Data for all variables of this paper.

This study empirically investigates the relationship between negative new media coverage and audit fees by collecting a sample of nonfinancial listed companies on the main board of the Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE) from 2017 to 2019, along with data on negative new media coverage of official WeChat public accounts founded by the most influential national financial newspaper obtained using a crawler. This study revealed that: 1. Audit fees are significantly and positively related to negative news media coverage; 2. The increase in audit fees is due to the fact that if a listed company undergoes negative new media coverage, the accounting firm that audits the company will consequently increase risk premium and thus audit fees. We found no evidence that accounting firms spend more time and effort on audit work after a listed company experiences negative new media coverage; 3. Analyst-tracking has a moderating effect on negative new media coverage and audit fees, leading to an increase in audit fees; 4. Negative media reporting on non-state-owned enterprises is more likely to cause accounting firms to increase their audit fees than their state-owned peers, whereas “non-Big Four” accounting firms are more likely to increase their audit fees for companies with negative new media reports. This study, based on the differing impacts of negative new media coverage, intended to unravel the intricate relationship between different types of negative new media coverage and audit fees, help understand the mechanism whereby negative reporting impacts audit fees, and provides a benchmark for the development of a feasible audit fee system.

本研究以2017至2019年上海证券交易所（Shanghai Stock Exchange, SSE）主板非金融类上市公司为样本，结合通过爬虫程序抓取的国内最具影响力国家级财经报纸运营的微信（WeChat）官方公众号负面新媒体报道数据，实证检验了负面新媒体报道与审计费用之间的关系。研究结果显示：1. 审计费用与负面新媒体报道呈显著正相关关系；2. 审计费用的提升源于：当上市公司遭遇负面新媒体报道时，为其提供审计服务的会计师事务所会相应提高风险溢价，进而推高审计费用。本研究未发现证据表明，上市公司遭遇负面新媒体报道后，会计师事务所会在审计工作中投入更多时间与精力；3. 分析师跟踪对负面新媒体报道与审计费用的关系具有调节作用，会推动审计费用进一步提升；4. 相较于国有企业，非国有企业的负面媒体报道更易促使会计师事务所提高审计费用；而非四大（non-Big Four）会计师事务所更易针对存在负面新媒体报道的公司上调审计费用。本研究基于负面新媒体报道的异质性影响，旨在厘清不同类型负面新媒体报道与审计费用间的复杂关联，助力理解负面报道影响审计费用的作用机制，并为构建可行的审计费用体系提供参考基准。