Political News Consumption and Media Source Preferences During Election Campaigns: A Rolling Cross‐Sectional Analysis

ABSTRACT This study examines political news consumption patterns among Icelandic voters during the 2021 parliamentary election campaign, tracking developments on a daily basis leading up to election day. While news consumption during campaigns has been widely studied, little attention has been paid to examining changes in people's media diets over time, as we do here. Using an innovative rolling cross‐sectional survey design, we capture daily variations in engagement across traditional, online, and social media platforms during the month before the election. This method reveals trends over time, offering insights into fluctuations in engagement across demographic groups and levels of political interest. Findings show a slight but steady rise in political news use as election day nears, with political interest as a key predictor. Notably, individuals who rely on social media are found to be highly interested in politics, diverging from patterns in other countries and highlighting Iceland's unique digital media environment.