International Journal of Public Opinion Research ß The Author . Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The World Association for Public Opinion Research. All rights reserved. doi:./ijpor/edt Ability Matters: Testing the Differential Effects of Political News and Late-Night Political Comedy on Cognitive Responses and the Role of Ability in Micro-Level Opinion Formation Heather L. LaMarre and Whitney Walther Temple University, School of Media and Communication Annenberg Hall, North th Street, Philadelphia, PA , USA and University of Minnesota, USA. Entertainment-oriented media are a staple in today’s political media environ- ment (Prior, ), ranging from fictional narratives (e.g., Iron Lady, Ides of March) to entertainment-infused news programming (e.g., Fox and Friends, Rock Center). Amidst the rapidly changing media environment, media produ- cers are packaging political content in a variety of entertaining formats known to engage audiences and increase message receptivity (e.g., Holbert, Hmielowski, Jain, Lather, & Morey, ; Holbert, Pillion, Tschida, Armfield, Kinder, & Cherry ; LaMarre & Landreville, ). Although the primary goal of political entertainment media content is to entertain, some forms are developed with secondary goals aimed at influencing political atti- tudes and opinions (Holbert, ). Comedian Steve Martin noted this in his recent autobiography, revealing that while performing on Saturday Night Live he intentionally used parody and satire to influence attitudes about political issues and public officials (Martin, ). Much of what the public consumes as popular entertainment media includes a secondary emphasis on real-world political issues, potentially influencing public opinion (Delli Carpini & Williams, ; Holbert, ). As such, there is an increasing interest in how individuals cognitively process and form opinions in response to political entertainment media consumption. To this end, the present study examines cognitive responses to different forms of political media: Political news and late-night political comedy. All correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Heather L. LaMarre, Temple University School of Media and Communication, Annenberg Hall, 2020, North 13th Street, Philadelphia, PA, 19122, USA. E-mail: hlamarre@gmail.com International Journal of Public Opinion Research Advance Access published June 19, 2013 by guest on June 20, 2013 http://ijpor.oxfordjournals.org/ Downloaded from