Political Advertising and Information Seeking: Comparing Exposure via Traditional and Internet Channels

Abstract This experimental research compares exposure to presidential ads via the Internet versus traditional channels in the 2000 presidential campaign. The results indicate that undecided voters exposed to Internet political advertising changed their vote choice to Al Gore, whereas undecideds who viewed the same spots on television changed their preferences in favor of George W. Bush. The political cynicism levels of neither group were affected by exposure, but there were significant differences in the types of information seeking and political activity intentions between the two groups.

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