Case Study SAME SEX MARRIAGE

Public opinion on same sex marriage According to a poll done by ABCNEWS ”37 percent of Americans say same-sex marriages should be legal, while 55 percent say they should be illegal.” This poll points to majority of people being opposed to same sex marriage. Many who are opposed to same sex believe that it Is morally wrong and should not be allowed to be a part of society and the government should not allow or advocate same sex marriage.

Impact of public opinion Public opinion is probably the largest factor in the battle for same sex marriage legal rights, with people being strongly opposed to it because of religion or other factors.

Political parties and same sex marriage According to a poll there is a big discrepancy between democrats and republicans in the debate of same sex marriage with 72% of democrats being in favor of same sex marriage and only 25% of republicans being in favor of same sex marriage

Impact of political parties on same sex marriage Because of the divide between democrats and Republicans on the issue of same sex marriage It has been hard to reach a compromise And same sex marriage will continue to be A heated debate as states continue to decide Whether or not to legalize same sex marriage.

Media and same sex marriage Media shows that a majority of people on social Media support same sex marriage which can also lead To the assumption that most of the younger Generation support same sex marriage as most People engaging on social media have been shown to Be from a younger group.

Impact of media on same sex marriage It is hard to actually tell how related the media and public opinion are because the media doesn’t necessarily represent the opinion of the public. “Reporting bias in the Pew study was 47% in favor to 9% opposed; that study registers present public support as 51% in favor to 42% opposed. Media favoritism for gay marriage far outstrips that of the public at large.” (Taylor Colwell) This shows that the media has shown to have more support for same sex marriage than those of other studies and polls in public opinion.

Interest groups and same sex marriage ContributorAmount Human Rights Campaign $888,853 Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund $141,723 L PAC $58,500 Hudson River Ventures $16,600 Gill Foundation $6,750 Arcus Foundation $6,550 Freedom To Marry $5,850 Interest groups have a big impact on the battle for same Sex marriage with several groups looking to have an impact on the debate for same sex marriage. These groups fund and defend people who want to have the right to marry others of the same sex.

Same sex marriage in the future As many polls have shown, the younger generation tends to lean more in the direction of supporting same sex marriage which could possibly mean that in the coming years people can expect an increase in support for same sex marriage. In the mean time there is a large group of people who are convinced that same sex marriage is wrong and that it should remain a shadow in the eyes of a functioning and morally stable society. Politicians continue to be split as far as support goes for same sex marriage, although with the recent midterm election favoring republicans it is safe to assume that same sex marriage laws will continue to be debated with no compromise.

Sources for case study Case Studies marriage-coverage-n http://townhall.com/tipsheet/taylorcolwell/2013/06/17/new-study-finds-media-bias-in-gay- marriage-coverage-n

Artifact 1 (Daily Show) Jon Stewart Throttles Democrats For Hypocrisy on Campaign Spending (Pt 1) Money has a big impact on politics, and money is crucial for campaigns where political figures seek election. One group that has expressed its contempt for spending in campaigns are the democrats. In the video several political figures form the democratic party express their belief that money should not have as large of an impact on politics, and that money is the source of corruption and can hurt the validity of political campaigns.

Artifact 1 (Daily show) Even though democrats have expressed their dislike for spending in political campaigns and elections, statistics have shown that democrats have outspend other parties in political elections. Jon Stewart says in the video “it may undercut your message when you condemn a thing that you have already mastered”. He is referring to the fact that even though democrats express their dislike for spending on elections, they have already shown in the past that it is something that they have done and continue to do as seen in the video where president Obama visits his 53 rd fundraiser of the year at the house of a man named Rich Richmond.

Artifact 2 (The Ellen Show) ◦Ellen Responds To Palin's Gay Marriage Stance ◦Gay marriage is one of the most heated debates in America with people, political parties, and other groups being largely split. The two sides of the debate are whether same sex marriage should be legal or if it should remain illegal in states. People who oppose same sex marriage say that is should be illegal because it is immoral and it goes against the lessons that are in the bible which clearly state that marriage is meant to be between a man and a woman not two people of the same sex. People who are in favor of same sex marriage believe that it should be legal because it should be up to people how they want to live and who they want to share their lives with, that other people should not be able to dictate aspects of their life that are as intimate as marriage.

Artifact 2 (The Ellen Show) ◦One of the many concerns involved with the same sex marriage debate is ultimately decided by state law and not the federal government, meaning that no one law can be passed that would make same sex marriage legal in all states. In the Ellen show, Ellen (who supports same sex marriage) expresses her displeasure after talking about Sarah Palins remark that she believes same sex marriage should be considered illegal at the federal level, she is firm in the belief that people should decide how they want to be happy, she says “People are gonna be who they want to be and we need to learn to love them for who they are and let them love who they want to love”. This quote can represent a large group of people who believe that they should have the right to marry who they want to and live life how they want to. But until people can learn to accept same sex marriage or some sort of compromise, there will continue to be debate and people will continue to battle for their right to marry who they want.

Sources for Artifacts Daily Show Abstract Artifact= The Ellen Show Artifact=