مقاله سال ۲۰۱۶

Despite the widespread and in synch provision of financial news and algorithm trading, it seems that investors do not anticipate the bursting of financial bubbles as,for example, experienced during the Global Financial Crisis 2007–۲۰۰۹٫ Rather, it appears that the market is not fully based on rationality, but subject to affective behavior by traders, such as herd-like behavior or emotional reactions (Neri, 2009). At the same time, increasing news coverage, commentaries and opinion pieces on financial topics demonstrate a tendency of the media to cover these developments on the market (e.g., Tesla’s April Fool 2015), suggesting a strong relationship between media and the stock market.

However, reversed effects, the complex interaction and the mechanism between media and the stock market have hardly been investigated so far—and, above all, not from a communication science perspective (cf. Lee, 2014; see for an exception Kleinnijenhuis, Schultz, Oegema, & Atteveldt, 2013; Scheufele, Haas, & Brosius, 2011). Existing works in economics or business are primarily simulation models that investigate market indices, e.g., Dow Jones or S&P 500, but not paying attention to differences across stocks from diverse sectors or the peculiarity of news media coverage (e.g., Hayo & Neuenkirch, 2013 looking at macro-economic announcements). Therefore, the supposed reciprocal relationship between media coverage and the stock market remains to be tested.

Facing irrational exuberance on the markets (Shiller, 2000), it becomes crucial to examine to what extent emotions in news affect movements of stock market prices; or, in turn, to find out whether price movements of various stocks dictate the extent of coverage and emotions the media ascribe to these stocks the following days.