AP Gov Unit 3 Vocab

Amicus curiae brief

"Friend of the court" brief filed by an interest group to influence a Supreme Court decision

gaffe

an unintentional act or remark causing embarrassment to its originator; a blunder.

Dealignment argument

Contention that parties are less meaningful to voters, who have abandoned the parties in greater numbers to become independents

Divided government

government in which one party controls the presidency while another party controls the Congress

Elite theory

theory that upper class elites exercise great influence over public policy

Factions

term used by Madison to denote what we now call interest groups

Sound bite

A short pithy comment that is likely to attract media attention, e.g., Ronald Reagan saying, "A recession is when your neighbor loses his job, a depression is when you lose your job, and recovery is when Jimmy Carter loses his job."

Fairness Doctrine

FCC rule (no longer in effect) that required broadcasters to air a variety of viewpoints on their programs

Spin control

Placing a certain slant on a story to deflect negative public attention against a candidate or office holder

Feeding frenzy

Just as sharks engage in a feeding frenzy when they sense blood in the water, the media "attack" when they sense wrongdoing or scandal in government, and devote great amounts of coverage to such stories.

Free rider problem

The problem faced by interest group when citizens can reap the benefits of interest group action without actually joining participating in, or contributing money to such groups

Unit rule

An abandoned rule of Democratic Party national convention in which the candidate with the most delegates from a state won all of the state's convention votes.

Selective perception

The practice of perceiving media messages the way one wants to

Horse race coverage

The tendency of the media to report on an election campaign as if it were a horse race, I.e, who is ahead, who is behind, who is gaining ground.

Iron triangle

an informal association of federal agency, congressional committee, and interest group that is said to have heavy influence over policy making.

Revolving door

The cycle in which a person alternately works for the public sector and private sector, thus blurring the individual's sense of loyalty

Selective exposure

The practice of selectively choosing media sources which are in harmony with one's own beliefs

Litigation

The act or process of carrying out a lawsuit

Lobbying

Attempting to influence policy makers

Patronage

Appointing loyal party members to government positions.

Pluralism

Theory that policy making is the result of interest group competition.

Nonpartisan elections

Elections in which candidates are not identified by party membership on the ballot

Office column ballot

Ballot in which candidates are arranged by office rather than party. Encourages split ticket voting.

Political Action Committee (PAC)

An interest group that raises funds and donates to election campaigns.

Party column ballot

Ballot in which candidates are arranged by party rather than office. Encourages straight ticket voting.

Photo opportunity

A staged campaign event that attracts favorable visual media coverage, e.g., a candidate to a group of school children

fox news

most conservative news channel

msnbc

most liberal news channel

#10

Federalist Paper in which Madison discussed interest groups

ideological parties

Socialist, Green, and Libertarian are examples of

one-issue parties

Marijuana Legalization Party is an example of

Reynolds v. US

Supreme Court case that said 1st amendment did not protect religious practices that violated the law

Gitlow v. New York

Supreme Court case that said that the 1st amendment would be incorporated via the 14th amendment to apply to the states.

Barron v. Baltimore

Supreme Court case that said the Bill of Rights didn't apply to the states (guy who's dock got messed up tried to sue the state government via the 5th amendment)

Schenck v. US

Supreme Court case that established that the first amendment could be denied if it presented a "clear and present danger"

Plessy v. Ferguson

Supreme Court case that established the doctrine of "separate but equal"

Marbury v. Madison

Supreme Court case that established power of judicial review

Gibbons v. Ogden

Supreme Court case involving steamboats; ruling said Federal gov could regulate commerce due to Commerce Clause

Mapp v. Ohio

Supreme Court case that said evidence obtained illegally (without a warrant) was inadmissible in court.

Korematsu v. US

Supreme Court case that ruled Japanese concentration camps were Constitutional due to war situation.

Brown v Board

Supreme Court case that reversed the doctrine of separate but equal; desegregated schools