A comparison of competing models of the news diffusion process

Abstract

This study investigated the diffusion of information about the explosion of the space shuttle Challenger. Previous research indicated that news of major events spreads throughout the populace relatively quickly. In this study, approximately half of the respondents heard of the event within thirty minutes of the explosion. Unlike previous research, which has tended to look at the effect of variables in isolation, this study compared loglinear models of the diffusion process. Results indicated that the most parsimonious model with adequate goodness of fit was a “linear” one in which where one was affected how one heard, which affected when one heard. Suggestions for future research include attempts to model the diffusion process for events that receive less media coverage than the shuttle explosion. © 1990 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.