Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/260826 
Year of Publication: 
2022
Series/Report no.: 
CESifo Working Paper No. 9696
Publisher: 
Center for Economic Studies and ifo Institute (CESifo), Munich
Abstract: 
We study how individuals comment on political news posted on Reddit’s main political forum during the 2016 US Presidential Election. We present two main findings. First, opposite partisan users comment on the same news sources, but on different news. Second, partisan users behave very differently from independents if the news is bad for a candidate. Compared to independents, partisan comments on bad news are less frequent on the own candidate, and more frequent on the opponent. The content of the comments also suggests that partisan users are less likely to accept bad news on their candidate, and more likely on the opponent. This behavior is consistent with motivated reasoning, and with the predictions of a model of rational inattention where the cost of attention depends on whether the news is pleasant or unpleasant.
Document Type: 
Working Paper
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