Impact of Fox News on American Politics (2000-2020)

Study Period: 2000-2020.
Key Finding: Fox News has shifted American public's political preferences and voting behavior to the right, benefitting Republican candidates across various election levels.

Viewership Impact: An increase of 0.05 rating points in FNC viewership correlates to a 0.5 percentage point increase in Republican vote share in recent elections.
Data Sources: The study utilized survey data from over half a million Americans, electoral data from various election cycles, and Fox News channel position as an instrumental variable (IV).

FNC's Dominance: Fox News has consistently had high ratings, with millions of Americans tuning in frequently.
Viewership Statistics: Approximately 12% of Americans watch Fox News for at least one hour per month.
Political Slant: FNC exhibits a conservative bias that has intensified over time, influencing viewers' policy preferences and knowledge about candidates.

Conservatism Shift: Research indicates that FNC contributes to a shift in political ideology among viewers, especially towards conservatism.
Previous Findings: Past studies have confirmed FNC's impact on voter behavior, particularly in presidential elections (2000, 2004, 2008).

Channel Position as an IV: The study used FNC's channel position as a method to observe how changes in viewership affect political preferences and election outcomes.
Demographic Analysis: Included variations in age, race, education, and geographic location.
Survey Data: Utilized multiple surveys (NAES and CCES) to track shifts in political attitudes and ideological standings among respondents.

Empirical Strategy: The study adopted a two-stage least squares estimation approach using channel position DVR to calculate the effect of FNC viewership on political attitudes.
Model Used: Political attitudes, voting behavior, and election results analyzed using regression models grounded in the instrumental variable framework.

Republican Identification: Reduced channel position correlates with a rise in self-identified Republicans, especially notable from 2006 onwards.
Ideological Shift: A one-standard-deviation decrease in FNC's channel position leads to a shift of about 0.03-0.04 standard deviations to the right in respondents' ideological positions.
Symbolic Ideology: Increased FNC viewership correlates with more conservative views across various policy issues.

Increasing Republican Vote Share: Notable shifts observed in presidential elections from 2000 to 2020, with significant increases in Republican vote shares directly linked to FNC viewership.
Effect Size: A shift in channel position can increase Republican vote share by roughly 0.32 percentage points by 2008, with consistent growth noted in subsequent elections (0.5% in 2012, 0.6% in 2016 and 2020).

House and Senate: Positive correlation seen in Republican shares for House and Senate elections, with effects becoming significant in the later 2010s.
Gubernatorial Races: FNC effects were minor until they became significant post-2010, similar in magnitude to those seen in Senate races.

Testing Instrument Validity: The study conducted various tests to ensure the reliability of channel position as an exogenous variable to accurately measure FNC's impact on political behavior.
Placebo Tests: Initial years showed insignificant results, confirming that pre-FNC conditions did not skew results.

Overall Findings: FNC has had a significant influence on shifting American political ideology to the right, affecting electoral outcomes across presidential, Senate, House, and gubernatorial elections.
Future Research Directions: Further investigations into FNC’s local impact and its potential to sway specific demographics or local policies are highlighted as potential areas for ongoing research.