Beliefs, media exposure and policy preferences on immigration: Evidence from Europe

This article studies the joint determination of beliefs about the economic impact of immigration and immigration policy preferences, using data from the five rounds of the European Social Survey (2002-2010). In addition to standard socio-economic characteristics, this analysis takes individual media consumption into account, as a determinant of opinion about immigration. Our results stress the important role of the endogenous determination of beliefs, which appears as a major determinant of policy preferences. Moreover, media exposure appears as a key determinant of beliefs: individuals who spend more time to get informed on social and political matters through newspapers and radio have a better opinion on the economic impact of immigration compared with individuals who devote time to other types of content.