Test 2
The results of the 2020 elections
Biden secured his victory through a mix of swing states: - The traditional battleground states in the upper Midwest: Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania - The untraditional battleground states in the Southwest and Southeast: Arizona, Nevada, and Georgia
Presidency Facts
- to win the American presidency, a candidate must win 270 electoral college votes. - There have been 5 instances in US history where the winner of the electoral college vote LOST the popular vote. Most recently Bush II in 2000 and Trump in 2016.
Political Knowledge
Formal Knowledge of policy debates or of political institutions, process, and leaders. - research shows the average American has little political knowledge - In general, knowledgeable citizens are better able to evaluate new info and determine whether it is relevant to and consistent with their beliefs and opinions
As a result of Fake News...
Knowledge & tolerance have gone down - Digital media do not abide by the principle of objective journalism. - They cater to individual preferences. This leads to a "filter-bubble" or "self-selection-bias", which involves screening out info to challenge personal views.
Voting: State Electoral Laws
State electoral laws create formal barriers to voting; all states implement voting & election laws differently. - There are very different voter turnout rates by state. 70% in Minnesota vs 45% in Mississippi - Registration requirements vary by state and can reduce turnout. Impact is often greatest on people who are young, less educated, and less affluent. - One big reform to boost voter turnout has been same-day registration. Or automatic voter registration.
Forms of Political Participation: Rights
Still, US voter turnout nationally is relatively low today - since the 1960s, turnout has been about 60% in presidential elections - Voter turnout for federal elections is typically much higher than for local and state elections - Turnout in nonpresidential election years is much lower. Only 36% turnout in 2014 BUT 49.3% in 2018 (highest turnout since 1914)
Social Media
The rise of social media is the single most important trend in news and political communication - turns communication into an interactive dialogue among organizations, communities, & individuals - allows people to learn about politics & political news from each other - Facebook and Twitter have contributed to political mobilization
Voting: Why do people vote??
Three general reasons: - Socioeconomic status - Political environment - State electoral laws
Citizen Journalism
News reported & distributed by citizens, rather than professional journalists & non-profit news organization. It is no longer exclusive to professionals - Cameras on cell phones make it easy for millions of Americans to photograph or record events - Social media permits users to upload content that can be shared or relayed by the mainstream media - citizen journalists supplement the work of professional journalists
Journalists in Media
Journalists are guided by professional standards in reporting the news in the public interest, including: - fact checking - verifying sources as legitimate & credible - engage in investigative journalism
Social Groups & Public Opinion (party affiliation & political environment)
- Party Affiliation (sorting): Republicans are increasingly conservative. Democrats are increasingly liberal. - Political Environment: External events can shape opinion. For example: baby boomers were exposed to the Vietnam War, and are generally opposed to war
2020 Presidential Election
- 159 million votes cast - 66.4 % of eligible voters - highest turnout since 1900 election - Vote by mail and early voting were popular, due to coronavirus - democrats were more likely to vote by mail, Republicans in person
Ch 8-9(political parties, participation, and elections) Political Parties
- A political party is a group of people who try to determine public policy and operate government by getting their candidates elected to office. - the Founders of the nation did not envision the rise of parties
Social Groups & Public Opinion (Race & Ethnicity)
- African Americans often perceive a "linked fate" with other blacks - Shared ethnicity among Latinos contributes to "group consciousness" - These factors can influence political opinions & attitudes The American public's support for same-sex marriage has increased by 25 percentage points in the last two decades.
Who expresses their political opinions?
- By Party: The party that expresses their political opinions the most are Republicans and the party that expresses their political opinion the least are Moderates - By education: Most expressive are those with post-grad degrees and the least are high school or less
Who are Republicans & Democrats? (race and ethnicity, gender)
- Each party draws support from different social groups, including divides along racial, ethnic, gender, religious, regional, and age-related lines. - Race & Ethnicity: African Americans strongly tend Democratic. Whites favor Republicans, especially among those with no college degree. Latino voters are more split, with an edge for the Democrats that possibly started to erode in the last election. - Gender: the gender gap has existed for several decades, with women favoring Democrats & men favoring Republicans.
Online Political Participation: Benefits
- Encourages info gathering & interaction among users & elected officials - Associated with increase likelihood to vote, contribute to political campaigns and candidates, attend campaign meetings, volunteer for campaigns, contact elected officials.
Concerns about Online Media
- Fake News: encountering misinformation is problematic - Less investigation and watchdog work: high production cost in a low-revenue business - Quality: conflating popular & viral communications with factual info - Narrow Lens: many websites specialize in a single POV. The public has less exposure to more than one POV
Political Socialization (family, social network, education)
- Family: children tend to absorb the political views of their parents - Social network: political opinions are significantly shaped by peer influence. Online social networks such as Facebook & Twitter may increase the role of peers in shaping opinions - Education: People who attend college often have different political opinions than those who did not. Higher levels of education increase political knowledge (following the news)
Fun Facts
- Latinos currently make up approx. 17% of the US population. - Since 1970, the number of 1st gen immigrants living in the US has more than 4x in size. - Cali shifted from a Republican stronghold in the 1970s to a solidly Democratic state today primarily due to immigration & demographic change. - In 1922, the voter turnout rate in Australia was at a record low of 60%, they implemented a mandatory voting system to encourage voter turnout and it has since then averaged 90%.
What does Political Knowledge cost to Democracy?
- Low levels of political knowledge weaken American democracy. - People who lack political info cannot effectively defend their own political interests, rights, and freedoms. Politically ignorant individuals are more easily influenced by political elites, media, & special interests. - Lack of knowledge can contribute to political & economic inequality.
Because being informed politically requires time & energy:
- Many people rely on "shortcuts" & "cues". They get info from trusted party elites, interest groups, media, family, friends, social media, and similar sources - Many people also just "skim & scan" the news - Misinformation can distort public opinion
Voting: The Political Environment
- Mobilization efforts attract voters to the polls - Electoral competition (or lack thereof). There is higher turnout in more competitive elections - Ballot measures: controversial initiatives can increase turnout
Parties & Elections: Mobilization
- Mobilization involves voter registration. Parties often work with nonprofits & other groups. - Parties must also convince voters to show up at the polls. - Efforts by parties at voter mobilization efforts are now a science. Extensive databases of voters are used for micro- targeting.
Allen et al. (2020) Fake News Problem: main points
- News consumption of any sort is heavily outweighed by other forms of media consumption, comprising at most 14.2% of Americans' daily media diets. - Americans get most of their news from TV- which accounts for roughly 5x as much as news consumption online - Fake news compromises only 0.15% of Americans' daily media diet - The origins of public misinfromedness and polarization are more likely to lie in the content of ordinary news or the avoidance of news altogether as they are in overt fakery.
Forms of Political Participation: Traditional
- Political Participation refers to a wide range of activities in politics. - Voting, volunteering on a campaign, working for political organization, contracting public officials, signing a petition - Peaceful protest is protected by the 1st Amendment. Recent increase in protests over concerns of police brutality (BLM movement).
Types of Media Formats
- Print: newspapers, magazines, & books - Broadcast: radio & tv - Digital: websites, social media, & other online sources. among Internet users, three in four people read news online
Chapter 6(Public Opinion): Public Opinion: What is it and where does it originate?
- Public Opinion: this is what the public wants. values and attitudes that people have about issues, events, and personalities - it originates: average citizens do not always have vast info about issues or elections, yet they can form opinions about such matters
Online Media
- Readers post comments online, upload video, and participate in politics and culture online
Who are Republicans & Democrats? (region, age)
- Region: Democrats tend to be clustered on the coasts, in the upper Midwest, and in cities nationwide. Republicans tend to be concentrated in the Mountains West, the Great Plains, and the South, and in the suburban and rural areas. - Age: Younger voters tend to be Democrats, older voters tend to be Republican
Who are Republicans & Democrats? (religion, class)
- Religion: Protestants are more likely to identify as Republican, and Jews and those unaffiliated with a religion are more likely to identify as Democratic. - Class: Republicans tend to represent wealthy economic interests, whereas Democrats represent the interests of less affluent Americans. But social issues complicate this divide, and increasingly working class voters have favored Republicans.
The Aftermath of the 2020 election (mess from the Republicans)
- Republicans claimed voter fraud due to growing use of mail-in ballots and possible threat of electoral fraud - Republicans mounted legal challenges to early votes in swing states - After it seemed that Biden had won, Trump mounted his own set of court challenges, such as in Nevada & Pennsylvania - Thousands of Trump supported have attended "stop the steal" rallies - none of the challenges have proven successful
2016 Election
- Research into public opinion & public policy has shown that more affluent and more educated citizens have a disproportionate influence over politics and public policy decisions. - One explanation for why Trump performed better at the ballot box than in public opinion polls is that some people may have been reluctant to tell an interviewer that they supported Trump given that he was so controversial. - One reason Hilary Clinton lost in 2016 was because she did not win enough support of working-class white men.
The Campaign: Racial Strife and Mass Protests
- The Summer 2020 murder of George Floyd by the Minneapolis, Minnesota police sparked nationwide BLM protests - Protests intensified with the murders of 3 more Black ppl: Breonna Taylor, Rayshard Brooks, and Daniel Prude - Trump and other Republicans accused by protestor of violence and supported police actions against protestors - Democrats said the president's actions only added fuel to the fire and hoped that these events would demonstrate the importance of going to the polls and voting for Joe Biden
Party Fractions
- The division within each party can be very important. - Republicans are divided between pro- business conservatives, far- right populists, social and religious conservatives, and libertarians. - Democrats are divided between their more traditional, moderate wing and their more progressive wing.
Parties & Elections: Nominations
- The party nomination process varies from state to state - Most states rely on the primary election process. Multiple candidates from the same party compete to be the party nominee. Some argue this produces centrist candidates but more- ideological voters tend to participate in primaries.
Voter ID laws
- Voter ID laws require voters to provide proof of Identity. Exists in 36 states, only 8 states require a photo ID. - These laws may disproportionately reduce turnout of racial minorities, the poor, and the elderly, because of the challenges inherent in obtaining govt-issued photo ID.
Powerful Source of Influence: Media
- effective at telling Americans what issues are important - can frame what it means for a politician to be successful - can sometimes shape how people understand the meaning of a conflict
Conservatives on Domestic Issues
- find solutions to social & economic problems through private-sector or religious organizations - support cutting taxes & reducing spending - support traditional family arrangements and oppose legalized abortion and same-sex marriage
Americans Exhibit Low Trust in Government
- high levels of trust create legitimacy for democratic government - declining trust is linked to declines in political participation and voting - Low confidence in govt is related to: the perception that govt cannot solve problems or spend money in effective ways
Powerful Source of Influence: Private & Interest Groups
- include interest groups, churches, community organizations - very deep & wide reach into society - Deploy specific information effectively - Can communicate messages broadly to reach like-minded individuals easily
Benefits of Online News
- more convenient, it has up-to-the-minute currency, it can go into more depth, it has a diversity of viewpoints, it is cheap
Liberals on Foreign Affairs
- oppose sending American troops to influence domestic affairs in other countries - support international organizations
Conservatives on Foreign Affairs
- support stronger military power & military interventions
Liberals on Domestic Issues
- supporting government policies to create a fairer economic system & opportunity for upward mobility, including more progressive taxation - expanding federal social services & healthcare - concerned with protecting the reproductive rights of women and LGBTQ rights
Digital Citizenship
- the ability to participate in society and politics online
Digital Divide
- the gap in access to the internet among demographic groups - Disparities in internet access: according to age, race and ethnicity, and income
New Media: Digital Media
- the internet has revolutionized mass communication just as the penny press did in the 19th century - today, people under the age of 50 rely heavily on online news - streaming video is a growing substitute for TV for some users - Google News & Reddit are examples of "news aggregators"
Traditional Media: Print
- the oldest method for the dissemination of news - Newspapers are influential among the political eye - No longer the primary news source for most Americans, however, top digital news sources are online versions of print newspapers
Traditional Media: Radio & TV
- they reach more Americans than any other single news source - they serve the extremely important function of alerting viewers to issues and events. - however, they cover relatively few topics & provide little depth of coverage (time limits and rating constrain content)
How Voters Decide...
3 major factors influence voters' decisions at polls: - Partisan Loyalty: is most likely to assert itself in less visible races. - Issues & policy preferences: Some voters cast their ballot for candidates whose positions on important issues they believe to be closest to their own. The state of the economy is often a dominant issue. - Candidate Characteristics: the candidate's race, ethnicity, religion, gender, geographic background, and social background may be factors.
George Carlin
Comedian whose satires on vulgarities prompted rules on radio programming to shield children. Dubbed the "dean of counterculture comedians"
The results of the 2020 election in Congress
Democrats retained control of the House: - However, Republicans won back nearly a dozen seats - House Democrats lost seats where voters feared progressivism - Democrats won back the Senate with 2 runoff elections in Georgia on January 5th 2021.
Digital Political Participation is Surging
Digital Political Participation: activities designed to influence politics using the internet, including visiting a candidate's website, organizing events online, and signing an online petition, etc. - The internet has given citizens greater access to info about candidates and campaigns and a greater role in politics than ever before. - Digital participation is the most common way Americans participate in politics outside of voting. - Social connections are important to political participation, and social media are a key networking tool for running campaigns and winning elections. Tiny acts of online participation can scale up to dramatic changes and offline events.
Fake News def.
False stories circulated for ad revenue or to benefit one political candidate or party over the other
The Campaign: The Coronavirus Pandemic
Govt response to the pandemic: - "operation warp speed": an effort to press pharmaceutical companies and medical equipment companies to ramp up research for a vaccine - The administration & Congress developed a stimulus package to soothe economic turmoil - Trump frequently attacked public-health officials and scientists - Inconsistent enforcement of social distancing and mask wearing, especially on the part of the president. Wearing a facemask has become a polarizing issue.
Voting: Socioeconomic Status
Individuals are more likely to vote if: - They have higher levels of education - They have higher levels of income - They are older, the elderly are more likely to vote than the young
Ch.7 (media) The Media: Democracy def.
Media are print & digital forms of communication, including television, newspapers, radio, and the internet, intended to convey info to large audiences
How is the Media important to Democracy?
Media is an essential part of democracy. - They inform the public about current political issues & events. - They provide a forum for the candidates, politicians, and the public to debate policies & issues. - They act as a watchdog on actions of government & political actors. Without media, we would have to rely entirely on information provided by the government.
Party Identification
Party ID refers to an individual voter's psychological ties to one party or another. - Most independents "lean" toward one of major parties - Party attachments formed in youth are likely to last - Many voters rely on partisanship in local races - Party activists are the strongest party identifiers.
Powerful Source of Influence: Political Leaders
Political Leaders can also shape public opinion - Many different political leaders try to shape public opinion. - The president is a notable example, and we can trace this back as early as Franklin Roosevelt and his "fireside chat" radio broadcasts. - This might include President Trump using Twitter, or President Obama using digital and social media
America's Dominant Political Ideologies
Political ideology is a cohesive set of beliefs and values that form a general philosophy about the role of government. The two main political ideologies in the US today: - Liberals are those who generally support social & political reform, governmental intervention in the economy, more economic equality, expansion of federal social services, and greater concern for consumers and the environment. - Conservatives are those who generally support the social and economic status quo, are suspicious of efforts to introduce new political formulas & economic arrangements, and believe that a large and powerful government poses a threat to citizens' freedom.
Parties & Elections: Recruiting Candidates
Qualities candidates need: - a strong leadership record - the ability to raise large amounts of money - good name recognition - previous experience in office - the ability to withstand severe scrutiny
Forces Shaping Public Opinion
The Marketplace of Ideas - A public forum in which beliefs & ideas are exchanged and compete - There are three powerful sources of influence on the marketplace of ideas: Political leaders, Private & Interest Groups, and the Media
News Aggregator def.
an application or feed that collects web content such as news headlines, blogs, podcasts, online videos, & more in one location for easy viewing
Voter turnout def
percentage of eligible individuals who actually vote
Partisanship def
the identification or support of a particular party
Mobilization
the process by which large numbers of people are organized for a political activity