Do They Believe It When They See It?: Video News Release Effects on Viewer Recall and Attitudes.

A study tested responses of viewers (as opposed to news organizations and sponsoring firms) to video news releases (VNRs). Subjects, 81 undergraduate students enrolled in an introductory advertising course, viewed a 30-second message about McDonald's and the Big Mac in a VNR format or an advertisement about the Big Mac special "Meal Deal" embedded in a videotape of a recent local newscast. Subjects completed questionnaires measuring the credibility of the information in the video. Results indicated that viewers assign significantly more credibility to VNR-based messages than to similar advertisements. Further, the level of credibility given to newscasts was a significant predictor of VNR recall. (Contains 14 references, 1 table, and 1 figure of data.) (RS)