Digital Inequality and Participation in the Political Process

Abstract

This study analyzes whether greater levels of Internet access closed the participation gap between individuals of lower and higher socioeconomic status (SES) in the early stages of the 2012 presidential campaign. Our analysis of data from the Pew Research Center demonstrates that greater levels of access to the Internet are significantly associated with greater political knowledge and engagement for low SES individuals, but not high SES individuals. We explain our results in the context of incidental learning among the disengaged public during high-profile political events, such as a presidential election.