Political Communication in Wartime Ukraine

• In Event: 20220 - Section on Communication, Information Technology, and Media Sociology Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Section on Communication, Information Technology, and Media Sociology Roundtable IV: Digital Infrastructure II

Abstract

The Russia-Ukraine war is the first war between industrialized countries since 1945. It offers a unique opportunity to research how political communication works during wartime. Using media system dependency theory (MSD) and data from a representative sample of the Ukrainian population, we examine how news interest, credibility judgments, and wartime disruption are associated with media use. We find three categories of media use: online media, traditional media, and independent media. Credibility is the most important predictor of all types of media use. Credibility has different forms for different media types. Confirmation of information is most important for online media and traditional media, while trust is most important for traditional media. We suggest these differences are due to differences in the structure and organization of the different media types. Online media and independent media may be faster at reporting breaking news, while traditional media do more careful sourcing and fact-checking. We suggest combining MSD theory with source credibility theory would be a fruitful theoretical advance.

Author

• Grant Blank, University of Oxford