News Nationalization in a Digital Age: An Examination of How Local Protests Are Covered and Curated Online

• Published date: 01 May 2023
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1177/00027162231217873
• Author: Kokil Jaidka,Sean Fischer,Yphtach Lelkes,Yifei Wang
• Date: 01 May 2023
• Subject Matter: Part III: Demand

ANNALS, AAPSS, 707, May 2023 189

DOI: 10.1177/00027162231217873

News

Nationalization

in a Digital Age:

An Examination

of How Local

Protests Are

Covered and

Curated Online

By

KOKIL JAIDKA,

SEAN FISCHER,

YPHTACH LELKES,

and

YIFEI WANG

1217873ANN THE ANNALS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMYNEWS NATIONALIZATION IN A DIGITAL AGE

research-article2023

News outlets are increasingly nationalizing their pres-

entation of news stories, framing and presenting local

news in a broad national context. We investigate how

supply-side and curation-side factors of the news cycle

contribute to the nationalization of news coverage.

Through the computational analysis of 1.05 million

Google news results on four days in July–August 2020,

that corresponded to 1,581 news stories published on

the George Floyd protests in Portland, Oregon, and

Kenosha, Wisconsin, we examine the relationship

between the nationalization of news coverage, stories’

search rank in Google News, and the geographic dis-

tance between the news event and the stories’ reading

audience. Further, we explore the role of Google News

in curating locally focused news. Our findings help to

map the media ecosystem in a digital age, highlighting

the influence of algorithmic power in politics and show-

ing that excessive circulation of national news may have

a profound negative impact on news diversity and social

justice.

Keywords: nationalization; local news; digital news;

protest; spatial proximity; news deserts

Correspondence: jaidka@nus.edu.sg

Kokil Jaidka is an assistant professor at the National

University of Singapore’s Department of Communi-

cations and New Media. Her research involves using

big data to analyze human behavior and societal trends,

with a focus on online communication and social media.

Sean Fischer is an independent researcher who earned

his PhD from the Annenberg School for Communication

at the University of Pennsylvania. His research has

explored how cultural information contributes to cycles

of political polarization. He also studies local news

economies and the threats they face from digital plat-

forms.

Yphtach Lelkes is an associate professor at the University

of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg School for Communication.

His research primarily revolves around partisanship,

polarization, and media’s role in shaping public opinion.

Yifei Wang is a PhD student in the Department of

Communication at the University of California, Santa

Barbara. His research interests center on group dynam-

ics, information behavior, civic engagement, and com-

putational social science.

190 THE ANNALS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY

Politics in America is increasingly nationalized. One often-cited reason for this

trend is that readers turn to national outlets, like The New York Times or The

Washington Post, when local news outlets shut down. However, we explore

another possibility here: that even local news is becoming nationalized.

News nationalization refers to the process by which news outlets frame, pre-

sent, and discuss news stories within a broader national context rather than focus-

ing on the local aspects of the events. This phenomenon often involves prioritizing

national perspectives, political figures, and narratives over the local concerns,

histories, or nuances specific to the event’s location (Heider, McCombs, and

Poindexter 2005; Moy et al. 2004). Various factors, including the media land-

scape, audience preferences, and the political or social context, can influence the

nationalization of news. For example, the pool of potential readers for an online

news source is far broader than that for a print publication circulated within a

certain region. To compete for a wider audience, local outlets may be more likely

to adopt national frames to appeal to a broader range of readers, even at the

expense of the local context (Mullainathan and Shleifer 2005).

In the U.S., local politics tend to be more consensual and less influenced by

partisan divides than national politics (Bucchianeri 2020; Holtkamp 2007; Jensen

et al. 2021). Therefore, news nationalization helps readers relate local issues to

broader political and social trends nationwide (Ferrucci and Perreault 2022;

George and Waldfogel 2006). However, news nationalization may also have

adverse consequences. For instance, nationalized news reporting may over-

shadow local perspectives and may potentially diminish the diversity of view-

points available at the local level (Harte, Howells, and Williams 2018; Janowitz

and Burk 1991). Furthermore, as nationalized news frames are typically hyper-

partisan (Hopkins 2018), readers may become more affectively polarized

(Abramowitz and Webster 2016; Darr, Hitt, and Dunaway 2021; DellaPosta

2020). Consequently, there may be adverse effects on their political attitudes and

voting behavior, such as lower rates of voter turnout and of split-ticket voting

(Darr, Hitt, and Dunaway 2018; Schulhofer-Wohl and Garrido 2013). In addi-

tion, local politics may take on hyperpartisan narratives in keeping with local

news trends, as witnessed in how local politicians shift their focus from appealing

to local communities to addressing a broader national audience (Moskowitz 2021;

Trussler 2021; Warshaw 2019).

Understanding the dynamics of news nationalization is therefore vital for

assessing its potential impact on public opinion, civic engagement, and the over-

all health of the media landscape. Prior research has primarily focused on

demand-side factors driving news nationalization. However, a comprehensive

understanding of news nationalization requires an examination of both news

creation, such as the role of editorial choices, and news curation, such as the role

of news aggregators in making news available.

Nationalized local news is a byproduct of the supply-side forces, including the

role of media systems and the local environment in shaping news content. Local

news outlets play a vital role in giving citizens access to information that enables

them to participate in local political and civic affairs (Napoli, this volume).

However, in recent years, local news outlets are increasingly pursuing a national