Cass R. Sunstein, Columnist

The Fox News Effect on Voters

Regular viewers of Fox News really are persuaded to vote for Republicans.

January 6, 2015 at 2:00 PM UTC

Cass R. Sunstein is a former Bloomberg Opinion columnist. He is the author of “The Cost-Benefit Revolution” and a co-author of “Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth and Happiness.”

Ready voter outrage in 3...2...1...
Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg News

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Does your vote depend on which news channel you watch? If you are a regular viewer of Fox News, will you become more likely to vote Republican?

Until recently, it has been impossible to answer that question empirically. Sure, Republicans tend to favor Fox News and Democrats tend to prefer MSNBC. But if Fox viewers are more likely to vote Republican, it might well be because of the conservative views that led them to Fox in the first place.