Blogs
Fact-Checking Approaches for Broadcast News
February 2, 2024
A test of two fact-checking approaches found that both work equally well to correct misperceptions....
6 Important Outcomes from Our Research This Year
December 19, 2023
Learn more aboout the key outcomes of our research from the past year....
A Simple Online Game Can Help Bridge Political Div...
November 16, 2023
New research that examines whether an online guessing game that includes questions about political issues can help address people’s misperceptions about the other side....
Curbing the Decline of Local News Through Engaged ...
September 6, 2023
Practicing engaged journalism, where newsrooms build relationships with their audience by responding to community concerns, can offer a lifeline....
5 Ways to Build Trust and Bridge Divides
July 1, 2023
Strategies to to combat news distrust and connect with communities that feel underserved by their local newsrooms....
Do Democrats and Republicans Live in Different Wor...
June 27, 2023
A look at whether political partisanship is predictive of people's beliefs in true and false claims....
How Multiple-Choice Quizzes Can Help Fact-Checkers
June 14, 2023
How online multiple-choice quizzes present an opportunity to encourage readers to engage with fact-checking content and to help them learn....
Build Trust Through Your Storytelling Process
April 28, 2023
Five actions newsrooms can throughout the storytelling process that can improve trust....
5 Steps for More Effective Solidarity Reporting
March 15, 2023
When reporting on marginalized communities, it’s imperative to get the story right by including people who help tell the whole story....
What We Can Learn from People in News Deserts
January 15, 2023
While news deserts undeniably pose a problem, there is something to be learned from the way people in news deserts think about access to local information....
A Year in Review: 10 of Our Most Interesting Resea...
December 22, 2022
Person-centered terms encourage stigmatized groups’ trust in news. The Center for Media Engagement, with support from Resolve Philly and Democracy Fund, asked people in recovery from substance abuse disorder, people…...
Using the Phrase “Fake News” Hurts Trust in Your J...
December 8, 2022
How three commonly used phrases for false content - fake news, false news, and misinformation - affect public perceptions of journalists and news media....
Using Person-Centered Language Can Build Trust
November 11, 2022
Using person-centered language can foster trust and help news organizations better connect with stigmatized groups. It can also help some marginalized groups feel better represented by news coverage....
Texas’ Asian Communities and EMAs: How WhatsApp an...
October 31, 2022
Political campaigns across the United States are paying close attention to the rising political importance of Asian American communities across the country. Nowhere is this clearer than in Texas....
How Newsrooms Can Address Election Fraud Beliefs
September 15, 2022
Better understanding why some people think Trump likely won in 2020 gives news organizations the opportunity to address legitimacy concerns in future election coverage....
Help Audiences Learn By Adding Quizzes to Stories
July 15, 2022
Adding quizzes to news sites can provide a fun, interactive learning experience for users while also benefitting the news organization....
End-to-end Encryption for Messaging Apps: Importan...
July 6, 2022
The Propaganda Research Lab at the Center for Media Engagement (CME), in collaboration with Omidyar Network, hosted a RightsCon 2022 session on encrypted messaging apps (EMAs) and their global use for political propaganda, mis- and disinformation, activism, and news...
Solving Questions of Digital Literacy Through Comm...
June 23, 2022
The Center for Media Engagement explores how public interest principles can be incorporated in social media to combat mis-information in larger communities....
Building a Local System to Fight Misinformation
May 31, 2022
The Center for Media Engagement is working to build a local system for surfacing misinformation that can be adapted for different communities....
Who’s Funding Primetime News – And Why It Matters
April 1, 2022
Do you know who funds the news you watch? As is widely known, some news programs focus on facts, while others focus on opinions. Behind all these programs are advertisers who drive revenue – meaning they have the power to hold news outlets accountable for their coverage....
How Digital Surveillance Deters Protest Participat...
March 9, 2022
This piece provides insights into the ways in which protests are surveilled and outlines two main issues with the practices: (1) general problems with the collection of personal data at protests, and (2) the problematic ways in which protest coverage is used toward political ends....
Making Political Points with Humility Can Bridge D...
February 1, 2022
We found that humility can help people bridge divides, making it a useful approach for news organizations looking to uplift content or comments that build bridges....
Three Ways COVID-19 Affected Kenyan Media and Ho...
January 18, 2022
In the case of COVID-19, disinformation can occur when there is an intention to create a different viewpoint from that of vetted healthcare officials and authorities regarding the disease’s status,…...
10 Research Findings & What they Mean for New...
December 17, 2021
Ten takeaways from our research that can help newsrooms and journalists tackle challenges in the year ahead....
A Better Way to Tell Protest Stories
December 1, 2021
To help journalists frame stories in ways that do not marginalize certain groups, the Center for Media Engagement tested several approaches to protest coverage....
3 Tips for Reporting on AI & Automation in Es...
November 9, 2021
How journalists can help create an accurate public understanding of the true capacities of automated technologies....
Bridging Divides Between Conservatives and Media
October 15, 2021
Discussions with participants in this Center for Media Engagement study helped identify six approaches journalists can take to better connect with their conservative audiences....
Solidarity Reporting and Coverage of Afghanistan
September 15, 2021
Learn about how journalists can apply solidarity journalism to coverage of Afghanistan....
5 Ways to Connect with Local Communities
September 15, 2021
Five strategies for connecting with local communities that come directly from speaking with people who feel the media can do better to reach them....
How Partisanship Affects Fact-Checking on Facebook
August 23, 2021
Research shows that Democrats and Republicans are susceptible to believing misinformation about candidates from the opposing party and that Democrats and Republicans respond differently to fact checks....
Connecting with Disinvested Local News Audiences
August 15, 2021
What a study in two neighborhoods revealed about how journalists anywhere can take to connect with local communities....
How a Local Opinion Page Can Slow Polarization
July 22, 2021
By emphasizing local identity instead of partisan identity, local newspapers can help slow the rising tide of polarization....
How Newsrooms Can Help Bridge Divides: Lessons fro...
July 8, 2021
Learn from a panel of experts on how newsrooms can better understand their communities and humanize those with diverse views by using the principles of connective democracy....
How Journalists Should Respond in Comment Sections
June 15, 2021
Study results show that when getting involved in the comments, journalists should try to acknowledge commenters’ emotions rather than dismiss them....
Technology’s Impact on Political Knowledge and Par...
May 28, 2021
The Digital Media Research Program in the Moody College of Communication sought to gain a more in-depth understanding of communication technology’s impact on political knowledge and participation....
Signaling Trust Can Begin with a Google Search
May 1, 2021
Certain signals can act as powerful indicators of trust and should appear when people search for a news outlet....
Cable News is Politicizing Coronavirus Coverage
April 19, 2021
Our study shows just how politicized coverage of coronavirus has become — and that the implications go beyond the coronavirus pandemic....
Geolocation Surveillance Roundtable
March 30, 2021
The University of Texas at Austin’s Center for Media Engagement and the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project (S.T.O.P.) hosted a roundtable about mass surveillance in the age of mass protest. We…...
What We Learned in 2020 – And How It Can Help News...
January 13, 2021
Ten takeaways from our research that can help newsrooms and journalists tackle challenges in the year ahead. ...
What Comment Sections Mean to Newsrooms
December 30, 2020
Turning off comment sections could end up cutting down on the time people spend on site and could make the experience worse for users....
Helping Audiences Find Common Ground
October 9, 2020
Political divides are pushing coworkers, friends, and families apart. Newsrooms can help people find common ground by sharing these strategies for approaching difficult discussions....
Police could Be Scanning Your Social Media From a ...
September 2, 2020
Protests following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota, continue to seize national and global attention. Videos of peaceful protestors demanding justice and rioters setting businesses ablaze have provided…...
4 Steps To Help Build Trust with TV News Audiences
August 5, 2020
Based on focus group findings, we share four steps newsrooms can take while writing stories to help build trust....
Adapting to Changing Audience Needs
July 8, 2020
As people adjust to the ongoing presence of coronavirus in everyday life, their appetites for news stories on the subject are changing...
The Coronavirus Coverage Audiences Want
April 13, 2020
A coverage snapshot that can help newsrooms identify where coverage overlaps with viewer appetite—and where there are opportunities to provide more of the stories viewers want....
Newsroom Tips for Covering Coronavirus
March 19, 2020
Newsroom resources are likely strained as coronavirus updates keep coming in. Here are 5 research-backed ideas to help you connect with your audience....
Transparency is Great…If Readers Notice
February 15, 2020
We teamed up with McClatchy to test whether a card that shows how and why a story was written can help demonstrate transparency and build trust....
10 Newsroom Lessons We Learned in 2019
December 19, 2019
10 Newsroom Lessons We Learned in 2019....
What People Want in a News Story
December 18, 2019
What questions do readers have about your stories? Taking their answers into account during the reporting process can better connect readers to your content and build trust....
Story Labels Alone Don’t Increase Trust
December 1, 2019
Many newsrooms add a label like news, analysis, opinion, or sponsored content to stories. But do readers actually notice these labels? And do the labels help increase trust?...
5 Keys to Powerful Solutions Journalism
November 10, 2019
We know solutions journalism can make people feel more informed, optimistic, and engaged in an issue. But what is it about solutions journalism that makes them feel this way? ...
Are You Checking On Your Comment Moderators?
August 1, 2019
As more news organizations turn to moderators (or their employees) to take on the comments section, it’s important to know how the job is affecting those performing it....
Covering Outrageous Political Stories Could Backfi...
May 22, 2019
Covering the latest outrageous political story could hurt the credibility of your news organization....
Want to Build Audience Trust? Try Using This Box
March 27, 2019
Audience trust is key to a newsroom’s success. But in this era of “fake news” and fading confidence in the media, it can be difficult to earn....
How Newsrooms Can Help Unite a Divided America
February 7, 2019
Bringing opposing groups together is a challenge, but it’s an important task the media needs to take on....
Strategies for Gaining New Subscribers
January 18, 2019
Subscriptions, donations, and memberships are critical for many newsrooms’ business models. But what strategies work for gaining new subscribers?...
10 Newsroom Lessons We Learned in 2018
December 17, 2018
10 newsroom lessons we learned in 2018....
Why We Really Need to Stop Saying Fake News
August 23, 2018
Exposure to the phrase “fake news” might matter more than exposure to fake news itself....