Julian Streyczek, "Political Effects of Newspaper Paywalls"
I examine how the introduction of paywalls on newspaper websites in the early 2010s affected political knowledge and electoral participation in the United States. Exploiting the staggered adoption of paywalls across newspapers and counties, I document a 25–30 percent decline in website visits following the introduction of a paywall. Moreover, I show that in counties where a larger share of online news consumption was affected by paywalls, survey respondents are 2–3 percentage points less likely to correctly answer political knowledge questions. This effect is driven by declines in knowledge about regional politics and most pronounced among individuals with lower income and education. These findings suggest that these groups may respond to paywalls by substituting towards less costly news sources with less intensive coverage of regional politics. Additionally, affected counties exhibit a suggestive 2 percentage point decline in congressional primary election participation. My results underscore the importance of easy access to high-quality news for democratic processes.
The American Politics Research Workshop (Gov 3004) meets all academic year, Tuesdays, 12:00–2:00 PM, in CGIS K354. This workshop presents an opportunity for graduate students and Harvard faculty to present and receive feedback on their current research. The workshop highlights key theoretical and empirical findings from Harvard affiliates on topics related to American politics.
All interested Harvard affiliates are invited to attend.
LOCATION:CGIS Knafel room K354, or virtual via Zoom STATUS:CONFIRMED DTSTART:20250218T170000Z DTEND:20250218T180000Z END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR