Comm160 Midterm
Explain one of the three reasons the "marketplace of ideas" motivates a free press according to Gentzkow and Shapiro. (2pts) lecture 9 slide 42
The marketplace of ideas can increase press independence against government attempts to manipulate the news ex/ Pentagon Papers.
What are the two ways political leaders responded to printing? Describe each. (3 point) -- April 4th Reading
1) By attacking any press involvement in politics that they could not control 2) Cultivating press outlets they could control
Describe what McManus means by news being a "double commodity." (1 pt, lecture 9)
1. Consumers trade their attention and money for information 2. News providers sell consumers' attention to advertisers
What is meant by the phrase "chicken and egg economics" and what are two examples of mediums in which this occurred? (1 point) (lecture 3 slides 43 + 45)
Answer: Chicken and egg means that there is no content worth producing without an audience, but the audience will not buy the medium unless there is content. Two mediums this occurred in are radio and television. Radio: wouldn't develop good programming because no one bought radios, but no one bought radios because there was no good programming; ((once set up, variety of content)) TV: (also lots of patent fights) but no incentive to buy TV unless there's programming to play
What invention first led to the rapid transmittal of news, and how did this impact the partisan levels of papers? (1 point) (Lecture 3 slide 35)
Answer: The telegraph allowed rapid transmittal of news. The argument is that the necessity to sell the same story to different partisan papers led to "objective" or neutral coverage. Less partisanship due to wire services that needed to have their stories sold to different news organizations; didn't want to alienate papers/purchasers by having a partisan story
What type of media do different generation brackets rely on? (lecture 5 slides 10-16)
Baby boomers (old people) still rely heavily on "old media" for news (local tv; 3 major networks) That's why we still talk about local TV even though most of us don't watch it Millennials (young people) rely on "new media" for news (social media, internet) Facebook dominates within social media
What was the primary role of newspapers during the 1800's in America? (1pt)
During this time, newspapers were primarily vehicles for each Political Party, and generally just relayed the message of each party to their base.
What type of content did early American papers contain? (1 point, lecture 2, slide 15).
Early American papers contained old, old news (since it took forever to get across). They also contained info on ships arriving and departing, foreign news, and news aimed at merchant elites.
Briefly describe the economic and political impact of the rise of the internet in terms of post-broadcast news. (3 points)
Easy spread of disinformation Bots and trolls Bloggers Decreased funding to news firms Advertisers prefer to advertise on google and facebook Profits are dropping Higher competition of news sites
What role did news editors play in the Jacksonian Era? 3 points (Hint: Political Conflict with the Press in the Pre-Polling Era, Course Reader)
Editors did much more than edit newspapers. They were extensively involved in politics outside of newspaper offices. They served as central committee members, public speakers, and organizers of meetings and conventions.
What are the basic features of information goods? (lecture 9) 3 points
Experience goods, Public goods, product dimension differentiation, high fixed costs/low marginal costs. (Lecture 9 slide, page 12)
As discussed in lecture, where does the term yellow journalism come from? 4/6 Lecture BruinCast: at one hour 12 minutes
Running comics in paper was a way to increase circulation, by increasing entertainment. So the yellow comic strip of a child was a symbol of papers that did yellow journalism. Very bad rep; used as a word to attack people's coverage
How did the Stamp Acts help politicize the press? (1pt)
The British government unleashed the Stamp Acts over its colonies, which enforced high taxes on paper. Consequently, this made newspapers more expensive as well and printing companies were going out of business. In order to save the industry, the press began to criticize the British government and were politicized in order to rile up the people to defend the colonies against this unfair treatment.
What could explain the drastic fluctuations in viewership on major cable news networks on days leading up to the 2016 elections? (Class 8, Slide 4) (1 pt.)
The Democratic and Republican National Conventions.
What were the revenues of newspapers based on during the penny press era? (1 point; Lecture 02)
The revenues of newspapers were based on mass advertising rather than circulation during the penny press era. FUNDAMENTAL CHANGE: REVENUES BASED ON MASS ADVERTISING MODEL (this era) Rather than circulation, tried to maximize exposure of papers so advertisers would fund the papers
With early newspaper restrictions, what were the (Seditious) Libel Acts responsible for? (Lecture #2) (1 pt)
These laws were set in place to outlaw any published editorial content that criticized the government (didn't matter if it was right or wrong). -Ended with the case of Zenger (held that truth was a defense against charge of seditious libel → previously truth didn't matter or made it worse)
What was the Penny Press' business model that made it different from other mass media? (Lec 3) 1 point
after initial setup costs, print extra copies to keep getting cheaper -> maximize circulation so advertisers would pay Most modern mass media: lot of expense into first copy (workers, print presses, paper, ink, etc), then additional copies were relatively cheap Incentive to maximize circulation and less incentive to follow parties to try and appeal to mass audience so they could get ad revenue
What did the rise of broadcasting (broadcasting era) mean for newspaper business? (Lec 7) 1 point
newspaper competition declined -> rise in local monopolies -> rise in nonpartisan news bc didn't want to alienate certain audiences
In what political environments did early newspapers do best in? (1 pt.) Lecture 2 Pg. 6
newspapers did best where central governments were weak and divided (e.g. Germany) or where governments were tolerant of speech (e.g. Netherlands)
What invention was the first truly "mass" mass medium and what was its revenues based on? 1 point, lecture 2
penny press was the first truly "mass" medium (Sept 3, 1833) -Fundamental change in the model of how people got news --Change in the business model that created a change in the technology to be more profitable revenues based on mass advertising rather than mass circulation -Tried to maximize exposure instead of targeting a narrow elite (drastic expansion in readership & paper influence)
What were two characteristics of the media in England in the 1500s? (1 point) Apr 2 reading
there was extreme censorship by the monarchy. Any seditious libel (slander of the government) could result in torture, book burning or executions. Also only a small percentage (5%) of the elite read the news since it was relatively inaccessible by "commoners".
Name and describe at least 3 effects of television's dominance in the 1950s. (3 pt). (Broadcast Television, Political Knowledge, and Turnout pg. 47, 52).
(1) People read newspapers less, (2) listened to radio less, and (3) started to commercialize news.
What makes platforms vulnerable to disinformation? List and explain three elements that cause platforms easier to be attacked by disinformation. (Lecture 07, pg.22) 3pts
(1) Platforms vary in registration requirements -Whether or not bots can easily register (but you can always register fake accounts if you put in enough effort [money]) (2) Optimization algorithms that prioritize engagement and reward emotional news stories w/ sensational headlines -Algorithms putting stories that people want to click on at top -Why partisan news is more engaging than neutral news (3) Manipulated photos are easy to spread and hard to detect Unclear how system of verification would work and how it would handle the volume of information -Currently: biased towards spreading more info, fewer restrictions --Good for freedom of information, but also includes bad info (vulnerable to manipulation/bias)
What are the 3 reasons given by Natalie Stroud for studying partisan selective exposure? 1 pt. (Using Niche News)
(1) Political topics can give rise to heated emotional reactions,(2) citizens routinely view the world of politics through the lens of partisanship, and (3) partisanship is fundamentally connected to identity.
What are some ways in which disinformation can be spread directly online? List at least five. (1 point, .2 point for each correctly listed answer; Lecture 7 Pg 19-20)
(1) Selective censorship, (2) manipulating search/social algorithms to shift attention (e.g. SEO's, keyword stuffing, mutual admiration societies), (3) hacking & releasing sensitive information selectivity, (4) bots (automated accounts that post based on algorithms to serve particular goals), (5) paid trolls, (6) gossip by regular people
According to Kaiser, what two important qualities did news organizations share at the height of their success?
1) A strong sense of responsibility about their roles as providers of news and analysis 2) Plenty of money to spend on those missions
As mentioned in the lecture on online news, explain the three manipulated search/social algorithm tactics used to shift attention/spread disinformation. (3 points, .5 point for each correctly listed answer, .5 for each correct explanation; Lecture 7 pg 19)
1. Keyword Stuffing- Coordinating/generating posts with predefined keywords/hashtags to promote specific messages; ensures those posts are what shows up in the results when people search for those keywords 2. Link bombs- Bunch of identical posts pointing to a particular result/website in an attempt to drive that result/website up 3. Mutual Admiration Societies- Groups of accounts that follow and repost/retweet each other to drive that content up (e.g. journalists agreeing to all cite each other to drive up journal views)
Name one difference between broadcast TV and cable TV. (1 point; Lecture 05)
1. Programming is excludable on cable TV. If you don't pay, you can't view. (broadcast: anyone in area can receive certain channels) 2. Smaller startup costs compared to networks
What two events slowed the growth of television? (1 point) Answer: Prior, Markus. 2007. Post-Broadcast Democracy: How Media Choice Increases Inequality in Political Involvement and Polarizes Elections. New York: Cambridge University Press. Pp. 55-72. (Reader) *page 61*
1. WWII: several stations shut down and no new stations were allowed to be built; no new tv sets were produced because electronic parts were needed for military use 2. TV Freeze of 1948: stopped the licensing of new stations until 1952
Briefly describe how the costs of producing and publishing political news can affect the business model of certain mediums? (1 point)
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Describe how the Huffington Post "scandals" relate to the issue of ownership. (1 pt, lecture 9)
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How does Zaller's book define the competitors in news media? How about the online news sources? How does that definition not fully applicable to online news sources? Give a definition and explain. (Lecture 08, pg. 35) 1pt
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How were early newspapers (1730s) able to thrive without government intervening? (Class 2 lecture, 1 point)
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Name 2 ways in which the audiences for niche partisan Web sites differ from the median citizen. -- 1 pt. (Baum, Matthew and Tim Groeling. 2008. "New Media and the Polarization of American Political Discourse." p.360)
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Name three of Hamilton's five key questions that you should ask when considering when information is turned into news. (3 pts, lecture 9)
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Explain what a credence good is, give an example of a credence good, and explain how to solve the credence good problem. (3 points) (Lecture 09, Slides 17,25, and 41)
A credence good is a product where the consumer can not tell it's quality (good or bad) even after its consumption. An example of a credence good is news (most of the time); moreover, news consumers cannot tell the quality of news they are consuming after they have consumed it because the stories presented to them were novel (to them) to begin with. If consumers were able to tell what news was right or wrong, consumers would already "know" the news and shouldn't be wasting their time with it. To solve this credence problem, we must encourage professional journalists to police each other's work. Yet, even this tactic isn't 100% effective as we saw with journalists' early responses to the UVA case
Define a "push-medium" and provide examples of "push-mediums" in the current era. (1-point)
A push-medium is a medium where users are given information without searching for it, compared to a Pull-medium where users search out the information.
What were the three major national TV networks that dominated the airwaves in the 60s? (1 point)
ABC, NBC, CBS
Why was the advertisement terrible in 1968? (1 point): April 09, 2018 Lecture 04
Ad's seemed terrible in comparison to today, but they were overall extremely influential. In order for the audience to skip the ad, they would have to rotate a knob to change the channel; it was a pain. They could count on the audience sticking through the whole commercial. TV advertising was the most effective form of advertising at that point due to its visual dimension (adds credibility) along with the same emotional connection & push medium characteristics radio had Advertisers could get away with not entertaining commercials (long explanations) due to the pain of changing the channel
What is one reason online news sources are quickly losing funds even though they were once very profitable? (1 point) Apr 16 reading
Advertisements on sites such as google and Facebook are worth more. Also, there is more competition from hundreds of sites rushing to publish their stories. Since advertising is the main source of funding for news providers, their profits are quickly dropping.
Name 4 of 5 ways that disinformation was directly spread.Hint: Lecture 7, slide 20
All five are listed but you will only need to know 4: 1. Governments or activists/government officials 2. Influential bloggers or other unprofessional journalists 3. Regular people 4. Bots 5. Paid trolls
Describe the developments of the Early News, such as how Romans and Chinese delivered their news to audience. (1 point-Lecture 2)
Before mass-distribution of printed info, people spread news in person/physically (gatherings, writings on walls, physical traveller, prearranged signals) Romans and Chinese had government-provided news sources (limited copies) First recurring, multi-story newsletters were in 16th century Venice (lot of power from control of information) -Merchants want to spread news & intelligence through handwritten newsletters 17th century: printed weeklies popular in Europe -Using cast-movable metal type for printing, avoided local news (dangerous), news traveled really slowly (at speed of human movement)
Until somewhat recently, how was the TV market structured or dominated? 1 point, lecture 4
By three major networks: ABC, CBS, NBC Public enamored with the medium and split between the three companies People used to watch TV purely for the enjoyment of watching TV (it was cool, novel, interesting)
What are the 2 patterns that have become apparent with regards to how cable news viewing has changed over time? -- 1 pt. (Stroud, Natalie. 2011. Niche News: The Politics of News Choice, p.57)
Cable news viewing has increased -Of all stations Selective cable news viewing has increased
What was the origin of cable/satellite TV? (1 point, lecture 5, slide 7).
Cable/satellite TV started in isolated communities that were unable to receive broadcast channels Cable became more than just a way to get around the absence of a broadcast signal and became its own separate medium pretty quickly
In what ways did the coverage of President Trump differ between news sources with left and right leaning audiences? 1pt. Mitchell, Amy, Jeffrey Gottfried, Galen Stocking, Katerina Matsa, and Elizabeth Grieco. 2017. "Covering President Trump in a Polarized Media Environment." Pew Research Center
Coverage from news outlets with a right-leaning audience cited fewer source types, featured more positive assessments than coverage from other two groups. including fewer experts, issue groups and the administration Refutations by journalists most common in outlets with a left-leaning audience, Twitter citations more even Statements and actions from the administration drove most coverage - though less so among news outlets with a right-leaning audience
Who was the 1st president to be seen on TV? What was surprising about this? (1 pt)
FDR was the 1st president to appear on television. The surprising thing about this is that it was only viewed on 200 tv sets.
News is a mirror image of reality. True or false? (Hamilton reading, pg. 7) (1 pt.)
False
Briefly illustrate the goal, methodology, and findings of Groeling & Baum's study "New Media and the Polarization of American Political Discourse." (3 pts.)
Goal: determine if certain news sources are more biased to one side of the political spectrum or not Methodology: compared 10-15 stories each day (totally around 2000 stories) to similar stories in the associated press (AP), which is known to be relatively politically neutral It is a "News Wire": theoretically objective news Findings: Strong and clear evidence for certain sites favoring one side over the other
If channels increase, what else increases? (1 point): April 11, 2018 Lecture 05
If channels increase, the audience has an increase in options to choose from. People had more of a choice of the niche channels they wanted to watch. When there was a limited number of channels, television was a "push" medium, but increasing the channels made it a "pull" medium. Specialization of channels based on genre and, eventually, ideology (increased competition for viewers)
What are the two factors that determine if something is either a public or private good? (1 pt) lecture 9 slide 13
If there are rivals and if it is excludable.
According to the article, "The Bad News about the News", How did the New York Times almost commit "digital suicide"? (3pts)
In 1983 the NY Times sold the rights to the electronic version of its stories that were 24 hours old. They sold them to Mead Data. when the internet became popular in the 90s this became a problem; they didnt have alot of content for a webpage. In 1994 Mead Data was bought by Reed Elsevier and the NY Times was able to get their electronic rights back. In 1995 they were able to put their journalism online.
Give an example of a time where local broadcast news affiliates have repackaged and distributed the same news segment. (1 point) (LECTURE 5)
In lecture, we saw 2 videos where local news broadcasters said the same thing. In one video they said "It's okay. You can admit it if you bought an item or two or ten for yourself." The other video showcased the Sinclair broadcast group reading the same anti-media script. Both videos showcased how local news groups redistribute the same news story.
Why did the rise of "Yellow Journalism" create extreme competition for the attention of readers? (Lecture #3) (1pt)
It created competition among reader viewership because it was more interesting content that attracted readers (more sensationalist and emotional). Yellow journalism included; business, crime, accidents, fires, divorces, suicide, labor education, religion, sports, inventions, disease, weather, books, theater, music, fashion, recipes, and even serialized fiction"; Sensationalistic "ancient discoveries" or medical cures; stunts, "scare" screaming headlines, lots of graphics and photos, comics, color. The goal of yellow journalism was to increase circulation- so by covering all of these areas, they drew more readers in.
How has cheap speech impacted the spread of information? (1 point) -- Lecture 7
It has made the spread of information cheaper and easier to find. It also spreads true and false information.
What was the major relationship observed by Stroud regarding convention viewing and political leaning? How strong was this relationship? 1 pt. (Using Niche News)
Partisans are far more likely to watch a candidate accept their party's nomination than to watch the opposition. This relationship is extremely strong - partisanship can predict which convention will be watched.
Describe the "Era of Good Feeling" and how it impacted politicians. (1 point) -- April 4th Reading
It marked a period in the political history of the United States that reflected a sense of national purpose and a desire for unity among Americans in the aftermath of the War of 1812. Politicians were less threatened by party competition
Which newspaper became the first to criticize the government? (class 2 lecture, 1 point)
James Franklin's Courant (1721-26) He was jailed for it and demanded prior approval
According to the reading "Competition and Truth in the Market for News" by Gentzkow & Shapiro, explain the idea of a marketplace of ideas. In your opinion, do you believe that "truth prevails in a marketplace of ideas?" (Reading: Competition and Truth in the Market for News) 3 points
Marketplace of ideas stems from the idea of a free market. The more information that is available, the more likely truth is to emerge. According the the reading, yes truth can prevail in a marketplace of ideas because: -It can increase independence against government attempts to manipulate news -Diversity helps overcome risk if news organizations try to manipulate the public -Investment- may push firms to invest in timely and accurate coverage
In regards to the rise of mass media, what were the political implications of the introduction of the internet? 3 points, lecture 5
Mass media tools widely available and super cheap (everyone is a publisher) -Anyone can reach a mass audience and spread info now, instead of before (required huge capital expense) Peer to peer communication and organization -No longer relied on centralized news organizations to redistribute info; can do it peer-to-peer without much mediation Even more diffusion of mass media power
Where do millennials claim to get their political news? Baby-boomers? Gen-Xers? ("Millennials and Political News," Mitchell, Page) 3 pts.
Millennials mostly get their political news from Facebook (61%), and only 37% get it from local news Baby Boomers are the inverse: local TV tops the list of sources (60%), and Facebook is only 39% Gen Xers bridge the gap: they're split roughly 50/50 amongst online/Facebook (51%) and local TV (46%)
What significant changes to the way people consumed Television occurred with the emergence of cable and satellite TV? (3-points)
More choice of stations Programming became excludable If you don't pay, you won't get to view the shows Made TV less of a push medium Decreased regulations Increased competition for viewers
If people can't tell that the news they're receiving is informing them, how else might they choose news sources (what factors)? (Let 9) (1 pt)
People will evaluate based on experience or inspection-choosing their news based on things like if they like the reporter's personality
How is news a double commodity in regards to its relationship with news sellers, consumers, and advertisers? (McManus reading, pg. 788) (3 pts.)
News attention is sold by customers to news providers. These news providers make money off the per-view rate of the audience, but also make money by selling the public's news attention to advertisers.
According to today's lecture, what type of news is more valuable to readers? News that you already knew or news you're unaware of? (Lec 9)
News that you're unaware of, because if you're only seeing news you immediately agree with when you see the headline, you are not being informed, you're simply allowing yourself to succumb to your own opinions/biases and not see beyond that
What changes did newspaper undertake as it developed? Lecture 03, slide 42
Newspapers took on huge changes in business model, political role, content, and government role. (may need more detail) Business model: newspaper used to receive fund from different parties but now claw for maximum audience size. One of the most fundamental changes: from sideline business to partisan lapdog to mass medium company funded by advertising Political role: newspaper used to lean to specific party but now becomes independent political force which often serves personal whims of publisher From non-partisan to revolutionaries to party communicators to more independent and eventually non-partisan Content: used to be old news to party rhetoric but now becomes stenographers to sensationalistic Government role: used to severely constrained by colonial governors or revolutionary councils but now is protected but subsidized to very independent
Who used to "control the pipes" and who does now? What are some implications of this change? (3pts)
Newspapers used to "own the pipes" in the sense that they held a near-monopoly status in local advertising -Could convey more information & density of info in a newspaper ad than with TV ads Now: others own the pipes → competing with radio, TV, other news sources, non-news online outlets for advertising -Competing with info and entertainment (YouTube, AOL, Microsoft, especially Google & Facebook) + e-mail, Craigslist) -They're good ways to target ads and get a good return Changing the political content of new media since there's so much more competition for ad revenue (and as a consequence viewers' attention)
What are 2 general points that research on the influence of the number of media choices has found? -- 1 pt. (Stroud, Natalie. 2011. Niche News: The Politics of News Choice, p.67)
People's exposure patterns change based on the number of choices available When given more options, people gravitate toward their preferred genres of programming
In the article "Trump, Clinton Voters Divided in Their Main Source for Election News", did Republicans and Democrats show a similar amount of intraparty differences? Does age play a role in intraparty differences? (3pts)
No, Democrats showed more intraparty differences than Republicans. Democrats who supported Bernie Sanders or a candidate other than Clinton in the primaries followed different types of news media than Clinton supporters. On the other hand, there were fewer differences between those who did and did not support Trump. Age does play a role in this, since Clinton voters were older than Sander supporters, and older Americans are more likely to rely on TV and print news.
Do advertisers care about news quality? (lecture 9) 3 points
No. They only care if it affects viewers. They are looking for the largest audience at the cheapest price. There is no reward for better news unless it attracts a "better" audience for their ads.
State one important developments in American politics over the last one-hundred years. (1 point): April 06, 2018 Reading Lecture 03
One of the most important developments in American politics over the last one-hundred years has been the decreasing connection between electoral results for the presidency and Congress. Split ticket voting.
Name at least two of the four results of advertiser funding of news media mentioned in the article "What Kind of Commodity Is News?" by McManus. (3pts)
One of the results is that (1) advertisers join consumers as the news organization's customers. This creates conflicts because if the advertiser does something deceptive, then the public needs to read a story about it, but exposing the deception may lead retailers to pull ads, reducing the organization's profits. Another result is that (2) there is pressure for orgs to ignore those parts of society that advertisers do not care to reach, such as the poor and elderly.
What should one expect when one party's rhetoric dominates the information in a country? (Groeling, Time and Erik Engstrom. 2009. "Who Cleans Up When the Party's Over? The Decline of Partisan Media and Rise of Split- Ticket Voting in the 20th Century")
One should expect a closer alignment between presidential and congressional news and voting - whereas in countries with more balanced and independent news outlets, voters are more likely to participate in split-ticket voting.
Describe how people used censorship and licensing during the Early News period. (1 point-Lecture 2).
Power of press to support regime ("banning/burning") -Foster people to use press to say nice things by having content controlled 1557: Queen Mary gave exclusive rights to own/operate all printing presses -Gave business monopoly if they played ball -Seize & destroy unauthorized books & presses 1621: King James I banned all unlicensed newsletters -Only got license by having content controlled by government (foreign news or favorable)
What is the difference between professional mainstream journalism and how news is often distributed today? (1 point) (lecture 7 slide 18)
Professional mainstream journalism: filter on what info sources pass to viewers; viewers redistribute info to small group Producers would be horrified, shamed, fired for spreading untrue information Viewers could spread misinformation through gossip (peer-to-peer); whisper campaign for politicians Now: sources can reach mass audience and redistribute info directly (no mediation) "Cheap speech" era - true/false info can be spread or targeted to people, easily spread bc involves no filter by professionals
What is the main difference between "push" and "pull" mediums and how does that difference affect the ways in which each medium presents advertisement? (1 point)
Push and pull mediums are different in the nature of the way they interact with the audience. Pull mediums can be thought of as mediums in which the audience has more say in what information they receive. I.e. newspapers or, in modern day, streaming videos. These mediums have a bit more trouble with advertisements because, for example, readers of a newspaper can just skip over information they do not want to read. Push mediums, however, are mediums in which the audience has less say in what they receive. I.e. TV, radio, live streams. These mediums have a more reliable way of advertising, as the audience must sit through or listen to the ad in order to reach the programs they want to receive.
Name 1 pro and 1 con of TV as a mass medium, and radio as a mass medium. (Reading: Prior, Post-Broadcast Democracy: How Media Choice Increases Inequality in Political Involvement and Polarizes Elections) 1 point
RADIO- Con: expensive to first set up, Pro: Once set up, free of charge (more personal than newspapers) TV- Con: Absence of choice/competition enhanced news power, Pro: President could talk directly to public
Why is advertising especially powerful on radio? (1 point; Lecture 03)
Radio is a "push" medium. You have to listen to the broadcaster's sequence. Advertising was a fundamental aspect of what made radio a push medium; it was more effective than on print Print: you choose what you read, can skip stuff Radio: must sit through the ads; force exposure; added emotional content of a human voice
What are radio's characteristics as a medium? Lecture 03, slide 44
Radio was more personal than print and it was more focused on entertainment than news. It was more limited in carrying capacity than print, because spoken word is slower than text. Advertising was especially powerful on radio. It was a "push" medium because you have to listen in broadcaster's sequence. It was also more regulated than newspapers; network editorial policies and FCC regulation explicitly prohibited radio from taking partisan policies in the Mayflower decision. More personal: reading is less emotionally effective than listening; radio was first for ads + entertainment Advertising power of radio was fundamental part that made it a push medium More regulation: spectrum issues, concern of exposure (hard to hide from exposure if it was on)
In what methods did the government use to control content in the early ages of print? (1pt)
Regulation of content by outlawing coverage of certain events (debates), libel laws preventing criticism of the government, and taxation/fees to keep newspapers in the hards of only Elites.
Define Selective Censorship. Hint: Lecture 7, slide 19
Selective censorship is removing certain content from online media or burying it with unrelated information -Used by governments/politics to have less true/more positive information spread widely, whilst stopping the better/more negative info from getting through --So people only rely on the inferior information -"Wag the dog" - drawing attention to another policy conflict so people disregard a public dissatisfaction/legality issue -selective Censorship is removing content from some online media or burying with unrelated information.
Summarize Stroud's article "Niche News" using these three words/phrases: Partisan, selective, political leaning. Then, describe the experiment she conducted: What did she do, and what were the results? (Reading: Niche News) 3 points
Stroud looks at how our political leanings affect our exposure to news, more specifically our selection of exposure. She speaks about people's choice of exposure as "Partisan selective exposure" because people often view politics through a lens of partisanship. Her experiment was to look at people's choice in magazine in a waiting room and then ask them to subscribe to one at the end of the experiment. In this study, she found that if there were limited numbers of magazine choices, other, nonpolitical reasons could explain their choice. As number of choices increases, people tend to pick the magazine that aligns with their political beliefs.
What were the political implications of the introduction of cable/satellite TV? (1 pt.) Lecture 5
TV became less of a push medium with niche channels that provided a 24 hour news cycle -Started having specialized channels (genre); didn't have to wait for networks to air shows you want, you can choose from multitude of channels ; less of push medium less regulation of airwaves (decreased incentive to regulate content) -No interference with the spectrum, unlike with broadcast led to an increase competition for viewers, and ideological appeals as a strategy to draw more viewers to a certain channel/show -Trying to attack niche viewers by appealing to their ideology -Specialized channels based on genre, ideology, etc
What was the fastest mass medium to be adopted in U.S. history? (1 point) Answer: Prior, Markus. 2007. Post-Broadcast Democracy: How Media Choice Increases Inequality in Political Involvement and Polarizes Elections. New York: Cambridge University Press. Pp. 55-72. (Reader) *page 59*
Television
What consequences did the absence of choice in the beginning of Television have on advertisements? (1-point)
The absence of choice of content in the early years of television led to very boring and disengaging advertising. Additionally, the inconvenience of getting up to change the channel contributed to this effect. However, perhaps more importantly, the wide selection of content on modern TV, as well as the convenience of changing the channel with a remote and being able to fast forward through ads has called for ads to become much more engaging and cinematic in order to catch and hold the viewer's attention.
The decline of partisan newspapers coincided with the rise of what? ("Who Cleans Up When the Party's Over?" Groeling and Engstrom) 1 pt.
The decline of partisan newspapers coincided with the rise of TV
What caused the decline of the partisan news? Explain the reason for this shift. (Lecture 3) 3 points
The decline of the partisan news based on Groeling and Engstrom (2009), is TV sucked up a lot of the advertisement revenue and there was not enough money going into advertisement into those cities, so the incentive became the papers to become non-partisan.
Explain what the "drunkard search for news". Is this how consumers usually find their news? (Lec 9) (1 pt)
The drunkard searching for his keys only under the street light because its well-lit, despite the fact that his keys may be in the dark somewhere. Analogy for how there's an infinite amount of information, and we're only exposed to a small fraction (news that is pre-selected for us), therefore we can only be informed based on the information that is presented to us.
What model did most early newspapers follow (until the 1730s)? (1pt.) Lecture 2 pg. 9)
The early papers had to be approved by authority ("Published by Authority" note), mailed free using government franking, covered disant events (didn't challenge local officials) Basically ran with authority of the colonial government, approved by them, mailed free using government franking focusing on distant content
How did the telegraph help the news industry? 1 Point (Hint: Political Conflict with the Press in the Pre-Polling Era, Course Reader)
The invention and proliferation of the telegraph allowed newspapers to share news-gathering costs. This, in turn, helped lower overall costs.
What did Gentzkow and Shapiro test for the news to get close to the truth? Give one possible explanations to such effect? (Lecture 08, pg. 42) 1pt.
They tested the "marketplace of ideas" motivation for free press. They thought if there are more points of view heard and defended, the news can get close to the truth. Possible explanations. 1. It can increase press independence against government attempts to manipulate news (Bribe costs & coordination; Pentagon papers & NYT vs. WP) 2. Diversity can help overcome risk of info suppression when news orgs might want to manipulate public (Credit Mobilier in partisan press) 3. Investment: might push firms to invest in timely & accurate coverage.
Describe Stroud's method/experiment in order to test the concept of selective exposure. 3 points.
Waiting Room experiment. Put three types of magazines on a table, one that was conservative, liberal, and neutral. Examined which magazines people chose and examined which political party they affiliated with. However, there are many variables as to why someone picked a certain magazine, such as the cover, the storyline, and the associated colors
What is an inspection good? Give an example of how news can be an inspection good. (2pts) lecture 9 slide 23
When you can determine the quality of a good before you have consumed it. An example of how news can be an inspection good is through fancy sets, headlines, or teasers.
What is significant about the development of Wire Services? (1pt)
Wire Services allowed for Newspapers to get factual information from a reliable source without having to use their own resources to gather information. This eventually led to Newspapers having less partisan divides, and having a more common "baseline" of news which they relayed to the public.
What does "everyone is a publisher" mean and how does it affect the political content of new media? (lecture 5 slide 28)
With the Internet, anyone can reach a mass audience (prior: huge capital expense to try and do so) Mass media tools are widely available and super-cheap → anyone can publish content to mass audience for free/cheap Peer-to-peer communication can redistribute info, not rely purely on centralized news organizations anymore
What were some of the challenges faced by newspaper companies before the penny press? (1 pt.) Lecture 2
Working conditions were hot and repetitive Story writing, editing, page layout, pressing, drying, delivery, and billing all done by hand Could only print a limited amount of copies per hour; limited advertising Very few people subscribed (5% colonial population by 1765) taxes made newspapers extremely expensive for regular people
What was the significance of John Peter Zenger's trial with regard to the type of content the press could publish in colonial America? (1 point, lecture 2, slide 21).
Zenger's trial was the first time that content seen as "seditious libel" could be safe from legal persecution if it was true (truth as a defense). So, the press could now publish more negative criticism if it was true, but they often still didn't just because they could be held in contempt or lose government subsidy if they did (they just no longer got jailed anymore).
Why is it more expensive to buy followers on sites like Facebook and Youtube than it is to buy followers on Twitter and Instagram? Explain your reasoning in terms of platform vulnerability. (2 points) Apr 16 reading
certain websites require little profile verification, such as Twitter and Instagram, and are therefore more susceptible to fake account creation. Since there are a higher supply of fake accounts of those sites, the cost per follower is also cheaper.
What are the four functions that people desire information for? (Hamilton on Downs) 1 point
consumption, production, entertainment, and voting.
What caused the rise of the radio broadcasting? (Lecture 3) 1 point
cost of purchasing a radio was expensive, all the contents were free. Producers were also able to produce a variety of contents. Instant communication attracted many audiences (no audience, no contents. or Chicken and egg economy).
