322
The right dominates the online media ecosystem, seeping into sports, comedy, and other supposedly nonpolitical spaces (www.mediamatters.org)
submitted 1 year ago by [M] to c/fediverse_vs_disinfo@lemmy.dbzer0.com
49 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

The right dominates the online media ecosystem, seeping into sports, comedy, and other supposedly nonpolitical spaces

A new Media Matters analysis found 9 out of the 10 top online shows assessed are right-leaning

As Americans increasingly get their news from online shows and streamers, the influence of this media ecosystem becomes more prominent — and Media Matters has found that the most popular of this content is overwhelmingly right-leaning.

In a new study, Media Matters assessed the audience size of popular online shows — podcasts, streams, and other long-form audio and video content regularly posted online. To do so, we gathered data on the number of followers, subscribers, and views across streaming platforms (YouTube, Spotify, Rumble, Twitch, and Kick) and social media platforms that are used to amplify and promote these shows (Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok). Apple Podcasts does not publicly provide follower counts on its platform, so it was not included in the audience data.

This analysis was based on 320 online shows with a right-leaning or left-leaning ideological bent. We found that right-leaning online shows dominate the ecosystem, with substantially larger audiences on both politics/news shows and supposedly nonpolitical shows that we determined often platformed ideological content or guests.

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] 2 points 1 year ago*

Part of the problem is that telling the truth doesn't really sell an identity. If you subscribe to some niche pseudoscience, then it can be your "thing" and you can form a bond with others who are into the same niche thing. Selling lies also allows you to craft the narrative to appeal to particular demographics and target audiences. Part of how the human brain functions is that doing insane things together with other people (ritualism) helps form a bond - the insanity is part of the design, to distinguish the in-group from the out-group. There's also the problem that grifting makes money, and money lets you boost your signal and reach more people.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent