Media competition and electoral politics

•We build a framework linking competition in the media market to political participation.•Media outlets report on the ability of candidates running for office.•Both the decision to consume political news and the decision to vote are endogenously determined.•Our results can reconcile empirical evidence showing that media entry can either increase or decrease turnout.•Media competition increases slant but also high-ability candidates' chances of winning.

We build a framework linking competition in the media market to political participation. Media outlets report on the ability of candidates running for office and compete for audience through their choice of slant. Citizens consume news only if the expected utility of being informed about candidates' ability is sufficiently large for their group collectively. Our results can reconcile seemingly contradictory empirical evidence showing that entry in the media market can either increase or decrease turnout. While information pushes up independent turnout, partisans adjust their turnout to the ability of their preferred candidate, and on average they vote less when informed.