Roles of the Media
Media’s Gatekeeper Role Deciding what is “news” setting the policy agenda, focus attention focus on negative events: crime, disasters, scandal, conflict TV news: biased toward stories that have good visuals Feeding frenzy: an obsessive focus on gaffes/mistakes
Media Coverage
Scorekeeper Role Scorekeeper Role: reporting on who is ahead, who is behind The “horse race”: media obsession with poll results focus more on strategy over substance
Media’s Watchdog Role Exposing wrongdoing and scandal Before Watergate: cozy relationship b/t press and politicians (FDR, JFK) After Watergate: adversarial (conflictual) relations—looking for missteps, cover-ups Washington Post reporters, Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, investigated a break-in at the DNC’s headquarters. Their stories linked it to senior officials in Nixon's White House.
“Character Issue”: Delving into personal life of public figures Gary Hart Bill Clinton The former Colorado senator challenged reporters to back up rumors of his adulterous womanizing. “Follow me around. I don’t care,” he told reporters in May 1987, when he was campaigning for the Democratic presidential nomination. “I’m serious. If anybody wants to put a tail on me, go ahead. They’ll be very bored.”
Gary Hart
Limits on the Media’s Impact: An Inattentive Public
Limits on Media Impact Public apathy +/or perception of bias → many tune out news. Polarized media →confirmation bias: finding news that “fits” with preexisting beliefs Cognitive dissonance: People screen out or rationalize away unpleasant information
Media Bias Compared