Political Talk as a Catalyst for Online Citizenship

Abstract

Despite numerous and strong claims regarding the impact of the Internet on civic engagement, there has been limited empirical inquiry into the topic. In order to redress this gap, using survey data from the 2000 American National Election Study (ANES), we test the effects of Internet campaign exposure on political efficacy, political knowledge, and campaign participation. Our findings lend only modest support to the optimistic hopes of Internet mobilization theorists. More important, however, our research goes a step further and finds differential gains in civic engagement for those Internet users who also frequently talk about politics, with political discussion amplifying the main effects of Internet campaign exposure.