Replication Data for: Muzzling the Media? Explaining Popular Support for Media Restrictions in Africa

Independent media are essential for democracy, but bring potential costs, including hate speech and false information. Many governments, including in Africa, are using such concerns to push new media restrictions. What arguments do Africans themselves find convincing? I use an original conjoint survey experiment in four countries (Côte d’Ivoire, Kenya, Nigeria, and Uganda) to identify the effects of several different potential justifications for media restrictions on popular attitudes. Contra expectations, support for media restrictions does not seem attributable to government supporters simply following leaders’ anti-media rhetoric, nor are concerns about foreign influence via media impactful in most countries. Certain language, such as support for armed groups and spreading hate speech, is especially likely to generate calls for harsher responses. When coupled with observational survey data and focus group evidence, these findings suggest that many Africans see media restrictions as supportive of democracy, rather than as tools to empower already-entrenched leaders.

独立媒体对于民主建设至关重要，但同时也可能引发潜在风险，其中包括仇恨言论滋生与虚假信息传播。包括非洲多国在内，诸多政府正借由这类担忧推动出台新的媒体管制措施。那么非洲民众自身认为哪些论证更具说服力？本研究针对科特迪瓦、肯尼亚、尼日利亚及乌干达四国开展原创性联合分析调查实验（conjoint survey experiment），以识别媒体管制的数种潜在正当理由对民众态度的影响效应。与学界预期相悖的是，民众对媒体管制的支持似乎并非源于政府支持者盲目追随领导人的反媒体言论；且在多数国家中，针对媒体带来的外国影响力的担忧也未产生显著影响。诸如支持武装组织、传播仇恨言论这类特定言论内容，尤其容易引发要求采取更严厉管制措施的呼声。结合观察式调查数据与焦点小组调研佐证，本研究的上述发现表明，诸多非洲民众将媒体管制视为助力民主的举措，而非强化既得掌权者权力的工具。