Assessing the Impact of Media Types on Public Engagement and Sensationalism in Archaeological Discourse

While effective media content increases archaeological interests and actions, some content leads to mere sensationalism. The current study examines different media contents (article, long-form post, short-form video, and documentary) and compares their archaeological impact on individuals. A survey measured sixty participants on their prior level in archaeology and their subjective evaluation of the archaeological contents from different media formats. Based on their reports, scores were calculated that considered the media’s appeal, archeological-impact, and sensationalism. The results indicated that archaeological impact and susceptibility to sensationalism significantly differed between participants’ archaeological level. While audiences with high level understanding show high interest and archaeological contribution, results of media appeal and archaeological impact were independent for low-level audiences. Particularly, short-form video revealed sensationalism among low-level viewers, with high interest but low contribution. Results from this study show that media type and audiences’ prior experience determine the degree of contribution media gives to archaeology, suggesting that content creators should adjust their approach to consider the target audience.