Social Media News as a Predictor of Sports Gambling Salience, Attitudes, and Behaviors in the United States

Abstract

Gambling has become a more prominent aspect of American sports culture after the 2018 United States Supreme Court decision offered in Murphy v National Collegiate Athletic Association that rendered the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) unconstitutional. A secondary analysis of 2022 PEW American Trends Panel (ATP) data ( N = 3900) explores social media news exposure and satisfaction as predictors of the salience of, attitudes toward, and behavioral engagement with sports gambling. Social media news exposure and satisfaction do not predict individual-level salience of the expanded legalization of sports betting. However, social media news exposure and an individual’s satisfaction with news content on X, Facebook, and YouTube positively predict feelings that sports betting is good for society and sports culture. Social media news exposure positively predicts sports gambling behaviors. A broader media effects research agenda pertaining to sports gambling is outlined based on these findings.