Henderson, ConorCanfield, Jessica2024-01-102024-01-102024-01-10https://hdl.handle.net/1794/29209Advertising media planners worry that the negative content in news media creates an inhospitable advertising context. The present research investigates if this concern is well founded. I find that advertisements placed in news media can actually outperform advertisements placed in entertainment media (e.g., dramas, comedies, sports, etc.) because news media attracts audiences in a mental state that is more receptive to advertisements’ informational content. This advantage is fragile, however. Upsetting news can spoil the audiences’ information appetite, their eagerness to consume and readiness to digest information. Analysis of Nielsen television viewership data for the weeks surrounding the 2016 United States Presidential Election merged with Google Trends search activity data for advertised brands reveals effects of brand advertisement viewership on brand search that are consistent with these propositions. Advertising viewership effect sizes are the smallest for ads on entertainment media, especially around the election, presumably because entertainment viewers sought to escape, rather than consume, information. The relatively more positive advertising effects on news disappeared around the election for liberal news channels, presumably because shocking election results ruined Democrats’ information appetite. Two preregistered controlled studies bolster confidence in these interpretations and inform the advertising and news industries’ partnership. A series of theory-in-use based interviews affirms the opportunities news provides as an advertising context and highlights the potential negative consequences of news avoidance strategies. These findings support of the importance of understanding news as advertising context with implications for advertisers, news publishers and providers, and consumers.en-USAll Rights Reserved.Electronic Thesis or Dissertation