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An Analysis of the Effects of Voters' Mass Media Use on Political Behaviors in the 1996 Taiwan Presidential Election

Hsiu-hui Sun
1996 / 11
Volume 3, No.2

pp.71-105
Paper

Abstract

The present study analyzes the effects of voters' massmedia use on their political behaviors during the 1996 Taiwan Presidential Election. The research findings indicate that the superior status of mainstream media has been threatened by new media that enjoy a rapid growth in the market for the past few years, while dissident media's influence is not as strong as they used to be. We find that there is a steady and positive relationship between the degree of media use and voters' acquisition of political knowledge, and that voters supporting different candidates tend to expose themselves to different types of mass media. In addition, we find that supporters of President Lee Teng-Hui resemble characters central to those of "the chronic know-nothings", and such findings warrant further analysis.

Keywords

Mass media use

New media

Chronic know-nothings