Indistinct Information Habitats: Information and Attitudes in the 2023 Alberta Election
November 24, 2023 — Amidst concerns of rising polarization and increasing information environment segregation, the Media Ecosystem Observatory (MEO) conducted a two-pronged study during the 2023 Alberta provincial election to evaluate the possibility of increasing ideological and affective polarization. MEO’s study set out to examine the presence of distinct information environments or ‘habitats’ among the Alberta New Democratic Party (NDP) and the United Conservative Party (UCP) by surveying 948 Albertans to understand their media consumption habits and collecting digital trace data on Instagram and Facebook to understand social media information networks.
Our analysis was guided by the following questions:
(1) what was the news media landscape in Alberta during the election?
(2) Do NDP voters and UCP supporters consume different media?
(3) What attitudes are those patterns of consumption associated with?
We find that the information ecosystem is not heavily divided in terms of media consumption within the province along party lines: NDP and UCP voters do not exist in vastly different information habitats. Voters from both parties have similar news media consumption preferences and generally obtain their news from similar outlets, with the notable exceptions of CBC being favoured by NDP voters and Rebel News being favoured by UCP voters. We also find that voters from both parties use similar social media platforms.
However, the digital trace data hints at the presence of distinct information habitats on social media platforms along party lines. Using a social media engagement network from comments on candidate and media outlet posts, we find suggestive evidence that a small number of Albertans – those most heavily interested in politics – do help produce a divided social online discourse. This divergence in information environments online is an important consideration, given our study also revealed that, despite commonalities in media consumption, there are large differences in attitudes. There are large differences in attitudes related to trust in politicians and political institutions, the importance given to particular political issues, and opinions about how to best respond to the democratic threat of misinformation.
About the Media Ecosystem Observatory
The Media Ecosystem Observatory is an interdisciplinary research initiative dedicated to analyzing the complex web of online harms and digital threats to democracy, while actively working to safeguard against them.
About the Canadian Digital Media Research Network (CDMRN)
The Observatory coordinates and supports the Canadian Digital Media Research Network (CDMRN). The CDMRN is a pioneering initiative committed to fortifying and fostering resilience within Canada's unique information ecosystem. Its mission is to understand the dynamics of information production, dissemination, and consumption across digital media with the goal of empowering Canadians to navigate the complexities of the modern digital age.
The report by the CDMRN has been made possible in part by the Government of Canada. Ce projet a été rendu possible en partie grâce au gouvernement du Canada.