Conspiracy Theory Reporting: A Quantitative Content Analysis of Conspiracy Dissemination in Alternative and Mainstream Media in the US

Abstract

Over the last couple of decades the dissemination, reporting and consumption of conspiracy theories in the US has increased in popularity due to widespread use and round the clock access to the internet. One of the primary reasons for the spread of conspiracy theories is that the internet and digital media has allowed for greater access to online content that at first glance appears to challenge the authority of traditional mainstream media. In the US, alternative media usage has been associated with those on both the left and the right (Democrat and Republican) of the political divide and who are able to consume ‘alternative’ news which aligns with their political ideology and opinions whilst being able to avoid other opinions which contradict their own. For this reason, alternative media in the US has been able to attract audiences by becoming more partisan (either left or right). However, alternative media in the US has predominately been linked often linked to those who seen to be on the alternative ‘alt-right’ of politics. While the dissemination of conspiracy theories was once seen as the preserve of extremist right-wing groups and the alternative-right media, conspiracy theory dissemination can now also be seen in media outlets regarded as being alternative-left, and those media outlets seen as belonging to the traditional, mainstream media. The mainstream media in the US traditionally has been associated with being central/neutral and non-partisan whose responsibility is to report the news in an unbiased manner. However, owing to how divided along politically partisan lines the US currently is, a subtle, and not so subtle partisan divide between mainstream media outlets can be seen. Additionally, there are mainstream media outlets that clearly have a partisan leaning (left or right) and this continues to draw in audiences who share the same political leanings. Also, even media outlets which have started out as slightly partisan such as Fox have become known as more alternative-right due to having programs and hosts that have more polarised views. It has also become apparent that the ‘lines’ between alternative media and mainstream media in the US have become ‘blurred’ with both kinds of media outlets employing similar tactics and reporting methods when it comes to disseminating conspiracy theories. This paper analyses the reporting and dissemination of conspiracy theories by online media outlets (alternative-right, alternative-left, and mainstream media) in the US during a five-month period October 2022 – March 2023. This time frame also saw the 2022 US midterm elections take place in November. The method used for this study was quantitative content analysis which analysed 628 articles taken from ten online US media outlets - three digital newspapers (The New York Times, New York Post and The Washington Post) and seven websites (AlterNet, Breitbart, CNN, The Gateway Pundit, Fox News, Mother Jones and MSNBC. The aim of the study was to compare how the various outlets reported conspiracy theories, the language/rhetoric used, and if there were any similarities in the reporting when looking at the outlets regarded as being on the slight to moderate left or right of US politics, and those regarded as being alternative media outlets and those generally seen as belonging to the mainstream media. The findings overall concur with previous research that although alternative right media tends to disseminate conspiracy theories more, the alternative left media, the more ‘mainstream’ partisan media and the centre/mainstream media will also report on conspiracy theories with a sharp focus on conspiratorial content targeted at partisan government.