A Longitudinal Study of Media Repertoires and Political Engagement in Switzerland

Abstract

This study uses Swiss panel data between 2011 and 2020 to explore changes in media repertoires and the reciprocal effects of individuals with a minimal media consumption and their level of political engagement (including interest in politics, political participation, and frequency of political discussions). Media repertoires are based on the combination of common sources (including traditional news, free news, magazines, internet news, etc.), thus allowing for a comparable assessment of media use over time while also considering fundamental changes in the supply of news media sources. At the aggregated level, the study shows how different media repertoires evolve over time, while focusing on the prevalence of the “Low Media User” repertoire and on the transition between repertoires. At the individual level, it explores how low media reliance connect to characteristics using cross-lagged effects analysis. The study’s most important result relates to the negative effect of higher political engagement on minimal media consumption. This result is explained in the light of the particularities of the Swiss political and media systems.