only nor the most important factor in the choices people make while navigating the vast array of news stories. Education, economic background or regional differences, like languages, probably play a bigger role. How and why people choose particular news sources is further difficult to determine, especially when accessing information via mobile devices.
US elections
The findings of this research are relevant in the context of the US elections. Majó-Vázquez says: ‘Indeed, a more diverse news diet, enabled by mobile news use, could affect how voters are informed and how they make their political choices. As people access more diverse news sources via mobile devices, they could theoretically come into contact with a wider range of views.'
'While this may have positive implications for exposure to different points of view, it remains to be seen whether it actually contributes to a better-informed public and less polarisation in society. The findings have implications for the way news is disseminated and consumed, especially in the context of technological platforms and major political events such as elections,' Majó-Vázquez said.