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Cover of: Some Economics of Echo Chambers
Frank Stähler, Martin Richardson

Some Economics of Echo Chambers

Section: Articles
Volume 177 (2021) / Issue 2, pp. 205-219 (15)
Published 22.02.2021
DOI 10.1628/jite-2021-0004
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  • 10.1628/jite-2021-0004
Summary
This paper analyzes competition between a media firm providing true information (news) and two fake-news providers that create echo chambers. Information from the media firm is uncertain but truthful, and consumers enjoy confirmation of their prior beliefs due to cognitive dissonances. We show that, even if real news is more valued than fake news, entry by fake-news providers becomes more profitable with increased variance of information. Furthermore, a public news provider makes entry for fake-news providers harder than for a profit-maximizing media firm.