Public perceptions of false positive and negative errors in news reports

Due to the problem of misinformation, the public is advised to obtain information from reputable sources to avoid inaccurate news coverage (false positive errors). However, reputable sources might engage in selective reporting (false negative errors). We developed a concise model to explain why both inaccurate coverage and limited coverage should be considered if electors are to make an appropriate political decision. Then, we conducted a survey in Japan (𝑁 = 2020) to examine the hypotheses derived from the model. The results suggest that respondents perceive different types of media to vary in their likelihood of committing the two errors; these perceptions correlate with media consumption, and media literacy interventions do not change attitudes toward media consumption.