Media Use Habits,Audience Expectations and Media Effects in Hong Kong's First Legislative Council Election

Abstract

This research investigates the origin of audience expectations and their subsequent role in the media use-to-effects process. It argues that a significant portion of perceptions of media is couched in people's media habits and these perceptions in turn mediate political effects attributable to mass media. Contextualized in the first Legislative Council election in Hong Kong, our analysis of data from a survey of 503 local residents yielded several revelations. First, audience expectations of campaign media performance have distinct dimensions stemming from different social structural backgrounds. Second, various dimensions of audience expectations are also associated with unique patterns of media use habits. And third, media's effects on campaign political knowledge and participation are to some extent mediated by what audience members expect from media coverage.