Greater political knowledge is associated with greater intensity of emotions against opponents

The more you know, the less you like: A comparative study of how news and political conversation shape political knowledge and affective polarization. Jiyoun Suk et al. Communication and the Public, December 28, 2021. https://doi.org/10.1177/20570473211063237

Abstract: The contemporary communication ecology contributes to affective polarization by presenting us with extreme exemplars of disliked groups. News exposure that is associated with political discussion networks is related to greater political knowledge, yet unlike previous eras where political knowledge and tolerance went hand in hand, this is no longer the case. We employ a comparative design to examine this idea among two democracies with differing levels of journalistic professionalism and political system: Mexico and the United States. Results show that greater political knowledge is associated with affective polarization, especially for the United States. Furthermore, there was a significant indirect path between media use and affective polarization, mediated through homogeneous political talk and political knowledge, but not in Mexico.

Keywords: Affective polarization, comparative analysis, political conversation, political knowledge