1. Public Opinion and Mass Media Public Agenda – Political Ideologies

2. Political Ideologies Ideology: Ideologies categories:
Body of ideas or views of the world that reflect the social needs, values, and ideas of an individual or group
Ideologies categories:
Liberal
Moderate
Conservative
Terms are important to asses political opinion

3. Political Ideologies Liberal v. Conservative
All express views or policies that favor:
Liberal:
The use of government power to promote individual liberties and social progress
Extreme Liberal = radical
Conservative:
Traditional values, the status quo
The idea the government should stay out of the affairs of private citizens
Extreme Conservative = reactionary
Moderate:
Has a mixture of both

4. Political Ideologies Liberalism Issues of Liberals
Protect individual rights
Want to represent the ordinary person
Beliefs about the government have changed
Happened during the Great Depression
Saw how the government could give a boost to the disadvantage (The New Deal)
Supported a larger role for government
Issues of Liberals
Racial equality
Foreign aid to countries in need
Decrease military spending
Affirmative action programs

5. Political Ideologies Less Conservatism Issues of Conservatives
Political Ideals have changed
Changed since the Great Depression
Thought government support would damage a person character
Making the people to reliant on the government to solve their problems
Issues of Conservatives
Stressed a strong belief in free enterprise
Private property rights
Family traditions
Less

6. Parties and Political Ideologies
Democrats
Republicans
Tend to be more liberal
Tend to be more conservative
American Political Parties
Both concerned with winning elections
Not true to a particular set of political ideas
People campaigning – tend to be moderate with their positions in their campaign

7. Political Ideologies Coherent Belief System
Should be easy to predict candidates answers
Their Ideology gives it away
Example: If a person claim to be a conservative
All answers will reflect their traditional values, and lack of government they want to control them
Radical
Moderate
Reactionary
Liberal
Conservative
Democrat
Republican

9. Public Agenda (3.5.1 – 3.5.3)

10. How do you decide what you want?
Public Agenda
What is it?
A list, plan, or outline of things to be done
Matters to be acted or voted upon
How do you decide what you want?

11. Public Agenda Inspired Interest Group: Political Parties: Media:
A group of persons working on behalf of or strongly supporting a particular cause
Such as an item of legislation, an industry, or a special segment of society
Called an advocacy group, lobbying group, pressure group, or special interest
Political Parties:
Is an organized group of voters
Often puts forward candidates for public office
Media:
Including the internet, television, newspapers, film and radio
Used for mass communications
People:
Citizens
Inspired

12. Public Agenda Interest Groups Political Party Media People
Think of your age
What is significant for you?
College Tuition?
Political Party
What party gives you the biggest incentive
Money
Media
What do you rely on
TV, internet, radio?
How do you get your information?
People
Who do you hang out with?
Do your friends/parents/co-workers/teachers influence your decisions?

13. These topics will change with the progression of time
Public Agenda
What is important now?
Economy?
Foreign Policy?
Taxes?
Education?
These topics will change with the progression of time

14. Your voice needs to be heard!
Public Agenda
Big Question
Is everything you see, read, listen to, and speak about true?
Always know what your talking about, and correct the incorrect
Your voice needs to be heard!

15. What are the roles of these Association in politics? (3.5.3)
Various Associations
What are the roles of these Association in politics? (3.5.3)
AARP
American Associated for Retired Persons
NAACP
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
VFW
Veterans of Foreign Wars

16. Use: http://www.twyman-whitney.com/americancitizen/links/lobbies.htm
Various Associations
Roles of Associations
Can be loosely or tightly organized
Goal:
To encourage or prevent changes in public policy without trying to be elected
Find two different associations and explain the purpose of each association
Use:

18. Influences of Political Attitude
Public Opinion
Attitudes expressed by citizens of a country about government and politics
Influences of Political Attitude
Family
Gender
Religion
Education
Race and Ethnicity
Region
Crisscrossing
Influences

19. Public Opinion – Influence on Political Attitudes
Family
Most important determinant of an individuals political view
Young people identify with their parent’s political party
Age will have a huge affect on the opinions of younger people
Gender
Women suffrage has changed the political campaign strategy
The party with the female support – tends to win
Gender-sensitive issues – war, gun control, censorship
58% of women today tend to be democrats

20. Public Opinion - Influence on Political Attitudes
Religion
Shapes two aspects
Economic Issues: taxes, welfare programs, and national spending
Social Issues: equal rights, abortion, school prayer
Education
Studies show
Longer your in school, the more liberal the individual

21. Public Opinion - Influence on Political Attitudes
Race and Ethnicity
African Americans/Latino: Favor Democrats
Asians: Favor Republicans
Ethnic groups are a big focus on any campaign
Region
Voters show a tendency
Not the most influential

22. Measuring Public Opinion
Measuring the Opinion
Politicians have done the following:
Read newspapers and magazines
Meet with voters personally
Consider letters and telephone calls they receive
Listen to the radio
Watch TV
Types of Polls
Informal Polling
Scientific Polling

23. Measuring Public Opinion
Scientific Polling
Informal Polling
Collect info by:
Phone
Word of mouth
Mail
Straw Polls: unofficial vote or poll indicating the trend of opinion about a candidate or issue
Hard to validate the quality of the information
Hired by political parties, candidates, interest groups, media, and polling organizations
These groups narrow every aspect down
What they do today:
Attempts to measure how many people hold a certain opinion
How intense the people feel
How stable the opinion is
How long it is going to last

25. Where do you want your message?
Mass Media
Estimation: A person who graduate from high school today, he or she spent 15,000 hours watching TV and only 11,000 hours in the classroom
Where do you want your message?

27. Each inform the mass audience about issues based on their beliefs
Mass Media
Types of Media
Newspaper
Best way to explain ones view points in the early politics
Magazines
Time, Newsweek
Radio
Franklin Roosevelt – fireside chats
Talk radio
Television
Networks: CNN, MSNBC, CSPAN
Internet
Various websites, blogs, chat rooms
Each outlet has a stance on issues – can be more liberal or conservatism
Each inform the mass audience about issues based on their beliefs

28. Government Regulations of Media
Protection of Print Media
Journalist Rights
1st Amendment
Protects much of our printed material
Government can’t infringe on the rights of the 1st amendment
Government can stop the following:
Prior Restraints
Prevents publication of information it considers objectionable
Supreme Court has limited this to only extreme cases dealing with national security and time of war
Shield Laws
Right not to reveal the source of their information
Do you think this is right?
This law sometimes is tested and other times (based on legal action) has to be broken

29. Government Regulations of Media
Libel
Limiting Courtrooms and other government outlets
Printing of false material or statements that are damaging to a person reputation
To correct it:
Public figure needs to prove in court that the untrue statements were knowingly published to harm their reputation
Media has fought this for many years
Media believes 1st amendment rights guarantees the people the right to know
Branzburg v. Hayes
1972: Supreme court stated, "First Amendment does not guarantee the press a constitutional right of special access to information not available to the public generally”

30. Freedom in Broadcast Media
Radio is more closely regulated than printed media
Reason: The airwaves through which radio and television station send their signals are considered a public resource

31. Federal Communications Commission
The FCC
Responsible for:
Licensing radio and television stations
Setting long-distance telephone rates and television stations
Stations must:
Comply with regulations
Devote a certain percentage of their broadcast to public service information, news, and political candidates in order to retain their license
Limits the following:
Limits media ownership of multiple television and radio stations in the same area
Designed to guarantee that the public hears different points of views

32. Federal Communications Commission
The FCC
One of the most important regulations imposed
Equal Time Doctrine
Equal radio and television airtime must be made available to opposing candidates running for public office
Candidates do not have to use the time, but it is available

33. Political Influence of the Media
Medias special powers:
To influence the political opinions of the people
Shape the behavior of the candidates themselves
People voting for the candidates running for office
Get much of their information from media outlets
Candidates using the Media
About image, not policies
Candidates often hire media consultants
Helps conduct polls
Devise good advertising plans
Photo opportunities!!!
Worry:
Some fear style is trumping substance

34. Setting the Public Agenda
Media’s Important Power
Agenda Setting
Reporter’s choose certain stories to cover
This helps set the governments priorities
Mass media:
Reflects much of the public opinion
Regardless what the candidates want to talk about
They have to address the question the media asks

35. Political Parties & Districts – Electoral Votes

36. Political Parties
A party is a group that seeks to elect candidates to public office by supplying them with a label (party identification), by which they are known to the electorate
United States parties have become weaker as labels, sets of leaders, and organizations

37. Parties in the US and Europe
United States
European parties are disciplined gatekeepers, to which voters are very loyal, though this has been declining recently
Parties are closely regulated by state and federal laws, which weaken them
Candidates are now chosen through primaries, not by party leaders

38. The Rise and Decline of Parties
The founders disliked parties, viewing them as factions
During the Jacksonian era political participation became a mass phenomenon
From the Civil War until the 1930s most states were dominated by one party
Progressives pushed measures to curtail parties’ power and influence

39. Figure 9.1: Decline in Party Identification, 1952-2002
Insert Figure 9.1 (formerly 7.1 in 9e)
National Election Studies, The NES Guide to Public Opinion and Electoral Behavior, , table 20.1, and data for 2002 updated by Marc Siegal.

40. Party Realignment
Critical or realigning periods: periods when a sharp, lasting shift occurs in the popular coalition supporting one or both parties
Two kinds of realignments
A major party is defeated so badly that it disappears and a new party emerges
Two existing parties continue but voters shift their loyalty from one to another

41. Realignments
1860: slavery issue fixed new loyalties in the popular mind
1896: economic issues shifted loyalties to East/West, city/farm split
1932: economic depression triggered new coalition for Democrats
1980: Could not have been a traditional realignment, because Congress was left in the hands of the Democrats

42. Figure 9.2: Trends in Split-Ticket Voting For President and Congress, 1920-2000
Insert 9.2 (formerly 7.2 in 9e)

43. Nominating a President
Primary: an election in which voters select the candidate who will run on each party’s ticket
Caucus: a meeting of party followers at which delegates are picked

44. Table 9.1: Who Are the Party Delegates?
Insert Table 9.1 (formerly 7.1 in 9e)

45. Table 9.5: How Party Delegates and Party Voters Differ in Liberal Ideology
Insert Table 9.5 (formerly 7.5 in 9e)

46. National Conventions
National committee
sets time and place;
issues a “call” setting the number of delegates for each state and
the rules for their selection
In 1970s, Democrats’ rules were changed to weaken local party leaders and increase the proportions of women and minorities
In 1988, the number of superdelegates was increased
A superdelegate is an unpledged delegate to the Democratic National Convention who is seated automatically and chooses for themselves for whom they vote. ...
Democratic superdelegates are free to support any candidate for the presidential nomination

47. Kinds of Parties
Political machine: a party organization that recruits members via tangible incentives
Ideological party: principle is more important than winning election
Solidary groups: members are motivated by solidarity incentives

48. Kinds of Parties
Sponsored parties: created or sustained by another organization
Personal following: requires an appealing personality, an extensive network, name recognition, and money

49. Reasons for the Two Party System
Electoral system—winner-take-all and plurality system limit the number of parties
Opinions of voters—two broad coalitions work, although there may be times of bitter dissent
State laws have made it very difficult for third parties to get on the ballot

50. Table 9.4: The Public Rates the Two Parties
Insert Table 9.4 (formerly 7.4 in 9e)

51. Minor Parties
Ideological parties: comprehensive, radical view; most enduring
One-issue parties: address one concern, avoid others
Economic protest parties: regional, protest economic conditions
Factional parties: from split in a major party, usually over the party’s presidential nominee

52. Impact of Minor Parties
Conventional wisdom holds that minor parties develop ideas that the major parties adopt
Factional parties have had probably the greatest influence on public policy