What Vox Pops Say and How That Matters: Effects of Vox Pops in Television News on Perceived Public Opinion and Personal Opinion

Abstract

Interviews with ordinary people on the street are commonplace in everyday news coverage. These vox pops often voice an explicit opinion or talk about personal experiences. Editorial guidelines exist about the way they should be introduced, as they are not representative of the population. Drawing on an experiment using television news items, we test the influence of vox pop characteristics on perceived public opinion and personal opinion. Results show that vox pop viewpoints have a substantial influence. Moreover, vox pops stating opinions are more influential than vox pops giving personal testimonies. No influence was found of the vox pops’ introduction.