The document discusses the significance of informal political conversations in enhancing democratic engagement and participation, highlighting various historical perspectives. It explores the interplay between talk and news consumption, suggesting that discussions can amplify or hinder political knowledge depending on the context and participants involved. The research emphasizes the role of social networks in facilitating political discourse, with findings indicating that informational uses of social networks are strongly linked to civic engagement.

1. Informal Political Conversations, Social Networks and Participation in Public Life Sebasti án Valenzuela School of Journalism Jesse Jones Fellowship Presentation October 2008

2. Talk is good for democracy

3. New approach to an old idea… Gabriel Tarde (1890s) Alexis de Tocqueville (1830s) Paul Lazarsfeld (1940s) Jurgen Habermas (1960s)

4. “ With talk we can invent alternative futures, create mutual purposes, and construct competing visions of community” --Benjamim Barber (1983/2003, p. 177)

5. But what kind of talk? Formal vs. Informal Interpersonal vs. Computer-Mediated Family vs. Strangers Public issues vs. Private issues

6. What I study The effects of informal conversations about public affairs between non-elite members of a political community on their knowledge, efficacy and participation Online and offline public talk Public talk within social networks

7. And the news media???

8. My Research Talk as moderator of news use effects New online platforms for talk Social network attributes (e.g., diversity, ties)

9. Talk as Moderator Moderator : A variable that changes the impact of one variable on another.

10. Previous Research Talking amplifies the positive effects of news use Compensates for news shortcomings (cognitive) Provides mobilizing information (behavioral gaps) Talking can be detrimental to the positive effects of news use: Interference or distortion (cognitive)

11. Purpose and method Test if talk moderates news effects on attitudes Which attributes interact with news use: Is it talking more often? Talking with politically sophisticated people? Talking with people who share (or don’t) my political preferences? Secondary analysis, NES survey, 2000

12. Political Knowledge OPTIMISTIC VIEW: People who don’t follow the news can learn from discussion with others OR PESSIMISTIC VIEW: For people who follow the news, discussing too much can hinder their political learning

13. Self-Efficacy Network disagreement strengthens the positive relationship between news and political self-efficacy, particularly among those who discuss frequently. SO Talkative news junkies with heterogeneous networks have extremely high political efficacy!

14. New online platforms for talk Virtual forums E-mail threads Blogs Chatrooms IM Social network sites

15. and civic/political life Not SNS per se , but specific uses what matter Informational vs. recreational uses of SNS Own online survey, college students, 2007

16. Heavy vs Light Users +27% (±5%) FB Groups +2% (±4%) Political participation +10% (±4%) FB Groups +16% (±4%) Civic participation + 5% (±1%) Social trust +15% (±2%) Life satisfaction

17. Informational uses are more related to participation than recreational uses. Testing our Assumptions Political Civic +4% +1% -1% -1% +3% Information seeking +2% Self-status seeking +1% Entertainment +2% Social interaction

18. Social Network Attributes Unique contribution of F2F and CMC on offline and online participation Specific attributes: Ties: strong, weak Heterogeneity: disagreement, diversity Quality: expertise, reasoning CJCR online survey, adult sample, 2009

19. Network Variables Network size online/offline Strong ties: family, friends Weak ties: strangers, demographic diversity Network disagreement: ratio of “safe” to “dangerous” discussion Reasoning: argumentation, issue-based discussion

20. Results

21. Some lessons… Talk is good for democracy Talk and news: a complex relationship Cyberoptimism AND cyberpessimism We’re only starting to scratch the surface!

22. Future Research Theoretical synthesis Connection to existing theories From deliberation to communication Methodological challenges Experiments Observations

23. Thanks to… My co-authors : Homero Gil de Z úñiga, Kerk Kee, Namsu Park and Yonghwan Kim All my colleagues at the Maxwell McCombs, Talia Stroud, Sharon Strover, Teresa Correa and all the other people who directly or indirectly contributed to my research The J-School and the College of Comm for the $$$!