Political Communication and Mass Media

Vocabulary flashcards focusing on key terms, concepts, and theoretical frameworks in political communication and mass media.

Political Communication

All forms of communication undertaken by politicians or political actors to achieve specific objectives, communication addressed to them by non-politicians, and media discussions about political actors and their activities.

Mass Media

Channels of communication that reach a large number of people.

Party Press

Early newspapers with small circulation tied to political roots, which eventually transformed into commercial newspapers funded by advertisements.

Personalization of Politics

An adaptive strategy where politicians adjust to television characteristics by shifting focus onto individual political personalities.

Elective Exposure

The tendency of internet users to select content that confirms their existing opinions, leading them to live in echo chambers or filter bubbles.

Automated Bots

Applications that run automated tasks on the internet, including the distribution of political messages to increase their salience (e.g., by massive automated retweeting).

Fake News

The spread of false information reaching high levels of quantity and quality via digital technology, as well as an accusation brought forward by political actors to discredit unwanted news media coverage.

Post-Truth Society

The idea that appeals to emotions and personal beliefs have become much more influential in shaping public opinion and public policy than objective facts.

Agenda Setting

The ability of the news media to influence the salience of topics on the public agenda, representing the initial stage in the formation of public opinion.

Priming

Second level agenda setting wherein the media draws attention to some aspects of politics at the expense of others, activating stored memories to provide readily available decision criteria.

Framing

Selecting some aspects of a perceived reality and making them more salient in a communicating text to promote a particular problem definition, causal interpretation, moral evaluation, and/or treatment recommendation.

Mis- and Disinformation

Verifiable falsehoods, which are distinct from democratic disagreement or inconvenient opinions.