Individual differences in affective agenda setting: A cross-sectional analysis of three U.S. presidential elections

Abstract

Much is known about how individual differences such as age and education affect the news media’s ability to transfer its agenda of issues to the public, but little is known about them at the affective level of agenda setting. Evidence shows individual differences may work differently with affect, thus this study examined demographics that predict adopting the news media’s affective agenda. Using data from the U.S. Presidential campaigns in 2008, 2012 and 2016, it found that, indeed, demographics do not all work the same for affect as issues. Unlike with issue agenda setting, education showed no effect at all, while the young were more likely to adopt the news media’s affective agenda than older age groups. As expected, Democrats and Republicans were more likely to adopt the news media’s affective agenda of their own candidates, but Independents were not. As with first-level agenda setting, there was no effect of gender.