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