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Propaganda and Conflict: Evidence from the Rwandan Genocide *

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Yanagizawa-Drott, David·2014·The Quarterly Journal of Economics

Abstract

This article investigates the role of mass media in times of conflict and state-sponsored mass violence against civilians. We use a unique village-level data set from the Rwandan genocide to estimate the impact of a popular radio station that encouraged violence against the Tutsi minority population. The results show that the broadcasts had a significant effect on participation in killings by both militia groups and ordinary civilians. An estimated 51,000 perpetrators, or approximately 10% of the overall violence, can be attributed to the station. The broadcasts increased militia violence not only directly by influencing behavior in villages with radio reception but also indirectly by increasing participation in neighboring villages. In fact, spillovers are estimated to have caused more militia violence than the direct effects. Thus, the article provides evidence that mass media can affect participation in violence directly due to exposure and indirectly due to social interactions.

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Cited by

Metadata

Authors
Yanagizawa-Drott, D.
Venue
The Quarterly Journal of Economics
Published
2014-11-01
Volume
129
Issue
4
Pages
1947-1994
ISSN
  • 0033-5533 (ISSN-L)
  • 1531-4650
OpenAlex
W2109968903
Cited by
726
References
3
FWCI
91.88
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
bronze

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