From SERPs to Sound: How Search Engine Result Pages and AI-generated Podcasts Interact to Influence User Attitudes on Controversial Topics

• URL: http://arxiv.org/abs/2601.11282v1
• Date: Fri, 16 Jan 2026 13:31:11 GMT
• Title: From SERPs to Sound: How Search Engine Result Pages and AI-generated Podcasts Interact to Influence User Attitudes on Controversial Topics
• Authors: Junjie Wang, Gaole He, Alisa Rieger, Ujwal Gadiraju,
• Abstract summary: We investigate how search engine result pages (SERPs) and AI-generated podcasts interact to shape user opinions.<n>A majority of users in our study corresponded to attitude change outcomes, and we found an effect of sequence on attitude change.<n>Our results further revealed a role of viewpoint bias and the degree of topic controversiality in shaping attitude change, although we found no effect of individual moderators.
• Score: 18.17104725797712
• License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Abstract: Compared to search engine result pages (SERPs), AI-generated podcasts represent a relatively new and relatively more passive modality of information consumption, delivering narratives in a naturally engaging format. As these two media increasingly converge in everyday information-seeking behavior, it is essential to explore how their interaction influences user attitudes, particularly in contexts involving controversial, value-laden, and often debated topics. Addressing this need, we aim to understand how information mediums of present-day SERPs and AI-generated podcasts interact to shape the opinions of users. To this end, through a controlled user study (N=483), we investigated user attitudinal effects of consuming information via SERPs and AI-generated podcasts, focusing on how the sequence and modality of exposure shape user opinions. A majority of users in our study corresponded to attitude change outcomes, and we found an effect of sequence on attitude change. Our results further revealed a role of viewpoint bias and the degree of topic controversiality in shaping attitude change, although we found no effect of individual moderators.

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