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Television and the Incumbency Advantage in U.S. Elections
Author(s) -
ANSOLABEHERE STEPHEN,
SNOWBERG ERIK C.,
SNYDER JAMES M.
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
legislative studies quarterly
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.728
H-Index - 54
eISSN - 1939-9162
pISSN - 0362-9805
DOI - 10.3162/036298006x201896
Subject(s) - competition (biology) , state (computer science) , contrast (vision) , political science , advertising , test (biology) , political economy , demographic economics , economics , business , mathematics , ecology , paleontology , algorithm , artificial intelligence , computer science , biology
We use the structure of media markets within states and across state boundaries to study the relationship between television and electoral competition. In particular, we compare incumbent vote margins in media markets where content originates in the same state as media consumers versus vote margins where content originates out of state. This contrast provides a clear test of whether or not television coverage correlates with the incumbency advantage. We study U.S. Senate and state gubernatorial races from the 1950s through the 1990s and find that the effect of TV is small, directionally indeterminate, and statistically insignificant.