Read and answer the provided questions
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Political Science 1
Media and Democracy
Lesson goals: To discuss the role of the media in campaigns and American democracy.
1. Introduction.
The media are a fixture in the daily life of people worldwide, including Americans. Traditional sources of news…radio broadcasts, newspapers, television shows…have now been supplemented with new media: Internet news sites and blogs, 24-hour news channels, YouTube, real-time updates delivered to cell phones, and social media (e.g., Twitter, Facebook, etc.). In the 21st century there is no escaping the sea of news and information, collectively known as mass media. As pointed out in your AMGOV textbook, news seekers are increasingly turning to new media as their primary source of information. The Internet, in fact, has overtaken newspapers as a news outlet, as illustrated on the graph shown on page 255 in your text. Some of what traditional and new media offer is meant to entertain, and some is meant to inform, but increasingly the lines between the two have blurred. The modern media have also transformed life in the United States. Formerly, the relationship was one-way, where people had to seek out news and information. Nowadays, technology has created a two-way relationship between media and consumers, involving the exchange of a seemingly limitless amount of information. News consumers are challenged to develop the skills necessary to judge the quality of this abundance. However, information is empowering and serves as a basis for opinion and political participation.
2. Political functions of the media
The media entertains us with television dramas, advice columns, sports, and the like, but it also performs vital functions in our democracy:
Providing information. The most long-standing function of mass media is serving as the primary source of information for most individuals. As described in your AMGOV text, media provide candidate coverage, including much-watched presidential election night reporting. Once in office, government officials need the public forum the media provide to persuade citizens to support proposed policies. The dynamics of the relationship between candidates/officials and the media are detailed in your text, Chapter 10.
Interpreting matters of public interest and setting the public agenda. In addition to reporting information, the media help people comprehend government policies, laws, and social/political controversies. The media can influence the list of issues to be addressed by government through a process known as “agenda setting.” Significant media attention to an issue often increases the salience of that issue with average voters. These citizens then pressure the government to take action. The media also impact public opinion through “framing”: the process by which a news organization defines a political issue and consequently impacts opinion about the issue.
Creating a forum for political conversations. Historically, information flowed from the media with little conversation back the other way or to other media consumers. The Internet has expanded the ability of people to communicate their views. Discussion boards, chat rooms, and social networking sites allow individuals to share their opinions and knowledge in a very broad manner.
Socialization. The media socialize new generations and immigrants to our political culture, including democratic principles and practices. This is not necessarily a purposeful goal but, inadvertently, even shows like American Idol and Survivor center on voting and elections. Media that we perceive of as pure entertainment reflect dominant American political values. And, of course, media focusing on politics and news directly reinforce our societal norms and expectations.
3. Media campaigns
The pervasive presence of media in our lives affects how we feel about issues, as well as how we evaluate candidates. This truism precedes modern times. For example, leaflets circulated during the colonial era urged resistance to English rule. Later, pamphlets and newspapers advocated for or against approval regarding the draft Constitution. Even today, the “Federalist Papers” supporting the Constitution are oft-quoted.
A. Television.
Electronic campaigns.
Television added an entire new dimension to media’s role in campaigning. Prior to the 1960 presidential contest, television was insignificant in electioneering. In 1960, the first televised presidential debate was broadcast. As described in your AMGOV text, John Kennedy appeared relaxed and informed during the debate, while Richard Nixon projected a tired, ill-at-ease image. Audiences listening to the debate on radio believed Nixon had won, whereas polls measuring the opinions of television viewers thought Kennedy had clearly won. The importance of visual image was demonstrated. Although Nixon later blamed his poor televised appearances as contributing to his loss, he later became master of the medium in 1968. During this winning campaign, Nixon crafted cleverly staged television events, answering (preselected) questions from the (hand selected, Republican) audience. Critical post-appearance review was conducted after each event by his media advisors to suggest improvements in everything from the content of his answers to the color of his suit and tie. The image of a confident, expert statesman was projected this second time around.
Currently, Americans “express a clear preference for getting their news on a screen” (see “ How Americans get their news” , Pew Research Center, 2016 ). Television is also now a very significant factor in campaigns, so much so that Ross Perot’s 1992 presidential campaign was entirely media generated: he entered no primaries and used talk shows and infomercials to campaign. See the link below for a very short video regarding the media in the 2012 Obama v. Romney presidential campaign.
Decline in the role of political parties.
Concomitant with the rise of television as a campaign factor has been the decline of the role of political parties in presidential elections. Television has replaced the party organization as the principal link between candidates and the voters. Both primary and general elections are now fought largely in the media. Campaigns are run, not by parties or by grassroots organizations, but by commercial advertising firms and professional campaign advisors who design an effort to get the candidate on the air, projecting a certain image.
With the rise of television coverage and the accompanying decline of political party influence, media serve, in a sense, as kingmakers. Media coverage creates candidates, by providing name recognition and selecting the “serious” candidates for coverage.
Image elections.
As a result of these trends, the electorate is left with “image elections.” Television ignores policy questions and focuses on candidate image, the personal traits of the office-seekers. Television portrays candidates not in terms of their voting records or policy positions but, instead, on their personal image of charm, warmth, compassion, youth and vigor, honesty and integrity, etc. Elections are struggles between competing personalities.
In addition, television covers elections as games… who is ahead, who is losing… not on policy issues. As cited in the AMGOV text, page 270, the favorite game reference in political coverage is the horse race. Journalists follow four election scripts: the candidate is leading; the candidate is trailing, the candidate is gaining ground, the candidate is losing ground. Reporters focus on campaign strategy, not on substance stories. Television networks often pay huge amounts for polling, exacerbating this horse-race mentality.
Your text points out that “The game approach used by journalists in their campaign coverage fits with their cynical and negative approach to politics generally. It also supplies them with an endless series of stories. Every event can be analyzed from the perspective of strategies, motivations, winners, and losers. It is easier for reporters to use this approach. Reporting on complex issues such as nuclear proliferation and health-care reforms requires knowledge and training. The game format requires little familiarity with complex issues.” When addressed at all, issues are treated on television reports as essentially political battles: “How does this affect the Obama campaign” rather than “Does this make sense?” or “Is it good for the country?”
Media cynicism.
Many believe that the issue of media cynicism can have consequences for our democracy. Former U.S. Senator Paul Simon (Illinois), once a reporter himself, stated that “the greatest weakness of journalism is cynicism.” The senator was clearly separating the skepticism expected of reporters (i.e., asking questions, being dubious, being wary, not being gullible) from cynicism. Cynicism is about already having the answers or thinking you do. Simon was voicing the concern that media’s healthy skepticism has given way to an unnecessary and destructive cynicism.
During elections, media cynicism is especially evident. Although attack campaigning is not new, the media now both magnify charges and give them an air of legitimacy. And despite journalists’ refrain that “we’re just reporting what they say”, television coverage is more negative than are the candidates’ campaigns. For example, one of the first studies addressing reporters’ defense of their coverage looked at the 1996 New Hampshire primary. The research illustrated that candidates’ ads and speeches were 75% positive (i.e., featured qualifications for office, experience, policy positions, etc.), outnumbering negative references (i.e., attacks on competitors) by a 3 to 1 margin. In the television evening news reporting on this primary campaign, negative references outnumbered the positive 2 to 1. In other words, the reporters’ cynical views regarding campaigning and candidates directed the story lines, not electioneering reality.
As mentioned above, television’s reportorial cynicism generates concern regarding the erosion of participatory democracy. When the public views its leaders, and the very process of government, with suspicion and mistrust, the social contract breaks down. And, American society is experiencing an erosion of trust in government. Your AMGOV text discusses this phenomenon on page 153, citing this disturbing decline of trust in government as exhibited by all demographic groups and ages. Although this rise in political cynicism in the public cannot be attributed solely to television reporting, it may be a contributing factor. Van Gordon Sauter, former president of CBS news stated that “Widespread public distrust of elected politicians is the inevitable result of television…the smug, cynical attitude of many television reporters today has made political officials seem so flawed, their ability to lead is undermined.” Retired U.S. Senator Alan Simpson (WY) colorfully observed “You come out of legislative conference and there’s ten reporters standing around with their ears twitching. They don’t want to know whether anything was resolved for the betterment of the United States. They want to know who got hammered, who tricked whom…they’re not interested in clarity, they’re interested in confusion, controversy, and conflict.”
“Audience democracy?”
As your text suggests on page 271, if voters lose respect for the political process, they are less likely to participate. This has led some to believe that there may be a tendency for “audience democracy” to replace representative democracy. Audience democracy occurs when there is widespread citizen dissatisfaction with aspects of democracy, resulting in declining levels of participation. Some signs of audience democracy are decreased voter turnout, sinking levels of political party membership, and a weakening of partisan identity. The world of political parties and leaders becomes increasingly separated from the world of citizenry. As citizens withdraw from political engagement, decision-making rests increasingly in the hands of judicial and other non-majoritarian agencies such as regulatory bodies.
B. Internet
The Internet’s influence on our civil society, civic engagement, and pluralistic democracy is being studied by political scientists. The Internet’s involvement in politics is growing and it remains somewhat premature to draw conclusions regarding the Internet’s long-term consequences on elections and governing. A few observations, however, can be made:
Gaining
Although relatively new to the political scene, the Internet is becoming more popular as a campaign news source. See the link listed below for a report by the Pew Research Center on the use of the Internet by voters seeking information during presidential campaigns.
Digital news developments in U.S. presidential campaigns, 2000-2016
A participatory tool.
Perhaps in contrast to the cynicism generated partly by television is the Internet’s trait of making politics participative. People can express their preferences online on issues ranging from gun control to income tax rates to same-sex marriage, and so on. But besides acting as a gauge for public opinion, the Internet can also be a useful tool for citizens’ political activism. Individual citizens and groups are afforded great opportunities to use their public voice to influence government and the policies it creates. It provides access for interest groups to publicize their causes to the greater community. And political candidates are increasingly engaging in e-campaigning… the practice of mobilizing voters using the Internet. Fundraising via the Internet is now significant and provides candidates with the ability to raise money in a short time from many donors.
Clearly, the widespread use of the Internet has also contributed to the expansion of the blogosphere.. the community, or social network, of bloggers. The blog’s rise as a tool of grassroots organizing has enabled Net-centered political efforts on behalf of candidates and causes. A blog makes information available to large numbers of users immediately, spreading news and energizing supporters more rapidly than any other medium. Many blogs are specifically created to support or oppose political candidates or ballot proposals.
Negative political impact
One key problem with the Internet in politics is misinformation. There are no editors and fact-checkers responsible for ensuring accuracy on the unmonitored Internet. Another problem is that the Internet has contributed to the decline in civility in political discourse. The nature of the Internet means that false accusations and slanderous “flaming” can be leveled with no consequence.
And, lately, many people have become concerned about online fabricated news stories which cause confusion. A recent Pew Research Center study revealed an overwhelming majority of Americans believe fake news generated on the Internet has produced harmful impacts on our political life. The summary of this study can be found at http://www.journalism.org/2016/12/15/many-americans-believe-fake-news-is-sowing-confusion/
Click here to read an excellent article from the National Journal entitled “In New Media, Image is Still Everything”. This commentary opines that the new, more pluralistic media may not differ much from traditional media in that both are dominated by image. If this observation proves true over the long-term, then some of the same downsides exhibited by television may similarly impact our democracy via the Internet.
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Sample Exam Questions
Note: Sample questions are provided at the end of each lesson to help you prepare for the midterm and final exams. They are for your use and do not have to be answered and submitted to Connor Dawson.
1. In contemporary America, the principal link between voters and candidates
a. are political parties b. are grassroots organizations
c. is television d. are voter information booklets
2. During political campaigns, the mass media
a. provides substantive insights regarding public policy questions
b. analyzes critical policy differences between candidates
c. focuses on elections as games
d. critiques candidate voting records
3. Television political campaign reporters
a. are more negative than are the candidates' campaigns
b. reflect the same amount of negativism as the candidates' campaigns
c. are more positive than the candidates' campaigns
d. are more interested than the voters in policy issues
4. Ross Perot's presidential campaigns were
a. entirely generated by grassroots volunteers
b. entirely media-generated
c. organized by third-party advocates
d. organized by disaffected voters
5. Many observers believe that cynicism by the media will lead to
a. a healthier democracy
b. more honest elected officials
c. a focus on substantive issues
d. an erosion of participatory democracy
6. Which of the following is currently the leading source of news for Americans?
a. television b. newspapers c. the Internet d. radio
7. In addition to entertainment, the media perform the following political function
a. providing information b. interpreting matters of public interest
c. socialization d. All of the above
8. In the 2012 presidential campaign, Barack Obama made greater use of social media
messaging than Romney, but the overall conversation in social media was negative toward
both men. a. True b. False
9. When American citizens withdraw from political engagement,
a. representative democracy is strengthened
b. voter turnout increases
c. political party membership expands
d. audience democracy grows
10. One problem with “audience democracy” is that decision making rests increasingly in the
hands of non-majoritarian agencies, such as the courts and regulatory bodies.
a. True b. False
11. As revealed in the Pew Research Center study regarding fabricated online news stories,
a. fake news causes confusion across party and demographic lines.
b. Americans are generally confident in their ability to identify fake news.
c. about a third a third of Americans say they often see fake political news online.
d. All of the above.
12. As discussed in the National Journal article, the “new media”
a. presents a more pluralistic, “less elite” media produced with a multiplicity of sources.
b. manifests the power of “social hallucinations” to generate mass propaganda.
c. reinforces the dominance of images, rather than words, as the main form of content.
d. All of the above.
e. C but not A and B
13. The National Journal article on the “new media”
a. argues that images are easier to exploit for emotional purposes than text.
b. asserts that the plurality of citizen media diminishes propaganda potential.
c. reassures that news hoaxes will be less likely with widespread, multiple sources.
d. All of the above.
14. The Pew Research article regarding digital news development reported ____ of Americans report learning about the 2016 presidential election on the web.
a about half b. two-thirds c. three-quarters d. over 90%