Abstract
A number of mobile news apps deploy push notifications that appear on users’ locked screens and alert users to breaking news. Push notifications are theoretically important because they transcend the traditional divide between purposeful and incidental news exposure. We analyze whether push notifications affect people’s reported use of a news app and what people learn about the news. In this paper, we report on the results of a 2 (install the CNN or BuzzFeed News app) × 2 (allow notifications, do not allow notifications) experiment. Approximately two weeks after installing the app, study participants were asked to answer questions about their news use and the topics covered by the mobile notifications. Results revealed that notifications increased self-reported use of the app. There also was evidence of learning from the notifications in some instances, but not all. The research provides empirical evidence of the effects of push notifications, adding to a growing literature on mobile news effects.
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