The Effect of Entertainment in Newspaper and Television News Coverage

Greiner, Tanja (June 2010): The Effect of Entertainment in Newspaper and Television News Coverage. Discussion Papers in Economics 2010-28

Abstract

In this paper, we analyze the equilibrium amount of entertainment in news coverage of newspapers and television stations. We find that a shift in the inclination to read, expressed by a shift in the (psychological) distance costs, induces both media outlets to incorporate more entertaining elements in news coverage. The introduction of commercial television, however, which leads to a unilateral fall in the distance costs to the television broadcast, yields different results. It induces a negative effect on the profits of both media outlets, and increases price competition. Furthermore, the newspaper offers less while the television channel offers more entertainment. Overall, this leads to a marginalization of informational content, as the television channel gains market shares at the expense of the newspaper.

• Item Type: Paper
• Keywords: media economics, industrial organization, media bias, horizontal product differentiation, duopoly
• Faculties: Economics; Economics > Munich Discussion Papers in Economics
• Subjects: 300 Social sciences > 300 Social sciences, sociology and anthropology; 300 Social sciences > 330 Economics
• JEL Classification: D72, L13, L82
• Language: English

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