Download The Mass Media and the Political Agenda

The Mass Media and the
Political Agenda
Chapter 8
“The 4th Branch of Government”
Mass Media

Mass Media:

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Television, radio, newspapers, magazines, the
Internet and other means of popular
communication.
High-tech politics:

A politics in which the behavior of citizens and
policymakers and the political agenda itself are
increasingly shaped by technology.
Structure of Media

Print media – newspaper, magazine, etc.

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Electronic Media – radio, TV


Oldest, being steadily replaced
TV now is the primary source of news
Internet – instant information, any time
Replacing print and electronic media
 Blogs (short for Web Log)
 527’s – groups that independently raise money and
campaign for and against people

Media Conglomerates
• WHO OWNS THE
NEWS???
•WHO OWNS
INFORMATION?
Media Conglomerates

Gannet owns USA Today and controls the
biggest circulation in the nation + owns
100 additional papers

Rupert Murdoch owns 124 radio
stations, New York Post, Weekly
Standard, and FOX News
Case Study - Viacom
• Media Conglomerate – Viacom
•CBS News
•MTV
•VH1
•BET
•Blockbuster
•Paramount Pictures
•Nickelodeon
•DreamWorks
•Showtime
Alienated From Reality

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99.5% of homes w/
electricity have TVs
95% watch some TV every
day
Ave Home: TV on 8 hrs/day
Ave Adult: watches 5
hrs/day
By age 6: more time
watching TV than will speak
to father for rest of your life
Importance of Television




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“Television news is news that
matters”
This is the primary source of
political information in the U.S.
For 60% -70% of the population it
is the sole source
Shapes the public’s conception of
political life in pervasive ways
Primary source of political
information
Incredible power to shape public
thinking
Are a number of “gatekeeping”
concerns that determine what will
become news
Media Statistics
Access to media varies from country to country.
Chapter 8, Section 3
Functions of the Media
Entertainment
 News
 Agenda setting – ability of the media
to draw public attention to certain
issues and to ignore other issues


Political forum – place to make
announcements or advertise
government
The Mass Media Today

Media Events:


Events purposely staged for the media that
nonetheless look spontaneous. Media events can
be staged by almost anybody.
Other items to consider:

60% presidential campaign spending is TV ads

Image making / news management is important,
especially for presidents
Homogenized Content
Jefferson wrote that he
would rather live in a
country with lots of
newspapers and no
government than a
country with
government but no
newspapers, why?
Fear of concentrated
power and a lack of
diversity
1st ever televised debates were between
John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon in 1960.
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QazmVHAO
0os

The Development of Media Politics

Introduction

The news media wasn’t always
so important.

Press Conferences:
meetings of public officials
with reporters- Roosevelt
used many of these.

Investigative Journalism: the
use of detective-like
reporting to unearth
scandals, scams & schemes
putting reporters & politicians
The Development of Media Politics

A muckraker is an individual who seeks to expose
or reveal the real or apparent corruption of
businesses or governments to the public.

The muckrakers were the “original” investigative
journalists.

The term originates from members of the
Progressive Movement in America during the early
1900’s, who wanted to expose the corruption and
scandals in government and business.
The Development of Media Politics

The Print Media

Newspapers and magazines

Rapid printing & cheap paper, along with telegraph
technology grew the industry

As it grew, the companies were consolidated into
chains

Now major corporations control most of the
print media to compete with other news media
The Development of Media Politics
Figure 7.1
The Development of Media Politics

The Broadcast Media

Television (not cable or satellite) and radio
Brought government and politics into people’s
homes
 Made the politicians more aware of their
appearance and mannerisms
 Generally the top source of news for most
Americans, and most believable
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFAmTGGLi8s
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The Development of Media Politics
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Narrowcasting: Cable TV and the Internet

Media programming on cable TV or the Internet that is
focused on one topic and aimed at a particular
audience.
Paper
TV
Radio
Total
No News
18-24
9
26
13
28
25%
25-29
11
23
16
50
17%
30-34
11
24
19
54
15%
35-49
16
28
19
63
14%
50-64
21
34
16
71
14%
65+
33
44
19
96
6%
Table 7.1
Reporting the News

Finding the News

Beats: Specific locations from which news
frequently emanates, such as Congress or the
White House.

Trial Balloons: An intentional news leak for the
purpose of assessing the political reaction.

Reporters and their sources depend on each otherone for stories, the other to get them out
Reporting the News
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Presenting the News
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Superficial describes most news coverage today
Sound Bites: Short video clips of approximately
15 seconds.
Figure 7.2
Ideology and Public Opinion
Political Ideology effects how an individual
approaches issues in public policy.
 Liberal—believes gov’t should actively
promote health, education, and justice
 Conservative—believes in limiting the
role of gov’t except in supporting
traditional moral values
 Moderates—fall somewhere in the
middle
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Reporting the News
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Bias in the News
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Many people believe the news favors one point
of view over another.

Generally not very biased along liberal /
conservative lines.

But, generally are biased towards what will draw the
largest audience.
The News and Public Opinion
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Television news can affect what people think is
important.

Some policies can be made more important,
others will be less important, depending on
their coverage.
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News commentators have the strongest effect.
The Media’s Agenda-Setting
Function
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Policy Agenda:
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The issues that attract the serious attention of
public officials and other people actively
involved in politics at the time.
Policy Entrepreneurs:
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People who invest their political “capital” in an
issue.

All depend on good images and good will.
Understanding the Mass Media
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The Media and the Scope of Government
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The media as watchdog restricts politicians.

New proposals are met with skepticism- so that
restricts what the government can do.
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But, if the media identify a problem, they ask
what the government is going to do to fix it.
Understanding the Mass Media
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Individualism and the Media
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Candidates can now run on their own.
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Easier to focus on one person like the
President, than Congress or the courts.
Democracy and the Media
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“Information is the fuel of democracy.”
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But, is the news more entertainment than
information? Is this what the people want?
Government Regulation
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1st Amendment – freedom of press
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Gov’t can’t place “prior restraint” on
news (can’t censor news before it is
released)
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The press is not entirely free
FCC
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Federal Communications Commission
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Controls the media, no one may operate
radio or TV stations without their license
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Who are they? – 5 members (no more
than 3 from the same political party)
nominated by US President for 5 years.
FCC “Friends”
Howard Stern
“Man Cow”
Eminem
Media and Political Campaigns
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Advertising – very expensive on TV, way to
reach many voters, raising campaign costs
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News coverage – “free” coverage, politicians will
attempt to create events where media will attend
for free publicity
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Spin doctor – one who tries to influence
journalists with interpretations of events that are
favorable to the candidate
Presidential Debates
Media and Gov’t Officials
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White House Press Corp – journalists whose
sole job is to follow the President
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White House Press Secretary – responsible
for addressing the press daily and answer
questions for the president
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Since January 20, 2009, Robert Gibbs
Tony Snow, former FOX broadcaster
Dana Perino took over 9-14-07