Mass media use, neighborliness, and social support - Assessing causal links with panel data

This study assesses pathways of causal influence between two mass media use measures (campaign exposure and news attention) and two indicators of social capital (neighborliness and social support). This assessment encompasses the evaluation of a health media campaign that targeted African Americans in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina. Analysis of panel survey data indicated a significant over- time increase in neighborliness but not social support. Among the three cross- lagged effect models of influence, the best fit was of the mass media use causes social capital model. Similarly, among the three synchronous effect models of influence, the best fit was of the mass media use causes social capital model. This analysis provides support for the media campaign's effectiveness and, more broadly, allows for the extension of recent research that has used panel data to strengthen inferences of causation in different mass communication scenarios.