The influence of partisan news is presumed to be powerful, but evidence for its effects on political elites is limited, often based more on anecdotes than science. Using a rigorous quasi-experimental research design, observational data, and open science practices, this book carefully demonstrates how the re-emergence and rise of partisan cable news in the US affected the behavior of political elites during the rise and proliferation of Fox News across media markets between 1996 and 2010. Despite widespread concerns over the ills of partisan news, evidence provides a nuanced, albeit cautionary tale. On one hand, findings suggest that the rise of Fox indeed changed elite political behavior in recent decades. At the same time, the limited conditions under which Fox News' influence occurred suggests that concerns about the network's power may be overstated.

‘The spread of Murdoch-owned media is one of the most important developments in the Western world in the last four-plus decades, especially his most influential U.S. outlet: Fox News. This is the most methodologically sophisticated book-length treatment of the effects of Fox News on the US political system yet written. It shows convincingly how Fox changes how politicians perceive public opinion and, as a result, influences their behavior. It’s an essential book for understanding the US’s current challenges, and the role of partisan media in the political system more broadly.’

Jonathan Ladd - Associate Professor of Public Policy and Government, Georgetown University

‘Fox News might be the headline innovation in post-broadcast democracy-but not because it swayed the masses. This well-researched, nuanced book focuses instead on Fox’s effect on U.S. House candidates. An irony suggests itself: Fox News may (occasionally) affect politics because lawmakers believe it affects politics.’

Markus Prior - Professor of Politics and Public Affairs, Princeton University

‘Arceneaux, Dunaway, Johnson, & Vander Wielen marshal a mountain of new evidence to provide an authoritative look at how Fox News changed Congress.’

Chris Warshaw - Professor of Political Science, Georgetown University