Editing Two-step flow of communication (section)

== Related Theories ==
Prior to the Two-Step Flow Theory, there was the Magic Bullet or Hypodermic Needle Theory. It emerged in the mid-1930s and played a significant role in the world wars. This theory suggests that audiences passively absorb the information fed to them by the media. The "bullet" or what is being "injected" represents the message.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Hypodermic Needle Theory (Magic Bullet Theory) {{!}} EBSCO Research Starters |url=https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/social-sciences-and-humanities/hypodermic-needle-theory-magic-bullet-theory |access-date=2025-04-15 |website=www.ebsco.com |language=en}}</ref> Paul Lazarsfeld and Herta Herzog debunked this theory in an episode of the podcast ''The War of the Worlds.''

On the contrary, in recent years, a new theory based on the Two-Step Flow Theory has emerged—the Multi-Step Flow Theory. It is said to have been developed by the same scholars behind the Two-Step Flow Theory, sociologists Elihu Katz and Paul Lazarsfeld. Like the Two-Step Flow Theory, the Multi-Step Flow Theory describes how media messages are disseminated through intermediaries. However, some key differences exist while the Two-Step Flow Theory is linear, the Multi-Step Flow Theory is more complex. Additionally, the Multi-Step Flow Theory is part of a larger network of information and acknowledges audience participation. However, it has a much weaker direct influence compared to the Two-Step Flow Theory.<ref>{{Cite web |title=One-step, two-step, or multi-step flow: The role of influencers in information processing and dissemination in online, interest-based publics - ProQuest |url=https://www.proquest.com/openview/eea88eec6b3d4d72c0ed280e0f43fa9f/1 |access-date=2025-04-15 |website=www.proquest.com |language=en}}</ref>

The multi-step flow theory is seen heavily on platforms such as TikTok. Social media platforms allow people to gain a following and become opinion leaders of small groups of people. The fact that so many small opinion leaders can exist has shifted how the two-step flow theory works into a multi-step flow theory. <ref name=":0" />The existence of algorithms has created echo chambers, which allow misinformation to spread quickly through demographics that are only seeing the content that they want to see.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Effects of Fact-Checking Misinformation About U.S. Politics on TikTok Through the Lens of Two-Step Flow Theory: A Quantitative Content Analysis - ProQuest |url=https://www.proquest.com/openview/0a458c4858774b6f20573d64448feaa6/1?cbl=18750&diss=y&pq-origsite=gscholar |access-date=2025-04-21 |website=www.proquest.com |language=en}}</ref>