"Dark Areas of Ignorance" Revisited: Comparing International Affairs Knowledge in Switzerland and the United States

In: Communication research, Volume 36, Issue 3, p. 341-358

Abstract

This study tests the hypothesis that cross-national differences in public awareness of international affairs are attributable to differences in the supply of international news and citizens' demand for information. Simultaneously, the authors compared the level of news coverage accorded specific "target" subjects in major Swiss and U.S. news organizations and the level of attentiveness to news among Swiss and U.S. citizens. The authors' results revealed that Swiss media provided more hard international news than U.S. media, that Swiss citizens reported higher levels of news exposure, and that the Swiss were also considerably more informed than the Americans on questions of hard news. Using a multilevel model, the authors further demonstrate that the effects of news on knowledge are stronger in Switzerland and that the greater availability of international news has the effect of reducing the knowledge gap between more and less attentive Swiss.