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Abstract
This dissertation investigates the role of media in influencing political participation and public support in authoritarian regimes, using original survey data from Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. This research aims to deepen the understanding of how media environments affect political engagement and legitimacy in contexts with restricted media freedom. Existing research often lacks a nuanced understanding of the distinct roles of traditional and digital media, frequently focusing on unique cases like China or broadly examining general media use patterns without distinguishing between political and non-political content. This dissertation addresses these and other limitations. The first empirical chapter explores how Kazakhstani citizens with different perceptions of state media fairness vary in their political attitudes and participation when exposed to government-critical views on social media. The results show that citizens who perceive state media as fair are more politically engaged, particularly in state-approved forms of participation, and are more likely to protest. These findings suggest that state media in authoritarian regimes reflects the broader political environment. The second empirical chapter examines the impact of media regimes on voter turnout in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, testing the hypothesis that a bimodal media regime—characterized by a divide between state-controlled traditional media and freer digital media—affects voter turnout differently than an integrated media regime. The findings reveal a significant interaction between macro-level media regimes and micro-level news consumption patterns. In Kazakhstan, individuals with a balanced news diet show higher voter turnout than those who rely exclusively on either legacy or digital news, highlighting the positive effects of diverse information sources. The third empirical chapter evaluates the relationships between various media exposures and political trust in Kazakhstan. The results reveal that exposure to critical television stories about local or central government is positively associated with political trust. Conversely, exposure to critical social media stories is negatively related to trust, while positive social media stories about the government enhance trust. Overall, these findings underscore the complex role of media in shaping political behavior and trust in authoritarian regimes, suggesting that both traditional and digital media play crucial yet distinct roles in sustaining regime resilience.