Public Opinion
"the public's capacity to contribute
constructively to political decision-making"
A public is characterized entirely by
its own communicative nature.
Political Communication:
Freedom of the press is Not just freedom of
speech but also actual printing press.
Less scientifically rigorous methods are still
in use, such as the straw poll mentioned
earlier, and exit polls, which are interviews
with citizens just after they have voted in
an election.
Push polls Illegitimate, unscientific polling
technique aimed at attacking a candidate
or issue for two major reasons.
Targeted attacks
Democracy is the literal
meaning of "rule by the
people"
the media frame issues by using
perspective when reporting stories
to the public.
How a story is told
Gatekeeping is the process of filtering
down all of what is happening in a given
community into a specific set of news
and then transmitting it to an audience.
After the gatekeeper determines
newsworthiness, it uses agenda setting,
priming, and framing to transform the
remaining information into news
stories.
Hard news covers important events
involving elected leaders, major domestic or
foreign issues, or significant disruptions to
daily lives.
The aim of soft news is to entertain;
often, it includes special news features or
human interest stories.
Soft news can take the particularly negative
tone of critical journalism, featuring
embarrassing "gotcha" moments, typically
seen in local newscasts, described as "the
journalism of outrageousness." Priming is the ability of the media to
help shape public opinion respecting an
event or a person in the public sphere
Deciding what is news is a fundamental
function of the media; it is defined as
agenda setting. The media evaluate many
issues that might go unnoticed and thrust
them into the public sphere.
Resonance is the reinforcement and
magnification of existing beliefs
about reality and commonality of
events because of the presentation
of reality by the media
Television, even more than radio,
disrupted our relationship with print
media and our perceptions of political
reality.
the most widely circulated newspaper in Texas today
is Houston Chronicle.
Internet access changed many aspects of
Americans lives, and social media have become an
important tool for information gathering.
They expose many to news outside of
mainstream sources.
The assassination of President
Kennedy in Dallas changed people's
perception of the news.
They allow citizens to shape the news
agenda.
They have made people part of the news
as it happens.
The collection, dissemination, and
analysis of news and information by
the general public, especially by means
of the Internet, is called Citizen
journalism.
more than two-thirds of all
Americans use at least one
of social media platform. Candidates use social media
sites to advertise their
campaigns and have better
control at:
how a story is covered
what is covered
who sees the news
One manner of free exposure for political
campaigns is a newspaper endorsement
Selection bias results from several factors that
affect media, including time, personnel, and budgetary
constraints. The gatekeeping role of media is often
what gives particular news sources their "slant."
Presentation bias occurs as a result of how a
story is written or presented. The tone of a news
story is crucial to understanding the framing
taking place.
Media Bias is The actual or perceived
failure of the media to report news
objectively
Also saves money for
campaigns!
The 1996 Telecommunications Act
relaxed the limit on how many radio and TV
s
.
Consumers are just as important as owners and producers
States and Federal Government allowed to
regulate some aspects of the Internet.