POL110 Week 4 Scenario Script: Political Ideology Slide # Scene/Interaction Narration Slide 1 Introductory screen, containing the environment (an outside view of a government office building) and a title showing the scenario topic. There will be a “begin” button on the screen allowing students to begin the scenario. Slide 2 Scene 1 Amanda and Dr. Ryan standing in Dr. Ryan’s office. Photos of one or some of these newspaper and radio logos The National Zoo will have a photo of what you’re looking for here. Dr. T: Welcome back, Amanda. Last week we looked at federalism and the states, and this week we will branch off into an entirely new field dealing with the relationship between the media and public opinion in the U.S., focusing on political ideologies. Any initial thoughts about this topic, Amanda? Amanda: This question about the public and the media isa hot-button topic, Dr. Ryan, especially around the time of presidential elections. Conservatives think media like The Washington Post, The New York Times and the Public Broadcasting Service are too liberal, and liberals think that media outlets like The Wall Street Journal, Fox News and Rush Limbaugh are too conservative. And the truth is both sides have a point. All of these outlets have political agendas that they want to get across. Dr. Ryan: But the real question is what, if anything can be done about it? Or, more importantly, should anything be done about it? Amanda: I don’t think so. The federal government isn’t allowed to censor anything unless it deals with national security. So legally, there is nothing standing in the way of a newspaper or commentator from printing or saying anything they want to. Do you know if there are any exceptions at all? Dr. Ryan: Yes, but they are very narrowly defined by the courts. If someone is libeled by a newspaper or slandered by a talk-show host, that’s another matter. The problem is that if the person is an actor or politician, for example, he’s considered a public figure and so it’s extremely difficult for him to win a case in court. Amanda: What effect does this have? Dr. Ryan: As a result, the media gets away with writing or saying some of the most outrageous stuff and it almost never goes to trial. It might rate a retraction or an apology, but that’s about it. That’s why you can be standing in a check-out line and see a front page photograph of Kim Kardashian in TheNational Enquirer, smiling radiantly as she lovingly cradles what looks like a small alligator, with the headline reading, “Isn’t our new baby just beautiful?” Amanda: So…do you think that following these media outlets boils down to an issue of whom to trust? Dr. Ryan: Exactly. If I’m a Republican I’m not going to read a magazine like The New Republic, and if I’m a Democrat, I hardly think I’ll be spending my afternoons listening to Sean Hannity or Oliver North. But if I’m one of these very odd people who has a particular fondness for Kim Kardashian and .

1. POL110 Week 4 Scenario Script: Political Ideology
Slide #
Scene/Interaction
Narration
Slide 1
Introductory screen, containing the environment (an outside
view of a government office building) and a title showing the
scenario topic. There will be a “begin” button on the screen
allowing students to begin the scenario.
Slide 2
Scene 1
Amanda and Dr. Ryan standing in Dr. Ryan’s office.
Photos of one or some of these newspaper and radio logos
The National Zoo will have a photo of what you’re looking for
here.
Dr. T: Welcome back, Amanda. Last week we looked at
federalism and the states, and this week we will branch off into
an entirely new field dealing with the relationship between the
media and public opinion in the U.S., focusing on political
ideologies.
Any initial thoughts about this topic, Amanda?
Amanda: This question about the public and the media isa hot-
button topic, Dr. Ryan, especially around the time of
presidential elections.
Conservatives think media like The Washington Post, The New
York Times and the Public Broadcasting Service are too liberal,
and liberals think that media outlets like The Wall Street
Journal, Fox News and Rush Limbaugh are too conservative.
And the truth is both sides have a point. All of these outlets

2. have political agendas that they want to get across.
Dr. Ryan: But the real question is what, if anything can be done
about it?
Or, more importantly, should anything be done about it?
Amanda: I don’t think so. The federal government isn’t allowed
to censor anything unless it deals with national security. So
legally, there is nothing standing in the way of a newspaper or
commentator from printing or saying anything they want to.
Do you know if there are any exceptions at all?
Dr. Ryan: Yes, but they are very narrowly defined by the courts.
If someone is libeled by a newspaper or slandered by a talk-
show host, that’s another matter. The problem is that if the
person is an actor or politician, for example, he’s considered a
public figure and so it’s extremely difficult for him to win a
case in court.
Amanda: What effect does this have?
Dr. Ryan: As a result, the media gets away with writing or
saying some of the most outrageous stuff and it almost never
goes to trial. It might rate a retraction or an apology, but that’s
about it. That’s why you can be standing in a check-out line
and see a front page photograph of Kim Kardashian in
TheNational Enquirer, smiling radiantly as she lovingly cradles
what looks like a small alligator, with the headline reading,
“Isn’t our new baby just beautiful?”
Amanda: So…do you think that following these media outlets
boils down to an issue of whom to trust?
Dr. Ryan: Exactly. If I’m a Republican I’m not going to read a
magazine like The New Republic, and if I’m a Democrat, I
hardly think I’ll be spending my afternoons listening to Sean
Hannity or Oliver North. But if I’m one of these very odd
people who has a particular fondness for Kim Kardashian and
alligators, then The National Enquirer is on my reading list.

3. Amanda: So what should I take from this?
Dr. Ryan: The thing to remember is that centrist Americans, or
the people who consider themselves moderates and make up the
majority of voters in this country, will listen to, or read, both
sides of an issue.
But the difference between them and hard line Democrats or
Republicans is that moderates weigh the arguments from both
points of view without taking them at face value, and only then
decide how to vote.
These are the people who don’t necessarily have a fixed
political agenda going into an election, and, as the expression
goes, they vote the person and not the party.
In other words, they will vote on the merits of an issue
regardless of the party that’s advocating it.
Slide 3
Scene 2
Amanda and Dr. Ryan do a visual tour of a museum or historical
exhibit in Capitol Hill that showcases the material that is
covered. This is sort of a visual tour of Washington D.C. as
well as a visual component to the conversation.
Photo of the book
Amanda: Isn’t that what this free exchange of ideas shows? I
think it’s this more than anything else that is why we live in a
healthy representative democracy. Try living in Zimbabwe or
Iran or China sometime and criticizing the leadership there.
You’ll see how long it takes before the police are at your front
door.
Dr. Ryan: Yes, indeed. Expressing one’s views candidly
certainly is one of our strongest and most cherished freedoms.
Amanda: And something else I really love about this country is
the Freedom of Information Act. Ever since 1966, we, as
private citizens, have had the constitutional right to access
government information. That is, unless it was classified in the

4. interest of protecting national defense or foreign policy or trade
secrets. Or if it’s an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.
Other than that, we can find out just about anything we want to
about anyone or any government activity.
Dr. Ryan: I remember when Nixon tried to stop The Pentagon
Papers from being published in 1971. He did this because he
and Henry Kissinger felt that refusing to oppose their release
would set a negative precedent for the classification of future
secrets. But the Supreme Court ruled that no harm was being
done to national security, and The New York Times went ahead
with the project. It even made a best-selling book out of them.
What the papers showed was that the Johnson administration
had repeatedly lied to the public about the way the war had been
prosecuted almost from its beginning.
The most important issue to come out of the case was the ruling
that public interest should prevail over any embarrassment these
revelations might cause someone. It was a crucial test of the
Freedom of Information Act.
Slide 4
Scene 3
Amanda and Dr. Ryan do a visual tour of a museum or historical
exhibit in Capitol Hill that showcases the material that is
covered. This is sort of a visual tour of Washington D.C. as
well as a visual component to the conversation.
Maybe a couple of shots of Clinton and Obama holding press
conferences
Amanda: That’s an interesting point. Despite cases like that
and like Roe versus Wade, which were, and are, very divisive,
we Americans continue to place great deal more trust in our
government to act in our best interests than Europeans do in
theirs. And a lot of this has to do with the fact that, despite the
conspiracy theorists, our federal government is astonishingly
transparent.
What do you think makes it that way and keeps our elected

5. officials honest?
Dr. Ryan: Why? An inquisitive media, of course.
Just watch a presidential press conference some time and listen
to the unrelenting questioning from journalists. If they don’t
like an answer or think an official is obfuscating, they’ll dig
until they’re satisfied, and they do this because they believe we
have the unassailable right to know what our government is
doing in our name.
Amanda: I’ve never really thought of it like that before.
Slide 5
Scene 4
Shot of Muskie on the steps of The Manchester Guardian
newspaper
Shot of Reagan
Dr. Ryan. All of this has a tremendous effect on public opinion.
There was a famous case in 1972 when a senator named Edwin
Muskie was interviewed while running for president. In
response to criticism of his wife, he cried openly with the
cameras running. That’s all the public had to know about him
and he was out of the race a week later. Subsequent polling
conducted by major news outlets showed that the public thought
he was weak and his political career ended right then and there.
Amanda: And then there was Ronald Reagan…
Dr. Ryan: Oh, yes, of course. He was an absolute master of
manipulating the media. As an actor, he was used to working in
front of cameras. He came across as a genuinely pleasant and
trustworthy person whose self-confidence in his public persona
was so solid that he simply wouldn’t get rattled by tough
questions.
Amanda: And this had a major effect on his administration,

6. didn’t it?
Dr. Ryan: Well, as a consequence he would go over the head of
Congress when it proposed legislation he didn’t like. He would
ask people to call their representatives to tell them to change
their votes. And it worked time after time! Congress was
envious and greatly irritated by this tactic, but what was it
going to do? They had no one who could come even close to
competing with Reagan’s public image as a very approachable,
good-humored man. And it drove them to distraction. In the
field of public relations, Ronald Reagan set a new standard.
Slide 6
Scene 4
Amanda and Dr. Ryan do a visual tour of a museum or historical
exhibit in Capitol Hill that showcases the material that is
covered. This is sort of a visual tour of Washington D.C. as
well as a visual component to the conversation.
Amanda: But aren’t there other factors? What about the role
religion plays in politics?
Dr. Ryan: If a politician is smart, it won’t play any role at all.
We spoke at length a few weeks ago about the Founders
assuring the separation of church and state. Americans really
haven’t changed since then. We don’t mind a politician
practicing his faith, but he’d better not make a public issue of it
like the Reverend Pat Robertson did in the 1980s.
He intimated that a vote for him was a vote for God. But people
reacted violently to that and he was run out of the Republican
primary immediately.
Amanda: Okay, but what role do you think education plays in
this electoral process?

7. Dr. Ryan: A very important one. Today, people with college
degrees and postgraduate education are more likely to be
members of the urban middle to upper middle class and vote
Democratic. Whereas those living in small towns that have jobs
in farming or small to medium-sized businesses tend to vote
Republican. And there are other demographics at work, too.
Amanda: What do you mean?
Dr. Ryan: More women are Democrats than men and more men
are Republicans than women. Older people tend to vote
Republican more than younger men and women, who are
predominately Democrats. Meanwhile the poor and minorities
vote Democratic and wealthier whites swing Republican.
It’s been this way for some years now and both parties are
working on ways to change their approach to appeal to
disaffected voters.
Amanda: I’ve noticed those trends myself.
Dr. Ryan: And don’t forget…the Internet plays a big role in
this because younger people tend to use it more to gather
information than older people, who still read newspapers more.
Then there’s the issue of regions. Northern and far western
states are almost exclusively Democratic because they are
manufacturing and techno-centric areas where labor unions
proliferate. But Southern states are anti-labor union and
generally Republican because whites there tend to be more
politically and socially conservative.
Amanda: It’s rare that someone doesn’t have a political
ideology of some kind. The goal of the media and the political
establishment is to identify who believes in what and tailor their
editorial policies and messages accordingly.
It’s a real art, because if you’re inconsistent, then you’re done

8. for. Isn’t this is the mistake Mitt Romney made in the 2012
election?
Dr. Ryan: That’s exactly right. He was a Republican governor
of Massachusetts, a very traditionally liberal Democratic state.
While in office he supported gun control, immigration reform,
same sex marriage and a complete overhaul of health care
insurance. But as soon as he decided to run for president, he had
to win the primaries, which are dominated by right wing
Republicans. He was forced to change his stance on all of these
positions by one-eighty degrees.
Amanda: But I participated in that election. He didn’t keep his
stance there either, did he?
Dr. Ryan: Well, he ran in the general election against Barak
Obama and tried to steer back to the middle. He tried to explain
away all of his policy shifts, but the voters rejected him out of
hand and he got beaten badly. Voters didn’t trust someone who
flip-flopped so easily on a core ideology. People thought he
was a very decent man, but they didn’t care much for his
political inconsistency.
Amanda: Did the media also have an effect in this case?
Dr. Ryan: Actually, the press played a very important role in
this. This was because they would go back to earlier news
conferences that he had held while he was governor. They
would cite statements he made about this issue or that and then
ask him to explain why he was now dead set against what he
stood for only a few years before.
He couldn’t talk his way out of what was already on record and
he came across as indecisive. It was all a matter of how he was
perceived, and it goes to the very substance of this week’s
discussion on public opinion and the media.
Slide 7

9. Scene 5
Amanda and Dr. Ryan do a visual tour of a museum or historical
exhibit in Capitol Hill that showcases the material that is
covered. This is sort of a visual tour of Washington D.C. as
well as a visual component to the conversation.
Amanda: Is there anything else I should know about political
ideologies and the media for now?
Dr. Ryan: I think two more points are in order and then we can
call it a day.
First…and this is something we’ve touched on a couple of times
so far…for the media to influence public opinion, it must
advance information that actually changes the way people think.
Ostensibly, the print and television press are supposed to be
neutral. But everyone knows that the use of a strong or
emotional verb here or there can have an immense impact on the
slant of a story.
Amanda: And what’s the other thing you wanted to mention?
Dr. Ryan: The second point I wanted to make is that the reverse
can also hold true.
Remember that skillful politicians can affect what gets into
print in a number of ways. They can do this by using good
press officers, by timing the release of stories, spinning an
event to put themselves in a more attractive light, leaking
information to sympathetic journalists, and finally, by
sanctioning other journalists who write unflattering pieces and
denying them future access.
Now, let’s head back to my office and review what we’ve
covered today.
Slide 8
Interaction

10. There will be a tabbed interaction where students will review
why they have access to non-classified data from the
government. Then, they will do another drag and drop
interaction where they place potential voting groups into either
Republican or Democratic categories.
Slide 9
Scene 6
Amanda and Dr. Ryan back in Dr. Ryan’s office.
Great job, Amanda. That takes us to the end of our examination
of the relationship between media and political ideologies. Next
week we can look forward to discussing how political parties
and interest groups interact.
Make sure to participate in this week’s discussions on political
ideologies.
I’m very impressed with your progress, Amanda. Take care for
now. We will get together again later.