Overloaded By the News: Effects of News Exposure and Enjoyment on Reporting Information Overload

Recent increases in the amount of news and information available in society have prompted claims that citizens are becoming psychologically “overloaded.” To investigate the validity of these claims, a secondary data analysis on the 2008 Pew Biennial Media Consumption Survey is performed. Results show increased news exposure is indeed positively associated with feeling overloaded. Conversely, news enjoyment is negatively associated with overload. There is also a moderating effect of news enjoyment, such that high news enjoyment reduces overload effects of high news exposure. These results imply that while news exposure may have various beneficial outcomes, such as increased political knowledge, it simultaneously relates to greater psychological discomfort. Motivated news processors, however, appear to be better insulated from this discomfort. Implications for news exposure and democratic citizenship are discussed.

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