Dr Glas POLS 1101 Exam #3 Short Answer

What resources do politicians have that allow them to circumvent the press?

"Going public, "speeches, and town hall meetings are all generally successful to communicate with the public successfully; the President is most likely to use these.

What are critical elections? How do they differ from secular realignments?

- A critical election, also called a realigning election, describes a dramatic change in the political system. They usually represent the coming to power of a new political coalition, replacing the dominance of a previous coalition. (If it stays it is called a realigning election) Critical elections bring broad shifts in the constituency or leadership of political coalitions that bring about a new status quo. They are opposite to secular alignments, where constituencies gradually change due to slow factors like demographic change. - Critical elections are when party coalition swaps are temporary--maybe a bat candidate, bad rap sheet, etc. Secular realignments are a gradual realignment of a party, based more on the changing demographics and less on one-time changes/shocks in the political system.

What role do issue publics play in the creation of party coalitions?

- A group of people who care about a certain issue; people in issues publics will often form together to address that issue, they choose an opinion leader to represent their issue public. Since they care about and hold a vested interest in that issue politicians care more about their opinions than the mass opinion. People within a party who care about the same issues will group together to form coalitions - An issue public is a group of people that pay special attention to particular areas of public policy. Political parties tend to round up many different issue publics under one big tent to rally their cause, thereby gaining their vote. They also engage political leaders and the media in these issues and show interest in the creation of party coalitions on behalf of their cause.

What is/are the primary differences between political parties and interest groups?

- A political party is a group of people who organize to win elections, operate the government and determine public policy, whereas an interest group is a group of people who share common goals and who actively try to influence policy makers. Interest groups don't want to operate government and don't put forth political candidates, they just support candidates who will promote their interests if elected. Political parties may blur their opinion on an issue to get as many votes as possible but interest groups tend to sharpen issues in an attempt to promote a specific position. - So basically political parties consist of a multitude of different beliefs, morals, virtues, political ideologies, etc all grouped into one title (democrat, republican, green party, libertarian, etc) and interest groups revolve around a specific policy/belief (one can belong to multiple interest groups) - A political party is a group with common beliefs/goals that organize to win elections, operate the government, and make public policy. An interest group is a group of people who share common policy interests who interact with governing branches to persuade government actors to find legislation in their favor

Explain the advantages and disadvantages of a two party system.

- Advantages: don't have to focus on every single issue, they can pick a side; two party systems are often more stable. Keeps decision simple for voters - Disadvantages: hard to be properly recognized; reduces peoples efficacy; challenging for a third party to arise and gain support - The advantages of a two party system are that it fosters stability, reflects median of public opinion, checks and balances political power, simplifies voting choice, ensures a clear winner, promotes accountability, and guarantees a legislative majority. The disadvantages are that it tends to be slow to change, offers few new ideas, limits debate, limits access to minor parties, restricts voter choice, discourages coalition building, and leads to polarized and adversarial politics. - Advantages: The two-party system makes voting easier, running for office easier, creates a more effective government, and groups together common positions that are easy for the general public to understand and assign a mental shortcut to understanding. - Disadvantages: The two-party system oversimplifies politics, prevents third parties from being represented, limits debate, and leads to partisanship. It also prevents people who do not greatly align with D or R to be represented, as their candidates never win or they don't have enough faith in them to win so they strategically vote another way.

Compare and contrast the concepts of agenda setting, priming and framing (and give examples of each)

- Agenda Setting- Media reporting something so that the public finds it important with hopes they will influence politicians to address an issue - Priming- When a media outlet attempts to influence their viewers opinion on a topic based on what they are thinking about when hearing a story. - Framing- when the media attempts to influence your opinion on a subject based on how they report it. - Agenda Setting: WHAT issues to think about - Priming: WHAT to think about when evaluating an issue - Framing: HOW to think about issues Priming occurs when readers and watchers of news that relate to the criteria with which we evaluate candidates or elected leaders are influenced by what the press covers in a very specific way. Agenda setting occurs when readers and watchers of news that relate to issues or topics are influenced by what the press covers in a very specific way. They both influence what individuals think about, not what they think. An example of priming was the media coverage of the public health care reform increases in 2009 so the issue was still fresh on American's minds as they considered political issues like Obama's performance as President. The media are very involved in agenda setting because they determine whether or not an issue will receive coverage. Framing is providing a context that affects the criteria citizens use to evaluate candidates, campaigns, and political issues; the media presents information in a particular way to influence public opinion. During the coverage of Hurricane Katrina, the words used to discuss the event were an influential part in telling the story. - Agenda setting occurs when the readers and watchers of news that relates to issues or topics are influenced by what the press covers in a very specific way. - Priming occurs when readers and watchers of news that relates to the criteria with which we evaluate candidates or elected leaders are influenced by what the press covers in a specific way. - Framing is providing context that affects the criteria citizens use to evaluate candidates, campaigns, and political issues. Where agenda setting and priming only influence what viewers think about, framing influences how they think.

Discuss how the public influences the government and why the government would/should listen to public opinion.

- Basic constitutional guarantees (regular elections, broad suffrage, freedom of speech and press, freedom to form and join political organizations) allows citizens to express their views freely and compel government leaders to take the public's opinions into account if they want to keep their jobs. Governments rely on public opinion to guide public information and help make government policies. The government often listens to the public because candidates want to appeal to the public opinion in order to get votes. - The public influences the government by voicing and voting on what issues they feel are important to society. The government listens to the public because the public holds the power to vote them in and out of office. However, due to low voter turnout in the U.S., the actions of the Gov't are often off from the true public opinion. Because politicians are only apt to address the issues of those who care enough to participate. - The government feeds off of public opinion to form policies, pass laws, and make decisions for the country. Public opinion polling is prevalent from the beginning of a politician's career to their end. It strongly influences politicians on what and how they should support and present their platforms. It is a tool through which politicians communicate to the public and the public communicates to the politicians.

How do market forces shape the frequency, tone, and reliability of news in the digital age?

- Because of the internet age, the news media is able to be accessed easily. But the validity of the stories have proven to be not so reliable because anyone can publish anything they want. There is also so much click bait and headlines that attract viewers with celebrities and scandals. The tone of the news will vary based on topic due to media biases - In the digital age, consumers expect a nonstop news cycle, forcing news outlets to want to be the first to report on breaking news. However, this speed often ends up causing them to run headlines that have incorrect facts or are entirely wrong. Editors package the news in more sensational ways with bigger, bolder, and more salacious headlines. Political bias comes out in the selection of which news is reported on and how it is reported on.

Which parties are dominant in the US? What are the origins of our current parties? How and why have parties in the US changed over time?

- Democratic and Republican are dominant parties. - Origins: Democrats came about in 1790's in response to Federalists; Republicans formed in 1854 in response to the expansion of slavery drew followers from earlier anti-slavery parties - 1790; Federalists and Democratic-Republican parties form divided over issue of strong national government. - 1828; inclusion of frontier states realigned support; Andrew Jackson came in and shook everything up, spoils system very prominent. Whigs formed to oppose him - 1860's civil war alignment based on views of slavery. Republican Party forms as the Anti-slavery party. Progressive reform got rid of spoils system so political participation declined because parties could no longer provide incentives for support - 1896; Democrats adopt populist platform, gain agrarian support, Republicans support business and industrial interests gaining urban support and clear national majority. - 1932; Great Depression hurts republicans, FDR forms New Deal coalition which united democrats of all backgrounds. Focused on progressive reform and fighting the depression Republican held support from upper-income protestants and business people, focused in small towns and cities across the Northeast and Midwest. Members were united by their opposition to the New Deal and enlarged federal bureaucracies. - 1964; changed our politics from issue based to ideology based. Civil Rights movement polarized black republicans switched to democratic vote. White southerners switched to Republican vote - Democratic and Republican. The Democratic party is the oldest political party in the US, drawing its roots back to Jefferson's Democratic-Republicans, formed to oppose the Federalists. The Democratic party was solidified by Andrew Jackson's era as president. The Republican party emerged in 1854 as an antislavery coalition, drawing members and leaders from different failing parties. Strangely, the Republican party was triumphant in challenging the two-party system, electing their first president, Abraham Lincoln.

Bias is more than just ideological, what are the other (formatting) biases in the media and how do they influence the public?

- Dramatization (formatting bias): the Tendency of the news to focus on violent, happening-right-now news (like traffic, weather, and crime). It is often highly sensationalized with high levels of focus. When you just report on crime in the city, you are under the impression that that is all that's going on. It is making it more dramatic than it really is. - Authority-Disorder Bias (formatting bias): Media acts as a watchdog, focusing on scandals and disasters in politics. - Personalization (formatting bias): Ways in which the news is presented and the stories that are focused on. This causes little variation in what is reported--the same stories are retold. This type of bias also focuses on individuals embedded in a story and not the process as a whole. People sympathize more when they are given examples of real people because they start to relate to them and see their point of view. - Fragmentation (formatting bias): Because the news is constantly cycling, a lot of people that only tune in occasionally often feel disconnected. There's no full story. You can watch the news for like an hour and youll hear the same story about five times, every time adding just a little bit of information. - "Horse Race" Campaign Coverage (formatting bias): Coverage of a campaign that focuses on polling data, public perception of candidates instead of the candidates themselves, and exclusive reporting on candidate differences as opposed to candidate similarities. All about numbers, data, and percentages. Who's winning? What are the chances of her losing? Etc.

What are some examples of institutional barriers to the franchise commonly employed in the US? In what ways did the 15th, 19th, and 26th amendment eliminate certain institutional barriers?

- Franchise- the right to vote in an election - Institutional barriers to voting- Regulations and Laws, voter ID laws, scarcity of voting locations, lack of same day registration, felon bans, lack of absentee voting (affect lower income people; time, resources) Also ballot complexity - how ridiculous the wording (framing) is on certain propositions would put those who aren't familiar with the legislature at a disadvantage. - State-by-state variation in voter registration laws, criminals are sometimes denied the right to vote, voter ID laws, lack of same-day voter registration, and no absentee voting are some examples of institutional barriers to voting - The 15th amendment gave African Americans the right to vote (states that no citizen of the US will be denied the right to vote based on their race, color, or previous condition of servitude), the 19th amendment gave women the right to vote (states that no citizen of the US will be denied the right to vote on account of sex), and the 26th amendment lowered the voting age to 18 (states that no citizen of the US will be denied the right to vote if they are over the age of 18). These 3 amendments expanded suffrage to previously disenfranchised groups.

How do "insider" and "outsider" lobbying tactics differ? What situations favor the use of each? When might an interest group choose to enlist litigation as it tries to influence policy?

- Insider lobbying is used by people who have direct access to politicians. They directly lobby Congress members to modify/pass laws, lobby bureaucrats to change the enforcement of a law, and finance litigation (test cases) to test the boundaries of the court and can rest their claims on constitutional rights that do not have the political clout to influence elected politicians. - Outsider lobbying tactics are used by those who do not have access to politicians. They run issue-awareness campaigns, contact voters, participate in demonstrations and rallies, and circulate petitions. Insider lobbyists usually offer electoral help, while outsiders more commonly threaten electoral harm.

How has the internet changed the production of news? What is the difference between legacy media, digital-only media, and social media?

- Legacy media is media that is considered "old", such as radio, television, and especially newspapers. It's the complete opposite of new media and sometimes is referred to as outdated. - Mass communication is easier and cheaper because of the Internet. As more people read newspapers on the internet, the need for physical newspapers has declined steadily. The Internet has promoted a nonstop, 24-hour news cycle. On the Internet, stories are packaged in a way to appear more sensationalized to grab readers' attention. - Legacy media is "old media"--print, radio broadcasting, and television. Digital-only media is digitized content that can be transmitted over the internet or computer networks. Social media is networks that link people and allow the exchange of personal/professional information and common interests.

What sorts of benefits do politicians receive from lobbyists? If these groups are so beneficial, why do citizens view them with such suspicion?

- Lobbyists focus politicians on what the well-funded people are asking for from their government. - The power and resources possessed by lobbyists tend to reflect the power that the groups they represent have in society. The power of interest groups makes the public believe that "special interests" are winning above the "public interest". Many citizens believed that the powerful interest groups and lobbyists could "buy" public policy for their benefit.

Know how parties are organized. Are they centralized or decentralized?

- Parties are decentralized; this limits the power of the national committee over the state and local communities. The two major parties are made up of decentralized, fragmented party coalitions that are maintained by professional politicians. The decentralized policy making system allows local parties to work together to elect national leaders while going their own way on matters close to home. - They are centralized in the national committee though; this committee is made up of party leaders, elected officials, and chairs of state party organizations. Summarized, the government is centralized on a federal level and decentralized on a state level. The parties themselves are made up of decentralized, fragmented party coalitions that are maintained by professional politicians.

How does group identity influence a person's political opinions?

- People learn about politics from the people around them, rely on others who "look like" them as a source of opinions, and candidates and consultants often formulate their campaigns in terms of groups. - A lot of social influences affect political opinions. How you identify decides what issues you care about which will likely lead you towards a party. If you choose to identify with a group you will likely accept their other opinions as right. So, joining a group is a shortcut for establishing your own political opinions. Specific issues target a specific group differently, making them value that issue more and voting for whomever they believe will benefit them most.

What factors influence public opinion? (A big part of this: how does partisanship cloud people's ability to process political information logically?)

- People often let their political identities (attitudes, perceptions, and viewpoints about government and politics) cloud their ability to think logically. Other things that affect public opinion include: political culture and socialization, limited political education, and how views are shaped by the government, and mass media. The practical experience of growing up and living in the social and political world. Environment, Media, Current Issues, Social influences - So basically, political socialization (transmission of values, social networks, and environmental factors) and political cognition (knowledge, experience and emotion, reasoning); interest groups spread awareness of issues in an attempt to sway people's opinions

When are people most likely to vote or participate in politics? Why?

- People with money, education, experience, free time, and self-confidence find it easier to meet the costs. People participate when they can meet the costs and appreciate the benefits. People are also more likely to show up for presidential elections rather than midterms. - When larger elections occur, presidential elections because of the bigger coverage. Generally, people who are wealthier and with higher education are more likely to vote. People from 30-60 are more likely to vote.

What is polarization? Has it been increasing or decreasing in recent years according to your textbook.

- Polarization is the increased difference between parties based on political ideologies and beliefs. Polarization has been increasing steadily over the years with both sides slowly radicalizing. The vocal minority are the ones that are more likely to participate in politics, choosing candidates in primary elections that are more polarized than the majority of the voter base. This polarization has increased the amount of independent and third party voters. - Polarization is the ideological divide between the parties. This gap is ever-widening the more people align with political parties. The more actively engaged Americans are in politics, the more polarized along party lines they have become.

Define political participation and give examples of different ways in which people can participate in the democratic process. Which kinds of participation are most common and why?

- Political Participation - how population participates/ political engagement (voting, working for a campaign, protests) - Conventional Participation- campaigning for other political parties, working within political institutions, interest groups - Unconventional Participation- protests, strikes, demonstrations, not working within political institutions - The types of participation that are most common are voting, jury duty, volunteering, and public consultations because it is an easy, convenient way to participate and most people are not extremely mobilized by a party or candidate enough to participate more.

Why does political participation matter? Identify the key role that individuals play in the government.

- Political Participation matters because it provides private individuals an opportunity to influence public decisions and to be a component of the democratic decision-making process. Voting matters because it ensures that politicians are elected by the people, rather than being assigned to their position of power by someone else - It matters because it is our chance to exercise our influence over the government. Individuals play a key role because they contribute to the collective voice of the public which the gov't listens to. If we don't participate in our system doesn't work because politicians have no one they have to answer to. - It allows the people to have a say in governmental matters that dictate and affect their lives. Individuals keep the government in check by voting leaders in and out of office.

Identify and define what a political party is and how they influence government.

- Political Party- A group of people of the electorate who have a shared belief of how they believe government should operate; they seek to influence policies by electing their members. They influence the government by separating the public into ideological factions. They have become the basis for American politics, and many voters will vote based on party alone. - Political parties influence government by coordinating the group activities necessary to translate public preferences into public policy. They recruit and train leaders, foster political participation, teach new citizens democratic habits and practices, and knit citizens and leaders together in electoral and policy coalitions and allow citizens to hold their elected agents collectively responsible for what the government does

Who are opinion leaders? Why might typical individuals rely on the statements or position of these opinion leaders in forming their own opinions? What are the limits on how much these opinion leaders can control public opinion?

- Political, business, and public interest groups are opinion leaders who look to shape public opinion on individual issues and promote ideological causes. - Opinion leaders help individuals by giving them new information about topics they think is important.

How is public opinion measured? When can polls be trusted (there are a few things here)?

- Polls and surveys; Through polling the public. Accurate polls use random sampling and have a margin of error less than 3.5 points. Polls that have a sample size around 1,200-1,500 and it is truly random. - You can't trust all polls due to convenience sampling or biased questions (extreme language, framing, priming) and measurement error (confidence interval)

Know how Watergate affected the way the media covers issue.

- Pushed journalists to focus more on investigative journalism. Employed more journalists to follow long investigations - Investigative journalism became popular and set the standard for journalists questioning information, and setting policy. The press came to view its role as providing not just neutral coverage, but adversarial oversight. Investigative journalism has declined in recent years. - Some believe that the current strain on relationships between politicians and the press is tied to the widespread suspicion among reporters that presidents will lie to them whenever it serves their interests and they think they can get away with it. Watergate conditioned reporters to greet all White House claims with suspicion of duplicity

Know the differences/similarities between a referendum, an initiative, and a recall.

- Referendum - proposed a change to the state's laws or constitution, which all the voters subsequently vote on. - Initiative - Citizens petition to have an issue placed on the ballot so they can vote on it - Recall - an election or legal process to remove an elected official from office through a vote - Similarities: All give citizens a chance to be active in government and influence policy - Differences: Referendum- the gov't lets people vote on policy before it is passed - Referendum is an approach to direct democracy in which a state legislature proposes a change to the state's laws or constitution that all the voters subsequently vote on. Initiative is an approach to direct democracy in which a proposal is placed on an election ballot when the required number of registered voters have signed petitions. Recall is an approach to direct democracy in which people vote or dismiss an elected official from state office before their term has expired.

What is an intra-party faction? Are they normal or unusual?

- Sub-groups that form within political parties because their view on an issues differs somehow from the rest of the party. They are normal. - An intra-party faction is a party within a party. These are normal because most people in a political party will differ on at least part of policy. They are very common and pretty powerful! - A group of people within a political party united by a belief that differs from the rest of the members of that party. They are very significant within the parties, meaning that there are many intra-party factions. They are very common in the US political system. Some examples are the Blue Dog Democrats and liberal Republicans.

How is the U.S.'s voter turnout compared to other industrialized nations?

- The U.S's voter turnout Is much lower than that of other industrialized nations due to institutional barriers, voter registration, socioeconomic status, regulations and laws, voter ID laws. China has a voter turnout of 99.2% even with a fake democracy!!! - The US trails most developed countries in voter turnout by as much as forty percent.

Explain the role that media plays in informing the public about politics and government.

- The media is the public's chief source to find out what is going on in politics and the gov't. Politicians will likely only report their successes to influence voters, the media serves as a watchdog to inform the people of what really goes on. - The media is many people's primary way of receiving information about the current political climate. We expect the press to provide credible information and to give the public information that keeps them educated on political affairs and overseas the everyday workings of government. - News media links the public and the government. They report on the events happening in government and can easily influence what viewers think about what's happening in government, encouraging them to hold elected officeholders accountable.

Explain the relationship between the media, the public, and the government.

- The media reports the news to the public. The public's views about what is important are influenced by what they see on the media. The public voices what they think is important to their elected officials, influencing policy and other gov't action. The media often pulls the 'fire alarm' to alert the public and keep them informed about what is happening in the government. - The media exposes the events occurring in the government, informs the public about said events, and shapes how we interpret and observe political information. The public are then responsible for the reaction to the news, but the media can present the information in a form of bias to frame the public's opinion in a particular way.

Understand and discuss the concept of public opinion (how it is multi-dimensional and how people weight different dimensions differently based on their own values).

- The people's views on issues; can be studied through polling and surveys. This varies depending on political socialization, media, and experiences. This is based on attitudes, ideologies, partisanship, information, framing, and changing opinions. Public opinion is NOT stable, has measurement errors, and is dependent on issues. - Political participation is any activity that affects the political atmosphere; this includes voting, protesting, terrorism, writing letters, canvassing, etc. Voting is more common because it is the "easiest" thing for people to do. - It is a guide to government, encourages public participation, measures government performance, shapes government's image, gives government accountability, and educates the public

Know how and why third (minor) parties function in political systems such as the one we have in the US. Why do minor parties gain representation in most other countries, but not the US?

- Third parties form when a coalition of people want to bring about issues not currently represented by either of the two major parties. They are rarely successful at winning elections, but they are important because they can bring issues to the attention of major politicians which they may have overlooked. Often, if a third party is relatively successful, one of the major parties will adopt issues from their platform and absorb the third party. - Third parties highlight issues that are otherwise ignored by the large parties. Any idea promoted by a third party that proves to be popular will often be adopted by one of the established parties hoping to gain their vote. Many third parties tend to be single-issue parties. Third parties are frequently denied office in the winner-takes-all electoral system. Third parties can't win in the majoritarian, 2-party system of the United States because the 2 main candidates constantly fight over the middle-of-the-road voter (most voters align with this ideal), leaving the third parties nowhere to align themselves on the spectrum.

What trends do we observe concerning voter turnout? Is it on the rise or decline? Something in between? Which groups of people turnout at higher rates than others?

- Voter turnout has been on a decline since 1952, but has been rising steadily since 2008. Non presidential elections have a much lower turnout. 50+ years old are the most dedicated voters. - Recently, young people have been coming out to the polls at a higher rate. Since the 1980s women have votes as much or more than men. Asian and Latino Americans tend to have lower voter turnout rates.

Under what conditions (source, message, audience) is persuasion most likely to occur?

- When they have limited prior knowledge; when you have a speaker delivering a message to the right audience; who says what to whom. Communicator, message, and audience must align for persuasion to happen. - Framing and priming are a large part of persuasion. Persuasion can be affected by source characteristics, audience characteristics, and message characteristics. - Persuasion is most likely to occur when the recipient has favorable thoughts towards the message

Know the concepts of Yellow Journalism and Muckraking, and how the difference between them.

- Yellow Journalism- Reporting sensationalized, often exaggerated, stories in an attempt to attract readers. Popular during Spanish-American War - Muckraking- Journalistic investigation and exposure of scandals, corruption, and injustices, pioneered during the late-nineteenth-century Progressive Era - Yellow Journalism is a style of journalism born of intense competition and characterized by screaming headlines and sensational stories. Muckraking is journalistic investigation and exposure of scandals, corruption, and injustices. Both began around the time of the Progressive Era. Yellow Journalism exaggerates the truth, where Muckraking exposes what politicians and corporate owners wanted to keep secret.

What exactly is a lobbyist and what is lobbying?

A lobbyist is a professional who works to influence public policy in favor of their clients' interests. Lobbying is activities through which individuals, interest groups, and other institutions seek to influence public policy by persuading government officials to support their groups' positions. Lobbying is now the most costly route through which interest groups attempt to influence government because it is typically through the use of bribes in the form of "donations"

What do candidates spend most of their money on? Is money enough to win? Does it help all candidates equally? What type of candidate benefits the most from increased spending?

Advertising (television and radio) is the largest expense, mainly because a fundamental goal of every campaign is to reach voters with the candidate's message. Money is certainly not enough to win--candidates must be qualified for office (or they must be perceived by the public to be qualified) and have a powerful message. Campaign money does not help all candidates equally--as long as they spread their message adequately, they can get votes (but that requires money). Campaign money matters greatly in presidential primaries, in which voters can't rely on a party label as a cue. Campaign money is most important to challengers and other obscure candidates--as challenger spending increases, so does the likelihood of winning.

What is an "iron triangle"? Why might such an arrangement be problematic for American democracy? What are issue networks and how do they differ from Iron Triangles?

An iron triangle is a stable, mutually beneficial political relationship among a congressional committee, an administrative agency, and organized interests concerned with a particular policy domain. Iron triangles do not enforce the common good and attempt to advance narrow and specific interests. Issue networks are loose, informal, and highly variable relationships among representatives of various interests who are involved in a particular area of public policy.

What are the potential problems with delegating authority to representative in government? How do elections help reduce these risks?

By choosing someone to act on our behalf, we face the risk that they will put their interests ahead of ours. It is very difficult to discern if they are faithful agents. Elections give ordinary citizens a say in who represents them, future elections give officeholders a motive to be responsible agents, and they give incentives for the small set of citizens who seek to replace current officeholders and keep a close eye on the representatives.

What resources do politicians have that might allow them to "go around" the press and communicate with the public directly? In general, how successful are these attempts?

Different forms of social media; it doesn't seem that successful when Trump tweet rants so idk

How did the founding fathers feel about political parties? What does the Constitution say about them?

During the nation's founding, parties were widely considered to be dangerous to good government and public order, especially in republics. They believed no self-respecting leader would openly set out to organize a political party. The Constitution doesn't mention political parties at all. The founders wanted the country to be united rather than to find enemies within their own borders and felt that parties were dangerous to the government and public order.

Explain the free rider problem interest groups face.

Inattentive publics often free ride off the efforts of interest groups, benefiting from the policy that the groups push to produce without having contributing to any of it (monetary or time-wise). There is a strong incentive to free ride and rely on the groups to provide benefits, because if there's a policy change, it applies to everyone, even if only a certain few spent their time/money/resources to make the change.

Know how the media in the US differs from the media in other countries.

It is purely commercial; the only country in the world like that. In the United States, the media is purely profit driven. They ignore public services and promote the production of entertainment media. Areas like Eastern Asia and Cuba have state-run media that are hired by the government to spread propaganda. Countries like Russia, India, and places like East Europe are forced to report on every bit of 'news'--attention grabbing or not.

How did the rise of newspaper chains affect the political influence of the press? What ultimately eroded the political power of these chains? How and why has the influence of newspapers continued to decline today?

Newspapers no longer relied on the money supplied by political parties with the emergence of newspaper chains. They were incredibly lucrative and thus did not require the money to keep them in business, therefore they did not have a party loyalty. Newspaper publishers discovered that this freedom from party control enabled them to influence public opinion and, in turn, national politics. Because of this, politicians frequently found themselves bowing to powerful editors and publishers. The rise of radio, then television, then the Internet has caused severe decline for the newspaper business over the years. With the loss of the monopoly on news, large publishers disappeared from the political landscape

What do political action committees get in return for their donations to candidates? What evidence exists that such contributions are corruption our political system?

PACs receive access to legislators, a necessary condition for insider influence. Some believe that PACs contributions buy votes and policy. However, research suggests that PAC contributions are driven almost entirely by party, ideology, and state or district interests and exert, at most, only a modest effect on a legislator's decisions

How do party activists differ from rank-and-file voters of their party? What consequences does this difference have for American politics?

Party activists follow politics much more closely than the average voter, particularly when it comes to issue areas that positively show their party. Activists are also much more ideological than rank and file voters, where party activists rarely miss an election while rank and file voters may skip the primary and only vote in the general. Lastly, party activists are extremely loyal to their party and are extremely unlikely to ever split-ticket vote, whereas rank and file voters may occasionally deviate and vote for figures on the other side. Consequences of these actions are listening to activists rather than rank and file voters lead to further polarization and the fact that activists make up the bulk of voters in the primaries puts moderates at a disadvantage and may force politicians to say things and take positions that help them in the primary but hurt them in the general election.

How are political values shaped?

Political socialization(race, ethnicity, gender, religion, family, etc), the transmission of values, social networks, environmental factors, emotion, and experience.

How and why do political sees to manipulate the news? What strategies do they use to generate beneficial coverage?

Politicians have trouble getting their message to voters because they attract too little news coverage and direct communication is far too expensive. So, politicians want to generate favorable coverage. They often show up at the sites of disasters, hospital...

Discuss the concept of sampling. What is random sampling? Why does random sampling produce representative samples?

Random sampling is a sampling technique in which each person in a population has an equal probability of being chosen for sampling. In random sampling, you randomly select people from the population with no individual selection bias-- everyone has an equal chance of being selected. A truly random sample of any large population is rarely feasible because there is no single directory where everyone is continently listed and so can be given an equal chance of being selected, which is what strict random sampling requires. This gives more accurate results!

Identify other factors that affect the likelihood of voting and for whom someone will vote.

Socioeconomic Status- higher income= more time to vote, can cover the costs of traveling/missing work to vote; higher income more likely republican; lower income more likely democrat Education- higher educated more likely to vote. Gender- Women more likely Age- younger are less likely to vote Ethnicity- Minorities are less likely to vote; but more likely to be democrat Location- South typically has lower voter turnout, however people with deep roots in communities are more likely to vote and care about issues than those who move around Efficacy- higher efficacy more likely to vote Internal Efficacy- an individual's confidence and sense of duty in their ability to understand and engage in politics External Efficacy- an individual's belief in their ability to influence the decisions of gov't

What benefits do people get from voting? Which of these benefits do they still receive if they personally do not vote?

The benefits of elections are collective benefits. People get to enjoy the payoffs even if they did not help produce them by voting. By voting, people get to exert an influence over the leaders, forcing them to care about people's interests, opinions, and values. People frequently free ride in elections, counting on others to elect the candidate of their choice because individual votes count for nearly nothing.

How will the Supreme Court's Citizens United v Federal Election Commission decision shape the role of interest groups in federal elections? Are there ways to reconcile the protection of the First Amendment rights of interest groups with concerns about the influence over elections and policy?

The court decision removed the restraint placed on PACs that required them to raise the funds for candidacies in small chunks, putting a functional limit on what they could raise and spend. SCOTUS ruled that independent spending by corporations and unions was speech protected by the first amendment and could not be limited/constrained. This meant a corporation or union could now use money directly from its treasury to fund political advertisements in support of or against candidates. Super PACs emerged.

What actions has the government taken to foster interest groups? How do governmental policies themselves create potential interest groups?

The growing scope of government activity has encouraged the proliferation of organizations in the nonprofit and public sectors. After the creation of public works by governmental policies, professional associations were created at the suggestion of public officials who realized the political value of organized constituents working to promote their program from outside the government. Many interest groups can qualify as nonprofits, exempting them and their donors from taxes. Groups that benefit from government programs also get organized after new programs that threaten older programs are in place.

What is the most important aggregate statistic in predicting which party is likely to win a presidential election?

The president's approval rating is a strong predictor. Unpopular presidents like Carter and H.W. Bush tend to lose elections, while presidents whose approval rating is high basically always win. When the incumbent president is not up for reelection, their approval is also a good indicator of how their party's nominee will do.

What is the most important personal characteristic for predicting a person's vote in a federal election?

The single best predictor of the vote is the voter's party identification.

Voting, in effect, makes voters choose between a future governed by candidate A and one governed by candidate B. Most voters cannot predict the future. What tools allow voters to make these predictions of future performance?

Voters use cognitive shortcuts, rely heavily on the media, campaign advertising, opinion leaders, and their own political experience to inform their prediction. When voting, voters analyze past performance and incumbency status of a candidate (sometimes analyzing future policy options of each candidate), using the media and judging the candidate's personal characteristics, and identifying the candidate's party label. However, the single best predictor of the vote in federal elections is the party identification.

What kinds of incentives do interest groups provide supporters, and prospective support, for their contribution to the group or participation in its efforts? (Remember, contributions need not be monetary... being physically present at a public meeting is a significant contribution; ex visiting the state legislature, attending and speaking up at town and county government meetings, etc)

With contributions from members, interest groups can advocate for the members' best interests through policy that protects them or proliferates their interests. For example, people in certain industries pay dues for union workers to advocate for better wages, benefits, and regulations for their members. Private interest groups are mostly unions that represent workers and laborers.