Conventional wisdom holds that the quantity of media coverage primarily affects the electoral support for political parties. This study focuses on the supposed electoral effects of media coverage...Show moreConventional wisdom holds that the quantity of media coverage primarily affects the electoral support for political parties. This study focuses on the supposed electoral effects of media coverage of political parties, by examining both the quantity and quality of media coverage. A longitudinal content analysis of more than three thousand articles in three major Dutch newspapers was combined with opinion polls from the Dutch Kantar/TNS NIPO to measure the electoral support for parties. The results show no evidence to support the conventional wisdom; it is the content of the media that affects electoral support for Dutch political parties, not the quantity. Furthermore, the results show support for the issue ownership theory.Show less
