Enhancing perceived credibility of citizen journalism web sites

Kirsten A. Johnson, Elizabethtown College
Susan Wiedenbeck, Drexel University

Abstract

This study examined whether information about a writer and hyperlinks on a citizen journalism Web site affected the perceived credibility of stories. Participants read stories from a popular citizen journalism Web site and rated the stories in terms of perceived credibility. Results show that hyperlinks and information about the writer do enhance perceived story credibility. Credibility is enhanced most greatly when both hyperlink and writer information are included and, to a lesser extent, when just hyperlink or writer information is present. © 2009 AEJMC.