Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/171123 
Year of Publication: 
2017
Series/Report no.: 
CESifo Working Paper No. 6659
Publisher: 
Center for Economic Studies and ifo Institute (CESifo), Munich
Abstract: 
We empirically study the effects of broadband internet diffusion on local election outcomes and on local government policies using rich data from the U.K. Our analysis suggests that the internet has displaced other media with greater news content (i.e., radio and newspapers), thereby decreasing voter turnout, most notably among less-educated and younger individuals. In turn, we find suggestive evidence that local government expenditures and taxes are lower in areas with greater broadband diffusion, particularly expenditures targeted at less-educated voters. Our findings are consistent with the idea that voters’ information plays a key role in determining electoral participation, government policies and government size.
JEL: 
D72
Document Type: 
Working Paper
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