Selective Exposure to Political News A Threat to Democracy in Today’s Digital World?

By combining in-depth qualitative data analysis with insights from quantitative research, this chapter presents a comprehensive examination of selective exposure to political news and its role in democratic societies. First, it examines the extent to which people across countries perceive selective exposure to political news as a threat to democracy and why. Then, it analyses levels of selective exposure through two distinct measures: self-reported and actual selective exposure to political news. Finally, it reports the findings on perceptions of the causes of selective exposure. The findings reveal a paradox: although people perceive selective exposure to political news as a threat to democracy, they are still prone to consuming information that aligns with their own views. The unbalanced media diet is fostered by cognitive predispositions (confirmation bias), individual preferences and attitudes (political leaning, interest in politics), as well as contextual factors (media system and political polarisation).