Chapter 7 - The Mass Media and the Political Agenda

high-tech politics

A politics in which the behavior of citizens and policymakers and the political agenda itself are increasingly shaped by technology

mass media

Television, radio, newspapers, magazines, the Internet, and other means of popular communication

media events

Events that are purposely staged for the media and that are significant just because the media are there

• importance or impact is often based on the media's coverage of the events (political debates, press conferences, etc.)

press conferences

Meetings of public officials with reporters

investigative-journalism

The use of in-depth reporting to unearth scandals, scams, and schemes, at times putting reporters in adversarial relationships with political leaders

print media

Newspapers and magazines, as compared with electronic media

electronic media

Television, radio, and the Internet, as compared with print media

narrowcasting

Media programming on cable TV (e.g., on MTV, ESPN, or C-SPAN) or the Internet that is focused on a particular interest and aimed at a particular audience, in contrast to broadcasting

• delivering media to a specific audience rather than mass audience

selective exposure

The process through which people consciously choose to get the news from information sources that have viewpoints compatible with their own

chains

Groups of newspapers published by media conglomerates (large cooperation made up of smaller companies operating in unrelated industries) and today accounting for over 4/5s of the nation’s daily newspaper circulation

• group of newspapers that are all owned by the same big company. These companies dominate a huge part of the newspaper market.

• powerful because they own many outlets, giving them significant control over what news gets reported.

beats

specific locations from which news frequently emanates, such as Congress or the White House. Most top reporters work a particular beat, thereby becoming specialists in what goes on at that location

• Specific area or topic that a reporter is assigned to cover regularly. It's a way for reporters to specialize in one subject, location, or type of news, so they can develop expertise and build strong sources within that area.

trial balloons

Intentional news leaks for the purpose of accessing the political reaction

sound bites

Short video clips of approximately 10 seconds. Typically they are all that is shown from a politician’s speech on the nightly television news

talking head

A shot of a person’s face talking directly to the camera. Because such shots are visually unstimulating, the major networks rarely show politicians talking for very long

policy agenda

The issues that attract the serious attention of public officials and other people actively involved in politics at the time

policy entrepreneurs

People who invest their political “capital” in an issue. According to John Kingdon, a policy entrepreneur “could be in or out of government, in elected or appointed positions, in interest groups or research organizations.”

• uses their influence and connections—whether inside or outside of government—to fight for changes in laws or policies. They "invest" their time, effort, and political capital to advocate for something they believe in.