Staying Alive: TV News Facebook Posts, Perceived Credibility, and Engagement Intent

Abstract

Facebook drives more traffic to news websites than any other site and is the most used social platform in the journalistic process, elevating the importance of what organizations post there. Central to consumer’s decision to engage is their assessment of credibility. This study examines how characteristics of Facebook posts promoting news trigger heuristic cues previously shown to help online consumers’ make such decisions. A 2 (likes, shares, and comments: low vs. high) × 2 (sponsorship: liked brand vs. suggested post) × 3 (post source: peer vs. brand vs. journalist) online experiment was conducted. Participants were U.S. adults (mean age = 35.7) who use Facebook. Results indicate that actions do not always match the assumed actions that traditional heuristic cues would predict. Results can be used by scholars studying credibility and by news brands and journalists to increase credibility and engage audiences on Facebook.