News as a form of post-event information: the effect of online media type and source credibility on eyewitness memory

Despite the growing awareness of inaccuracies in eyewitness memory recall, their involvement in wrongful convictions urges the need for further research to reduce eyewitness error. Media is a form of post-event information (PEI) that can distort a witness’ memory prior to providing recall. The present study investigates whether PEI presented through different online media platforms (traditional vs social media) and with varying credibility (high vs low) influences eyewitness recall. One-hundred and ninety-two participants watched a staged crime video before receiving one of four news articles that included correct PEI and misinformation but differed in what media platform they were presented on and whether the news outlet was high or low in credibility. Participants then completed a free and cued recall task. Participants who viewed traditional media (news website) were more accurate in their statements and accepted less misinformation in free recall, when compared to the social media condition (Facebook). During cued recall, participants in the high credibility condition (ABC News) accepted more misinformation than those in the low credibility condition (Daily Mail). These findings extend on misinformation literature and suggest future directions to explore media and memory in a society heavily influenced by news and media platforms.