government test review (Ch. 5-8)
Low-level officials who hope to publicize what they view as their bosses' or the government's improper activities are usually called
"whistle-blowers"
_________ led the drive to kill 2007 immigration reform bill supported by President Bush and a number of congressional Democrats.
Grassfire.org
_______ are independent, nonprofit groups that receive and distribute funds to influence the nomination, election, and/or defeat of a candidate
Political action committees
From 1896 to 1932, the ________ Party was the nation's majority party.
Republican
which of the following statements about newspapers is accurate?
daily newspaper print circulation has declined by over 30 percent over the past 20 years
Daily Internet users who participate in society and politics through online activities are called ________.
digital citizens
the campaign funds raised and spent by 501(c)(4) organizations are called "dark money" because
donors and amounts contributed do not have to be made public.
Libertarianism is a political ideology that
emphasizes freedom and voluntary association with small government
Journalists exhibit selection biases in favor of news stories they view as
favorable to leaders and issues they support
which statement about the telecommunications Act of 1996 is true?
following passage of the act, several mergers between telephone and cable companies produced a greater concentration of media ownership
The fact that journalists referred to the Obama administration's health care initiative as "reform" instead of as "health care rationing" is an example of
framing
the solidary benefits of interest groups include
friendship and consciousness-raising
the greatest challenge for journalism organizations today is
generating enough revenue to finance traditional investigative journalism
Today, advertising revenue at print newspapers is ________what it was in 2005.
half
Support for same-sex marriage
has dramatically increased since 1996
An individual's psychological attachment to one party or another is called a party ________.
identification
The belief that government is wasteful and should be limited to as few activities as possible is an example of a political
ideology
The fact that many middle-class and lower-middle-class citizens who did not stand to benefit from President George W. Bush's tax cuts seemed to favor them is an example of the
importance of political knowledge
what is the most important and beneficial resource that lobbyists provide government officials?
information
who expanded the watergate scandal?
journalists at the Washington Post
The Communications Decency Act
made it illegal to make indecent sexual material on internet accessible to anyone 18 or under.
Which of the following statements is true?
over 95 percent of Americans have a television
Which three types of factors influence the decisions of voters at the polls?
partisan loyalty, issues, and the characteristics of candidates
the fact that Democratic party leaders have become more liberal and Republican Party leaders more conservative is important because
partisans in the public tend to rely on party leaders for cues on the appropriate positions to take on a major political issues
generally speaking, a recall effort begins with a
petition campaign
During the 2000 South Carolina Republican primary, George W. Bush supporters telephoned conservative white voters to ask if they would be more or less likely to vote for John McCain if they knew he had fathered an illegitimate black child. This was an example of a
push poll
in 2008, about ____ percent of Latino Americans voted for Barack Obama
67
Organized interest groups enhance American democracy by
representing the interests of large numbers of people and encouraging political participation
Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971
requires that each candidate or campaign committee itemize the full name and address, occupation, and principal business of each person who contributes more than $100.
In 1936, pollsters at the literacy Digest were guilty of ___ when they mistakenly predicted a presidential victory of Alf Landon over Franklin Roosevelt by polling people whose names came from the telephone book and automobile registration records.
selection bias
One way that AARP has been effective at overcoming the free-rider problem is by providing ________ benefits to its members.
selective
the idea behind micro-targeting is to
send different campaign messages to different demographic groups of voters.
Third parties in the United States typically represent
social and economic interests that are disregarded by the two major parties for certain reasons
Women in the United States are ________ the ________ Party.
somewhat more likely to support; Democratic
in international affairs, conservation has come to mean
support for military intervention and the maintenance of American military power
which media source is regulated by the federal government?
television
which of the following news sources reaches the most Americans?
television
which of the following groups has had the greatest success with a strategy of litigation
the National Association for the Advancement of Colored people (NAACP)
which of the following is NOT a reason that many americans appear to prefer online news?
the accuracy and objectivity compared to traditional media owners
the free-rider problem occurs because
the benefits of a group's actions are broadly available and cannot be denied to nonmembers.
In the Pentagon Papers case, the Supreme Court ruled
the government could not block the release of the papers
Which of the following statements about the ideological preferences of americans is true?
the percentage of Americans identifying themselves as liberals has increased significantly since the 1990s
the practice of push polling involves
the procedure of asking loaded questions in order to subtly shape the respondent's opinion.
Most local newspapers get their national news from ________.
wire services
Members of interest groups in the United States are typically people
with higher levels of income and education
the practice of of lobbying is protected by
First Amendment
Facebook has over ________ users worldwide.
1 billion
When Hillary Clinton won the plurality of votes in California during the 2016 election, and California had 53 representatives in the House of Representatives, how many electoral votes from California did she win?
55
which of the following statements about public opinion in America is true?
Citizens with high levels of knowledge are generally better able to evaluate new information to determine its relevancy to their beliefs
the two major parties in the United States during the 1830s and 1840s were the ______ and the _______.
Democrats; Whigs
which of the following statements about the political opinions of Democrats and Republicans in the public is most accurate?
Differences between the political opinions of Democrats and Republicans are greater today than during any other period in the last 40 years
____ occurs when one party controls the presidency while another party controls one or both houses of Congress.
Divided government
What is a referendum?
It is the practice of referring a proposed law passed by a legislature to the vote of the electorate for approval or rejection.
____ generally support abortion and oppose state involvement with religious institutions.
Liberals
The fact that survey respondents overreport voting in elections and the frequency of their church attendance is an example of ________.
Social desirability
which statement about the FCC is correct?
The FCC does not regulate newspapers
A political ideology is best defined as
a cohesive set of beliefs that form a general philosophy about government
Partisan loyalty is likely to be highest in the election of
a state legislator
the "metered model" used by many newspaper websites
allow a certain number of free visits before requiring users to pay
A liberal would most likely support
an expansion in governmental social services.
a grassroots lobbying campaign occurs when
an interest group mobilizes its members and their families throughout the country to write their representatives in support of the group's position.
a loose informal relationship of public officials, interest groups, and activists who are all concerned with the same policies is called
an issue network
In order to win the presidency, a candidate must win
at least 270 electoral votes
A proposal law or policy change that is placed on the ballot by citizens or interest groups for a popular vote is called a
ballot initiative
______ occurs when interest groups take out advertisements and hold marches
mobilizing public opinion
Research into public opinion and public policy has shown that
more affluent and more educated citizens have a disproportionate influence over politics and public policy decisions
the collection of grassroots online activist organizations that have redefined membership and fund-raising practices and streamlined staff structure are referred to as
netroots
what is "niche journalism"?
news reporting targeted for a demographic of readers based on content or ideological presentation
A(n) _______ occurs when a voter can wait until the day of the primary to choose which party to enroll in to select candidates for the general election
open primary
Which statement best describes the relationship between public opinion and government policy?
the relationship between government policy and public opinion is dynamic, wherein government policy responds to public opinion but also shifts based on new government policies.
which of the following statements best describes the changing ownership patterns in the American media?
there has been a recent trend toward homogenization of national news, as conglomerates have come to own a larger percentage of media outlets.
Pollsters use random digit dialing to gather national samples for surveys because
there is not a complete list of all Americans that can be used to identify the population
Public interest groups differ from other types of interest groups in that
they claim to serve the common good, not just their own particular interests
What is the primary function of a PAC?
to raise and distribute money to election campaigns
Throughout its history, American politics has been dominated by ______ major political party/parties
two
Politicians attempt to "balance the ticket" with members of many important groups because
voters tend to prefer candidates who are closer to themselves in terms of race, ethnicity, religion, gender, geography, and social background