Why Doesn't More Time Make MSNBC Seem Fair? For Democrats Yes, for Republicans No

New findings challenge simplistic views of partisan media consumption.

The Setup

This study improves upon previous research by using a week-long online news portal with randomly assigned feeds that feature either in-party or out-party media outlets.

What We Found

• Sustained exposure to out-party news (Fox News for Democrats) reduced perceptions of unfairness toward the opposing outlet.
• This effect was not observed when Democrats repeatedly consumed MSNBC, their own party's outlet.
• In contrast, repeated exposure to in-party news increased Republican beliefs that Fox News is unfair.

So What?

These results update our understanding of how partisan media consumption operates beyond short-term experiments. They suggest the online news environment has more complex effects on political perceptions than previously thought.