TY - JOUR
T1 - Authoritarians Do It Better?
T2 - Belief in Misinformation in Turkey
AU - Andi, Simge
AU - Carkoglu, Ali
AU - Baruh, Lemi
AU - Bocskay, Zsofia
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2025.
PY - 2025/1/10
Y1 - 2025/1/10
N2 - Misinformation poses a significant threat to the integrity of political systems, particularly in competitive authoritarian regimes (CARs), where it can distort public perception and undermine democratic processes. This study focuses on the 2023 Turkish general elections—a context characterized by widespread misinformation. While extensive research has been conducted on misinformation in democratic systems, where press freedom and digitalization foster a mix of reliable and misleading information, this investigation targets the unique challenges and media consumption patterns in CARs. Utilizing a nationally representative survey after the 2023 elections, we examine the association between media consumption (traditional and online) and susceptibility to misinformation among government and opposition voters. Our findings reveal that partisan news consumption significantly influences belief in misinformation, with individuals tending to believe claims aligning with their political affiliations while rejecting opposing claims. Moreover, television remains a dominant source of information in Turkey, unlike social media, which shows a limited impact on misinformation beliefs but possesses a conditional corrective potential for certain electorate segments. This study underscores the enduring influence of traditional media in CARs and suggests that while the theory of selective exposure and partisanship is applicable, the constrained information environment significantly shapes public perceptions and misinformation dynamics.
AB - Misinformation poses a significant threat to the integrity of political systems, particularly in competitive authoritarian regimes (CARs), where it can distort public perception and undermine democratic processes. This study focuses on the 2023 Turkish general elections—a context characterized by widespread misinformation. While extensive research has been conducted on misinformation in democratic systems, where press freedom and digitalization foster a mix of reliable and misleading information, this investigation targets the unique challenges and media consumption patterns in CARs. Utilizing a nationally representative survey after the 2023 elections, we examine the association between media consumption (traditional and online) and susceptibility to misinformation among government and opposition voters. Our findings reveal that partisan news consumption significantly influences belief in misinformation, with individuals tending to believe claims aligning with their political affiliations while rejecting opposing claims. Moreover, television remains a dominant source of information in Turkey, unlike social media, which shows a limited impact on misinformation beliefs but possesses a conditional corrective potential for certain electorate segments. This study underscores the enduring influence of traditional media in CARs and suggests that while the theory of selective exposure and partisanship is applicable, the constrained information environment significantly shapes public perceptions and misinformation dynamics.
KW - competitive authoritarian regimes
KW - media
KW - misinformation
KW - partisanship
KW - selective exposure
KW - social media
UR - https://www.webofscience.com/api/gateway?GWVersion=2&SrcApp=ceuapplication2024&SrcAuth=WosAPI&KeyUT=WOS:001393753400001&DestLinkType=FullRecord&DestApp=WOS_CPL
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85215082181&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1177/19401612241307812
DO - 10.1177/19401612241307812
M3 - Article
SN - 1940-1612
JO - International Journal of Press-politics
JF - International Journal of Press-politics
ER -