Fuel to the Fire: Talk Radio and the Gamson Hypothesis

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Abstract
The so-called "Gamson hypothesis" posits that the combination of high political self-efficacy and low trust in government is the optimum condition for political mobilization. The results of research on this interaction of self-efficacy and trust, however, have been mixed. This study examines whether talk radio, which has been linked to political mobilization in recent research, acts as a mobilizing influence on persons who believe they can influence public affairs but who have little trust in government. It is also hypothesized that this interaction will be even more powerful for political conservatives. Using national survey data, a fourfold typology was created from government trust and political self-efficacy and these expectations were tested against an overall participation measure and four factors that made up the measure. Little support was found for talk radio being a more powerful predictor of participation among the high efficacy/low trust respondents as compared to other combinations of the variables. However, some support is found for an interaction between talk radio exposure and political conservatives across all the participation variables.

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