Democratic consequences of hostile media perceptions - The case of Gaza settlers

Abstract

In this article, the authors examine the consequences of the hostile-media phenomenon and advance the argument that people's perceptions of hostile coverage shape their trust in mainstream media institutions. Media trust in turn affects trust in democracy and willingness to accept democratic decisions. These ideas are tested on a sample of Jewish Settlers in the Gaza Strip, in the weeks before a Likud Party vote on Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's plan to pull out of the Gaza Strip and evacuate settlers from their homes. Findings show that hostile media perceptions were negatively related to settlers' trust in media and that trust in media was positively related to trust in democracy, which, in turn, affected settlers' intentions to forcefully resist Sharon's evacuation plan. No direct association was found between hostile media perceptions and intentions to forcefully resist evacuation. © 2005 by the President and the Fellows of Harvard College.