News Story

Associate professor and Interim Director of Graduate Studies Jason Peifer; doctoral candidate Arijit Paladhi; and associate professor and Interim Associate Dean for Academic Affairs Gerry Lanosga published “Understanding and predicting public opinion on investigative journalism” in the News Research Journal on March 31.

The study was done in collaboration with senior lecturer Oleksandr Yaroshchuk of Mohyla School of Journalism at the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.

Their research employed two statewide, Indiana-based, survey datasets — sample sizes being 1,000 and 546 respectively — to build on existing scholarship by examining public perceptions of the news media’s importance, with a particular focus on investigative journalism.

Consistent with prior research, the study suggests that journalism’s watchdog role generally remains highly valued with the American public. It also confirmed the correlation between beliefs about the value of investigative journalism and notions of how the news media serves democracy. Departing from prior research, the study found that political conservatism has a significant negative correlation with perceptions of investigative journalism, underscoring the polarized nature of attitudes about journalism.

This study also highlights how individuals with a “need for evidence” to support their decisions and beliefs tend to have a higher regard for investigative journalism, indicating an alignment between investigative journalism’s epistemology and one’s personal epistemology.