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Article History

Received: 28 November 2024

Accepted: 22 May 2025

First Online: 11 June 2025

AI disclosure

: ChatGPT was used to assist with grammar proofreading of this manuscript.

: The authors declare no competing interests.

: The questionnaire and methodology for this study were approved by the University of Sheffield Research Ethics Committee on 31 January 2022 under the reference number 044534. The authors confirm that all data collection procedures complied with the ethical guidelines of the university.

: We used Prolific to recruit potential participants and conducted the survey with a sample size of 1881 on 20 August 2022. The survey was administered online in a click-through format. Given the project’s focus on online political advertising, which is connected to debates around political opinions, there was a potential risk of participant distress when responding to questions about political views. To address this, respondents first viewed a ‘Participant Information Sheet’, which detailed the focus and scope of the research, allowing them to make an informed decision about participation. This was followed by a ‘Participant Consent Form’. Only after reading and ticking the appropriate boxes to provide their consent were they able to proceed with the survey. If, for any reason, they no longer wished to continue, they could opt out at any point by closing their browser.