JMU POSC 225 LaPira Exam 2

Media

Tools to store and deliver information or data

Different types of media

Print media, Radio and television, Electronic media, New media

Political Functions of Media

1. Provide political information

2. Help us to interpret events and policies

3. Influence agenda setting in the national political scene

4. Provide a forum for political conversations

5. Socialize children to the political culture

6. Serves as a watchdog on the government

Infotainment

TV networks injecting entertainment into news shows

Media framing

Setting a context for understanding events and matters of shared interest

Priming

Using media coverage to bring particular policies on issues to the public agenda

Public agenda

Public issues that most demand the attention of government

Social media

Designed for mass content creation and sharing, not elite

Penny press

Newspaper that sold for a penny, introduced in the 1830s

Digital paywall

Access limited to website subscribers for online content for newspapers

Citizen journalists

Individuals who report news and information, often replacing traditional journalists

Political culture

Values and norms that shape the political behavior of a society

TV-viewing toddlers

Young children who receive cultural messages through television

Talk radio

Radio format providing regular opportunities to express views publicly (letters to the editor)

Media Critics

Claim that point print and electronic media exhibit bias

Consolidation

The process of corporations merging to provide comprehensive digital services

Biased Media

Media that presents information in a way that favors one perspective over another

Ideological Bias

A long-standing complaint focusing on the liberal bias of the media, rooted in the ideological bent of journalists.

Conservative Media

Plays a greater role in US politics and much more paid attention to

Corporate Bias

A form of bias that emerges from the desire to attract, keep, and please an audience, producing skewed programming.

Priming “anchor” Examples

“If it bleeds, it leads”, “it’s the economy, stupid!”, Foreign policy and patriotism

Public Opinion

“…the aggregate of individual attitudes or beliefs about certain issues or officials, and it is the foundation of any democracy”

Public Opinion is NOT

1. Facts that may be independently verified with sufficient evidence

2. Likes and dislikes for goods and services in a market

3. Attitudes towards political inconsequential people or events.

Citizens' Attitudes (Public Opinion)

Broad expressions (Ideology, Political System) & Latent Formations

Ideology (Broad Expressions)

How much someone is for each side (conservative/liberal).

Political System

How much citizens believe in the political system.

Latent Formations

Specific issues, topics, or people that elicit immediate responses.

Public Opinion Poll

A survey of a given population's opinion on an issue at a particular time.

Target Population

The group of people whose opinions are of interest and about whom information is desired in a poll.

Types of Public Opinion Polls

Validity & Reliability

Reliability

The consistency of a poll's results over time.

Random Sampling

A scientific method of selection where each member of the population has an equal chance at being in the sample.

Methodological Problems

Issues that arise in obtaining a truly random sample, such as population identification and nonresponse rates.

Quota Sampling

A more scientifically sophisticated method of sampling than random sampling, where the sample is structured to be representative of the target population.

Stratified Sampling

A method used to address problems in sampling by undersampling populations identified ahead of time and then oversampling (most difficult)

Trust in the government

Polls go down after Watergate, up after 9/11.

Socialization

The process of children learning about the world around them, how they fit into the world, what the norms are.

Party identification

Chances are you will share the same political party as your parents.

Group Identity (Public Opinion)

Race, ethnicity, gender, religious identity, etc.

Elite Influence

Public opinion mirrors what elites believe rather than mass opinion.

Political Party Definition

An organization of ideologically similar people that nominates and elects its members to office in order to run the government and shape public policy.

Unfavorable view of parties

An increasing proportion of Americans (28 percent) have an unfavorable view of both political parties.

Younger voters' perception

Younger voters perceive no difference between the parties.

Party platform

The formal statement of a party's principles and policy objectives.

Grassroots organizing

Tasks that involve direct contact with voters or potential voters.

Responsible Party Model

Posits that a party tried to give a clear choice by establishing priorities or policy stances different from those of the rival party or parties.

Functions of Parties

1. Serve as intermediaries

2. Nominate and run candidates for office

3. Contest elections

4. Organize government

5. Provide accountability

6. Manage conflict

Popular criticism

Undermine open deliberation, generate unnecessary conflict, inhibit consensus and compromise, manipulate public opinion

Elites defenses

1. Solve collective action problems

2. Organize large decision-making bodies

3. Identify 'winning' policy alternatives (50% +1 that's going to vote for a bill)

4. Provide electoral abscess for accountability.

Three Components of Parties

1. Party in the electorate

2. Party organization

3. Party in government

Latent groups

People who have shared interest in politics

Free-Rider Problem

Individuals have an incentive to use goods without contributing towards cost

Collection active dilemma

Individuals must act collectively (collective action) to produce a public good

Non-excludable (CAD)

No one in the collective can be excluded from the enjoyments of the benefits

Non-rivalrous (CAD)

No rival good can be produced, one public good can be produced in an area (coke v pepsi)

Public goods

Goods that are both non-excludable and non-rivalrous (lighthouses)

Coercion (FRP Solutions)

Forcing everyone to contribute to the production of the public good (taxes and the draft)

Selective incentives (FRP Solutions)

The main ways in which membership based groups manifest themselves into organized interests (sierra club)

Solidary benefits (FRP Solutions)

The enjoyment you get from a group of people like you (getting benefits from it)

Purposive benefits (FRP Solutions)

Getting out there and getting your voice heard

Types of Interest Groups

Corporations/business firms, professional associations, labor unions, nonprofit service/social welfare, etc.

Pluralist theory

Emphasizes how important it is for a democracy to have large numbers of diverse interest groups representing a wide variety of views

Elite theory

States that a ruling class composed of wealthy, educated individuals wields most of the power in the government, the top universities, corporations, the military, and media outlets

Key Functions of Interest Groups

1. Educate the public about policy issues

2. Provide average citizens with an avenue of access to activism

3. Mobilize citizens to participate in civic and political affairs

4. Provide information and expertise to policy makers

5. Monitor policy to protect the common good

6. Are an integral part of the government and public policy

Downside of Interest Groups

Lots of people believe interest groups contribute to the appearance of (and sometimes the reality of) corruption in the political system

How Interest Group Succeed

Political scientists agree on various factors that influence whether an interest group will succeed

Organizational Resources

Effectiveness of interest groups in influencing government policy often depends on the resources these groups use to sway policymakers.

Membership & Finances

Key types of resources that interest groups rely on for success

Financial Resources Affect Success

Money fuels the hiring of experienced and effective staff and lobbyists, as well as the undertaking of initiatives that will increase the groups membership.

Political Action Committee (PAC)

Contribute money to the campaigns of favored candidates, particularly incumbents who are likely to be reelected

Direct Strategies used by Interest Groups

Involve actual contact between representatives of the interest group and policymakers.

Indirect Strategies used by Interest Groups

Use intermediaries to advocate for a cause or generally to attempt to persuade the public, including policymakers, to embrace the group's position.

Direct Strategy examples

Lobbying, Litigation, Providing Information or Expert Testimony

Grassroots Lobbyists

Citizens deployed by interest groups as part of indirect strategies to influence public opinion.

Electioneering

An indirect tactic where interest groups attempt to persuade the public that their position is right.

Interest Groups (Public Outreach)

Work hard to make the public, government officials, and others aware of issues.

Ad Campaigns (Public Outreach)

A method used to educate the public.

Civic Discourse

Encouraging civic discourse is part of public outreach efforts by interest groups.

Political Parties vs. Interest Groups

PP’s aim to win elections and control the government, while IG’s seek to influence specific public policies without necessarily running candidates

Revolving Door Lobbyist

Someone who was in the government, left, and then tries to influence people to vote for a certain side

Decline in Congressional Capcity

Government is no longer experts on public policy and rely on outside experts/interest groups

Partisan Polarization

The parties’ ideologies have differentiated over the past 50 years in congress

Cloture Motion

Speaking in senate to fill time so a bill does not passed (the majority vote)

Filibuster

Speaking in senate to fill time so a bill does not passed (the minority vote)