Image Versus Text: How Newspaper Reports Affect Evaluations of Political Candidates

• In Event: News Media Effects

Abstract

News coverage has become more visual and research suggests that news images affect assessments of political candidates. This study experimentally investigates textual versus visual messages effects on assessments of politicians’ competency and integrity, differentially for males and females. The results show that differences in visual favorability, combined with positive or negative verbal information, shapes how people perceive male and female political candidates. Findings suggest that images do matter, but not more so than text, and depending on the type of assessment and candidate gender. Results are discussed in light of the image superiority effect and its applicability to political communication.

Authors

• Mark Boukes, University of Amsterdam / ASCoR

• Aurora Iorgoveanu, National School of Political and Administrative Studies

• Hajo G. Boomgaarden, U of Vienna