gov ch 8
46. What is slander? Is it protected by the First Amendment?
First, the media do not have the right to commit slander, speak false information with an intent to harm a person or entity,
8. From which form of media are baby-boomers most likely to get their news?
television, national broadcasts or local news
38. How do presidents use media to enhance their popularity?
. In 1960, John F. Kennedy's campaign used a Hollywood-style approach to promote his image as young and vibrant. The Kennedy campaign ran interesting and engaging ads, featuring Kennedy, his wife Jacqueline, and everyday citizens who supported him.
10. What is the first 24-hour news network?
CNN
12. What are some examples of social media?
Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, other sites like Snapchat and Yik Yak appeal
25. With which newspaper was Adolph Ochs most closely associated?
NYT
23. Who was Joseph Pulitzer?
entertained. Joseph Pulitzer and the New York World gave them what they wanted. The tabloid-style paper included editorial pages, cartoons, and pictures, while the front-page news was sensational and scandalous. This style of coverage became known as yellow journalism.
14. What is Gannett Company?
ownership. Gannett Company, while also owning television media, holds a large number of newspapers and news magazines in its control. Many of these were acquired quietly, without public notice or discussion. Gannett's
20. What form did the media take in colonial America?
26. What is muckraking?
the writing and publishing of news coverage that exposed corrupt business and government practices.
15. What are the functions of the media?
watchdogs of society and public officials, the fourth estate, maintain democracy, agenda setting, promote public food
56. What is the hypodermic theory of the media?
, which argues that information is "shot" into the receiver's mind and readily accepted.104
3. What are affiliate stations?
Affiliates, by agreement with the networks, give priority to network news and other programming chosen by the affiliate's national media corporation. Local affiliate stations are told when to air programs or commercials, and they diverge only to inform the public about a local or national emergency. For example, ABC affiliates broadcast the popular television show Once Upon a Time at a specific time on a specific day. Should a fire threaten homes and businesses in a local area, the affiliate might preempt it to update citizens on the fire's dangers and return to regularly scheduled programming after the danger has ended. Most affiliate stations will show local news before and after network programming to inform local viewers of events and issues. Network
33. Who was Edward R. Murrow?
Although initially reluctant to be on the air, reporter Edward R. Murrow of CBS began reporting live about Germany's actions from his posts in Europe. His reporting contained news and some commentary, and even live coverage during Germany's aerial bombing of London. To
58. What is the cultivation theory of media transmission?
By the 1970s, a new idea, the cultivation theory, hypothesized that media develop a person's view of the world by presenting a perceived reality.106 What we see on a regular basis is our reality. Media can then set norms for readers and viewers by choosing what is covered or discussed.
47. What is libel? Is it protected by the First Amendment?
First, the media do not have the right to commit slander, speak false information with an intent to harm a person or entity, or libel, print false information with an intent to harm a person or entity. These acts constitute defamation of character that can cause a loss of reputation and income. The media do not have the right to free speech in cases of libel and slander because the information is known to be false. Yet
42. What is citizen journalism?
Social media, like Facebook, also placed journalism in the hands of citizens: citizen journalism occurs when citizens use their personal recording devices and cell phones to capture events and post them on the Internet.
27. What book did Upton Sinclair write?
THE JUNGLE
37. Which was the first presidential election to feature a televised debate?
The first television advertisements, run by presidential candidates Dwight D. Eisenhower and Adlai Stevenson in the early 1950s, were mainly radio jingles with animation or short question-and-answer sessions. In
57. What is the minimal effects theory of information transmission?
The newspaper's effect was thus diminished through conversation. This discovery led to the minimal effects theory, which argues the media have little effect on citizens and voters.105 By
64. On what do the media focus during a campaign?
framing stories, negative.
67. Do the media have a stronger agenda-setting effect on the president or Congress?
president often focused on personality, congress more on agenda
32. Which president was most closely associated with fireside chats?
roosevelt
35. With which form of media are Rush Limbaugh and Don Imus associated?
talk shows
41. Which presidential candidate is most famous for using Twitter to deliver campaign messages?
trump
24. What was yellow journalism? With whom was it most closely associated?
, pullitzer.The tabloid-style paper included editorial pages, cartoons, and pictures, while the front-page news was sensational and scandalous. This style of coverage became known as yellow journalism. Ads sold quickly thanks to the paper's popularity, and the Sunday edition became a regular feature of the newspaper. As the New York World's circulation increased, other papers copied Pulitzer's style in an effort to sell papers. Competition between newspapers led to increasingly sensationalized covers and crude issues.
63. What is pack journalism?
Campaign coverage now focuses on the spectacle of the season, rather than providing information about the candidates. Colorful personalities, strange comments, lapse of memories, and embarrassing revelations are more likely to get air time than the candidates' issue positions. Donald Trump may be the best example of shallower press coverage of a presidential election. Some argue that newspapers and news programs are limiting the space they allot to discussion of the campaigns.108 Others argue that citizens want to see updates on the race and electoral drama, not boring issue positions or substantive reporting.109 It may also be that journalists have tired of the information games played by politicians and have taken back control of the news cycles.110 All these factors have likely led to the shallow press coverage we see today, sometimes dubbed pack journalism because journalists follow one another rather than digging for their own stories. Television news discusses the strategies and blunders of the election, with colorful examples. Newspapers focus on polls. In an analysis of the 2012 election, Pew Research found that 64 percent of stories and coverage focused on campaign strategy. Only 9 percent covered domestic issue positions; 6 percent covered the candidates' public records; and, 1 percent covered their foreign policy positions.111
55. Who is Walter Lippmann? With which theory is he most closely associated?
Concerns about the effects of media on consumers and the existence and extent of media bias go back to the 1920s. Reporter and commentator Walter Lippmann noted that citizens have limited personal experience with government and the world and posited that the media, through their stories, place ideas in citizens' minds. These ideas become part of the citizens' frame of reference and affect their decisions. Lippmann's statements led to the hypodermic theory, which argues that information is "shot" into the receiver's mind and readily accepted.104
66. How do the media cover the president?
Due in part to the lack of substantive media coverage, campaigns increasingly use social media to relay their message. Candidates can create their own sites and pages and try to spread news through supporters to the undecided. In 2012, both Romney and Obama maintained Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube accounts to provide information to voters.
60. What is the difference between episodic framing and thematic framing?
Episodic framing occurs when a story focuses on isolated details or specifics rather than looking broadly at a whole issue. Thematic framing takes a broad look at an issue and skips numbers or details. It looks at how the issue has changed over a long period of time and what has led to it. For example, a large, urban city is dealing with the problem of an increasing homeless population, and the city has suggested ways to improve the situation. If journalists focus on the immediate statistics, report the current percentage of homeless people, interview a few, and look at the city's current investment in a homeless shelter, the coverage is episodic. If they look at homelessness as a problem increasing everywhere, examine the reasons people become homeless, and discuss the trends in cities' attempts to solve the problem, the coverage is thematic. Episodic frames may create more sympathy, while a thematic frame may leave the reader or viewer emotionally disconnected and less sympathetic (Figure 8.16).
36. How did the arrival of television change news delivery and political campaigns?
Even more than radio, television allows politicians to reach out and connect with citizens and voters in deeper ways. Before television, few voters were able to see a president or candidate speak or answer questions in an interview. Now everyone can decode body language and tone to decide whether candidates or politicians are sincere. Presidents can directly convey their anger, sorrow, or optimism during addresses.
62. What was the bubble?
Framing can also affect the way we see race, socioeconomics, or other generalizations. For this reason, it is linked to priming: when media coverage predisposes the viewer or reader to a particular perspective on a subject or issue. If a newspaper article focuses on unemployment, struggling industries, and jobs moving overseas, the reader will have a negative opinion about the economy. If then asked whether he or she approves of the president's job performance, the reader is primed to say no. Readers and viewers are able to fight priming effects if they are aware of them or have prior information about the subject.
40. What is horse-race coverage of a campaign?
In horse-race coverage, modern journalists analyze campaigns and blunders or the overall race, rather than interviewing the candidates or discussing their issue positions. Some argue that this shallow coverage is a result of candidates' trying to control the journalists by limiting interviews and quotes. In an effort to regain control of the story, journalists begin analyzing campaigns without input from the candidates.50 The use of social media by candidates provides a countervailing trend. President Trump's hundreds of election tweets are the stuff of legend. These tweets kept his press coverage up, although they also were problematic for him at times. The final days of the contest saw no new tweets from Trump as he attempted to stay on message.
59. What is framing?
In the end, the consensus among observers is that media have some effect, even if the effect is subtle. This raises the question of how the media, even general newscasts, can affect citizens. One of the ways is through framing: the creation of a narrative, or context, for a news story. The news often uses frames to place a story in a context so the reader understands its importance or relevance. Yet, at the same time, framing affects the way the reader or viewer processes the story.
19. What role do media, especially local news, play in informing the public?
Local news has a larger job, despite small budgets and fewer resources (Figure 8.5). Local government and local economic policy have a strong and immediate effect on citizens. Is the city government planning on changing property tax rates? Will the school district change the way Common Core tests are administered? When and where is the next town hall meeting or public forum to be held? Local and social media provide a forum for protest and discussion of issues that matter to the community.
29. How have newspapers tried to adapt to revenue declines?
Many newspapers now maintain both a print and an Internet presence in order to compete for readers. The rise of free news blogs, such as the Huffington Post, have made it difficult for newspapers to force readers to purchase online subscriptions to access material they place behind a digital paywall. Some local newspapers, in an effort to stay visible and profitable, have turned to social media, like Facebook and Twitter. Stories can be posted and retweeted, allowing readers to comment and forward material.26 Yet, overall, newspapers have adapted, becoming leaner—though less thorough and investigative—versions of their earlier selves.
22. How did the press develop?
Newspapers took part in the effort to inform citizens of British misdeeds and incite attempts to revolt. Readership across the colonies increased to nearly forty thousand homes (among a total population of two million), and daily papers sprang up in large cities.22
9. What are the different media formats that television uses?
Programming may be scripted, like dramas or comedies. It may be unscripted, like game shows or reality programs, or informative, such as news programming. Although most programs are created by a television production company, national networks—like CBS or NBC—purchase the rights to programs they distribute to local stations across the United States. Most local stations are affiliated with a national network corporation, and they broadcast national network programming to their local viewers.
39. How have changes in the media affected the ability of presidents to communicate with the public?
Television was also useful to combat scandals and accusations of impropriety. Republican vice presidential candidate Richard Nixon used a televised speech in 1952 to address accusations that he had taken money from a political campaign fund illegally. Nixon laid out his finances, investments, and debts and ended by saying that the only election gift the family had received was a cocker spaniel the children named Checkers.36 The "Checkers speech" was remembered more for humanizing Nixon than for proving he had not taken money from the campaign account. Yet it was enough to quiet accusations. Democratic vice presidential nominee Geraldine Ferraro similarly used television to answer accusations in 1984, holding a televised press conference to answer questions for over two hours about her husband's business dealings and tax returns.37
34. What is the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)? What does it regulate?
The Communications Act of 1934 ended the FRC and created the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which continued to work with radio stations to assign frequencies and set national standards, as well as oversee other forms of broadcasting and telephones. The FCC regulates interstate communications to this day. For example, it prohibits the use of certain profane words during certain hours on public airwaves.
50. What is the Communications Act?
The Communications Act of 1934 replaced the Radio Act and created a more powerful entity to monitor the airwaves—a seven-member Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to oversee both radio and telephone communication. The
44. Did the Framers of the Constitution favor a free press? How do we know?
The U.S. Constitution was written in secrecy. Journalists were neither invited to watch the drafting, nor did the framers talk to the press about their disagreements and decisions.
1. What is mass media?
The collection of all forms of media that communicate information to the general public is called mass media, including television, print, radio, and Internet. One
61. What is priming?
The constant control of the media became known as the "bubble," and journalists were less effective when they were in the campaign's bubble. Reporters complained this coverage was campaign advertising rather than journalism, and a new model emerged with the 1996 election.107
70. How does media coverage affect women's decisions to run for office?
The historically negative media coverage of female candidates has had another concrete effect: Women are less likely than men to run for office. One common reason is the effect negative media coverage has on families.146 Many women do not wish to expose their children or spouses to criticism.147 In 2008, the nomination of Sarah Palin as Republican candidate John McCain's running mate validated this concern (Figure 8.19). Some articles focused on her qualifications to be a potential future president or her record on the issues. But others questioned whether she had the right to run for office, given she had young children, one of whom has developmental disabilities.148 Her daughter, Bristol, was criticized for becoming pregnant while unmarried.149 Her husband was called cheap for failing to buy her a high-priced wedding ring.150 Even when candidates ask that children and families be off-limits, the press rarely honors the requests. So women with young children may wait until their children are grown before running for office, if they choose to run at all.
49. What is the significance of the Pentagon Papers case?
The line between the people's right to know and national security is not always clear. In 1971, the Supreme Court heard the Pentagon Papers case, in which the U.S. government sued the New York Times and the Washington Post to stop the release of information from a classified study of the Vietnam War. The Supreme Court ruled that while the government can impose prior restraint on the media, meaning the government can prevent the publication of information, that right is very limited. The court gave the newspapers the right to publish much of the study, but revelation of troop movements and the names of undercover operatives are some of the few approved reasons for which the government can stop publication or reporting.
16. What is agenda setting?
The media also engages in agenda setting, which is the act of choosing which issues or topics deserve public discussion. For example, in the early 1980s, famine in Ethiopia drew worldwide attention, which resulted in increased charitable giving to the country. Yet the famine had been going on for a long time before it was discovered by western media. Even after the discovery, it took video footage to gain the attention of the British and U.S. populations and start the aid flowing.12 Today, numerous examples of agenda setting show how important the media are when trying to prevent further emergencies or humanitarian crises. In the spring of 2015, when the Dominican Republic was preparing to exile Haitians and undocumented (or under documented) residents, major U.S. news outlets remained silent. However, once the story had been covered several times by Al Jazeera, a state-funded broadcast company based in Qatar, ABC, the New York Times, and other network outlets followed.13 With major network coverage came public pressure for the U.S. government to act on behalf of the Haitians.14
69. How does media coverage portray women?
The media's historically uneven coverage of women continues in its treatment of female candidates. Early coverage was sparse. The stories that did appear often discussed the candidate's viability, or ability to win, rather than her stand on the issues.142 Women were seen as a novelty rather than as serious contenders who needed to be vetted and discussed. Modern media coverage has changed slightly. One study found that female candidates receive more favorable coverage than in prior generations, especially if they are incumbents.143 Yet a different study found that while there was increased coverage for female candidates, it was often negative.144 And it did not include Latina candidates.145 Without coverage, they are less likely to win. The historically negative media coverage of female candidates has had another concrete effect: Women are less likely than men to run for office. One common reason is the effect negative media coverage has on families.146 Many women do not wish to expose their children or spouses to criticism.147 In 2008, the nomination of Sarah Palin as Republican candidate John McCain's running mate validated this concern (Figure 8.19). Some articles focused on her qualifications to be a potential future president or her record on the issues. But others questioned whether she had the right to run for office, given she had young children, one of whom has developmental disabilities.148 Her daughter, Bristol, was criticized for becoming pregnant while unmarried.149 Her husband was called cheap for failing to buy her a high-priced wedding ring.150 Even when candidates ask that children and families be off-limits, the press rarely honors the requests. So women with young children may wait until their children are grown before running for office, if they choose to run at all.
54. What is reporter's privilege?
The practice of granting anonymity to sources is sometimes referred to as reporter's privilege. Fueled by the First Amendment's protection of the press, journalists have long offered to keep sources confidential to protect them from government prosecution.
52. What are sunshine laws?
The press has had some assistance in performing its muckraking duty. Laws that mandate federal and many state government proceedings and meeting documents be made available to the public are called sunshine laws. Proponents believe that open disagreements allow democracy to flourish and darkness allows corruption to occur. Opponents argue that some documents and policies are sensitive, and that the sunshine laws can inhibit policymaking.
21. What was the party press era?
The publication of the Federalist Papers, as well as the Anti-Federalist Papers, in the 1780s, moved the nation into the party press era, in which partisanship and political party loyalty dominated the choice of editorial content. One
2. What are the various forms of media?
The term media defines a number of different communication formats from television media, which share information through broadcast airwaves, to print media, which rely on printed documents.
11. What are niche media outlets?
The websites of the New York Times and other newspapers often focus on matters affecting the United States, while channels like BBC America present world news. FOX News presents political commentary and news in a conservative vein, while the Internet site Daily Kos offers a liberal perspective on the news. Politico.com is perhaps the leader in niche journalism.
5. What is public relations?
The work of the news media differs from public relations, which is communication carried out to improve the image of companies, organizations, or candidates for office. Public relations is not a neutral information form. While journalists write stories to inform the public, a public relations spokesperson is paid to help an individual or organization get positive press. Public relations materials normally appear as press releases or paid advertisements in newspapers and other media outlets. Some less reputable publications, however, publish paid articles under the news banner, blurring the line between journalism and public relations.
48. What is the significance of New York Times v. Sullivan?
This test goes back to the New York Times v. Sullivan (1964) case, in which a police commissioner in Alabama sued over inaccurate statements in a newspaper advertisement.64 Because the commissioner was a public figure, the U.S. Supreme Court applied a stringent test of malice to determine whether the advertisement was libel; the court deemed it was not.
51. What is the equal-time rule?
To maintain a license, stations are required to meet a number of criteria. The equal-time rule, for instance, states that registered candidates running for office must be given equal opportunities for airtime and advertisements at non-cable television and radio stations beginning forty-five days before a primary election and sixty days before a general election.
53. What is the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)?
While some documents may be classified due to national or state security, governments are encouraged to limit the over-classification of documents. The primary legal example for sunshine laws is the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), passed in 1966 and signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson. The act requires the executive branch of the U.S. government to provide information requested by citizens and was intended to increase openness in the executive branch, which had been criticized for hiding information. Citizens wishing to obtain information may request documents from the appropriate agencies, and agencies may charge fees if the collection and copying of the requested documentation requires time and labor.90 FOIA also identifies data that does not need to be disclosed, such as human resource and medical records, national defense records, and material provided by confidential sources, to name a few.91 Not all presidents have embraced this openness, however. President Ronald Reagan, in 1981, exempted the CIA and FBI from FOIA requests.92 Information requests have increased significantly in recent years, with U.S. agencies receiving over 700,000 requests in 2014, many directed to the Departments of State and Defense, thus creating a backlog.93
43. What is soft news?
Younger viewers, especially members of Generation X and Millennials, like their newscasts to be humorous. The popularity of The Daily Show and The Colbert Report demonstrate that news, even political news, can win young viewers if delivered well.57 Such soft news presents news in an entertaining and approachable manner, painlessly introducing a variety of topics. While the depth or quality of reporting may be less than ideal, these shows can sound an alarm as needed to raise citizen awareness
45. Why was Peter Zenger arrested in colonial America in 1733?
corruption. In fact, one of New York's first newspapers, the New York Weekly Journal, began under John Peter Zenger in 1733 with the goal of routing corruption in the colonial government. After the colonial governor, William Cosby, had Zenger arrested and charged with seditious libel in 1835, his lawyers successfully defended his case and Zenger was found not guilty, affirming the importance of a free press in the colonies (Figure 8.12).
31. What is the Huffington Post? Why is it a threat to legacy print media?
free news blogs, make it hard for other newspapers to force readers to pay
65. Are most campaign stories positive or negative?
negative
13. What six conglomerates control most of the broadcast media in the United States?
networks. By 2011, six conglomerates controlled most of the broadcast media in the United States: CBS Corporation, Comcast, Time Warner, 21st Century Fox (formerly News Corporation), Viacom, and The Walt Disney Company (Figure 8.3).8 With the Disney-Fox merger scheduled to close in March 2019, this number will be reduced to five. The Walt Disney Company, for example, owns the ABC Television Network, ESPN, A&E, and Lifetime, in addition to the Disney Channel. Viacom owns BET, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, and VH1. Time Warner owns Cartoon Network, CNN, HBO, and TNT, among others. While each of these networks has its own programming, in the end, the conglomerate can make a policy that affects all stations and programming under its control.
7. From which form of media are millennials most likely to get their news?
social media
68. How do the media represent (or misrepresent) criminals, crime victims, police officers, welfare recipients, and persons living in poverty in terms of race and ethnicity?
vote. Even if the crime rate is going down, for instance, citizens accustomed to reading stories about assault and other offenses still perceive crime to be an issue.128 Studies have also found that the media's portrayal of race is flawed, especially in coverage of crime and poverty. One study revealed that local news shows were more likely to show pictures of criminals when they were African American, so they overrepresented black people as perpetrators and white people as victims.129 A second study found a similar pattern in which Latino people were underrepresented as victims of crime and as police officers, while white people were overrepresented as both.130 Voters were thus more likely to assume that most criminals are black and most victims and police officers are white, even though the numbers do not support those assumptions. Network news similarly misrepresents the victims of poverty by using more images of black people than white people in its segments. Viewers in a study were left believing African Americans were the majority of the unemployed and poor, rather than seeing the problem as one faced by many races.131 The misrepresentation of race is not limited to news coverage, however. A study of images printed in national magazines, like Time and Newsweek, found they also misrepresented race and poverty. The magazines were more likely to show images of young African Americans when discussing poverty and excluded the elderly and the young, as well as white and Latino people, which is the true picture of poverty.132 Racial framing, even if unintentional, affects perceptions and policies. If viewers are continually presented with images of African Americans as criminals, there is an increased chance they will perceive members of this group as violent or aggressive.133 The perception that most recipients of welfare are working-age African Americans may have led some citizens to vote for candidates who promised to reduce welfare benefits.134 When survey respondents were shown a story of a white unemployed individual, 71 percent listed unemployment as one of the top three problems facing the United States, while only 53 percent did so if the story was about an unemployed African American.135
