Does internet use promote participation in online civic action beyond what would be expected based on certain user attributes? To tackle the question, this study analyzed data from an online news survey conducted by the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project in 2010. Findings show that frequent internet use stimulates online news users’ civic engagement beyond their predisposition to news consumption. On the contrary, online news use also functions as a way of fulfilling a civic obligation. Furthermore, the result shows the different roles that user motivations for news consumption play in shaping divergent styles of online news use. Digital network technology empowers the predisposed to engage in civic conversations, along with online news consumption, while expanding the opportunity for diverse users to become civically informed.
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