Indirect Influence: How Elite Attacks on Information Providers Affect Public Opinion Formation

Attacks from politicians can dramatically reduce public trust in sources of expertise and information. We consider the consequences of such criticism and argue that by shaping which information providers their supporters consider credible, politicians can exert indirect influence over public opinion formation. In two survey experiments that link elite criticism of the media to other outcomes, we show politicians who discredit a media outlet cause their supporters to avoid the targeted news source and perceive more bias in its coverage. Partisan attacks also reduce the subsequent effect of the news source's coverage on public opinion, although people are unable to fully discount information from sources they deem untrustworthy due to this rhetoric. Looking beyond direct means of elite influence such as positional cues and policy arguments, we show how harming the reputations of information providers allows politicians to indirectly influence the views of their supporters.