This document discusses how the media can indirectly influence legislative agendas and decision-making. It argues that mass media affects public opinion on issues by how they are portrayed and discussed. When the public feels strongly about an issue due to media coverage, they put pressure on their representatives in Congress to take action. The document examines literature on how the frequency and biased nature of media coverage can increase the salience and importance of issues for the public and affect what legislators prioritize. Case studies are presented to analyze how certain media portrayals have led the public to view topics as critical issues that legislators then feel pressure to address.
Amplifying and nullifying the impact of democratic sanctions through aid to c...Paulina Pospieszna
Both foreign aid and sanctions are foreign policy tools to promote
democracy. Yet, it is unclear how far incentives and coercion
enhance democratization. Since sanctions and aid are often
employed at the same time, the goal of this study is to determine
their joint effect on democratization in target/recipient countries.
We argue that sending democracy aid through civil society organizations
enhances the effectiveness of sanctions as a democracy
promotion tool because the civil society is empowered to introduce
democratic changes. Thus, in addition to the top-down
pressure on the target government created by sanctions, there
is a bottom-up pressure exerted by the civil society. Our empirical
results show that democratic sanctions by the European Union
and the United States are more likely to have a positive effect
when aid flows bypass the government. Conversely, aid channeled
through the public sector mitigates the generally positive
effect of sanctions on democracy. In order to estimate these joint
effects, we employ a new comprehensive dataset on economic
sanctions: the EUSANCT Dataset which integrates and updates
existing databases on sanctions for the period between 1989 and
2015, merged with disaggregated OECD aid data and V-Dem
democracy scores.
It was a humble presentation we had today together ;narjes and i did our best to make sure that every body is acknowledged and satisfied...I honestly thank my teacher, partner and all my true freinds
A theory of Media Politics was my Oral Presentation subject with Mouna Frikha at ISLG. It was a good performance and I got 18\20 which is a very excellent mark .I greatly appreciate anyone's help.
Amplifying and nullifying the impact of democratic sanctions through aid to c...Paulina Pospieszna
Both foreign aid and sanctions are foreign policy tools to promote
democracy. Yet, it is unclear how far incentives and coercion
enhance democratization. Since sanctions and aid are often
employed at the same time, the goal of this study is to determine
their joint effect on democratization in target/recipient countries.
We argue that sending democracy aid through civil society organizations
enhances the effectiveness of sanctions as a democracy
promotion tool because the civil society is empowered to introduce
democratic changes. Thus, in addition to the top-down
pressure on the target government created by sanctions, there
is a bottom-up pressure exerted by the civil society. Our empirical
results show that democratic sanctions by the European Union
and the United States are more likely to have a positive effect
when aid flows bypass the government. Conversely, aid channeled
through the public sector mitigates the generally positive
effect of sanctions on democracy. In order to estimate these joint
effects, we employ a new comprehensive dataset on economic
sanctions: the EUSANCT Dataset which integrates and updates
existing databases on sanctions for the period between 1989 and
2015, merged with disaggregated OECD aid data and V-Dem
democracy scores.
It was a humble presentation we had today together ;narjes and i did our best to make sure that every body is acknowledged and satisfied...I honestly thank my teacher, partner and all my true freinds
A theory of Media Politics was my Oral Presentation subject with Mouna Frikha at ISLG. It was a good performance and I got 18\20 which is a very excellent mark .I greatly appreciate anyone's help.
Slide 7 WestCal Political Science 1 - US Government 2015-2016WestCal Academy
American Leadership Policy Studies (ALPS) is a for-college credit certificate program that teaches the fundamentals of American government. ALPS includes a custom tailored Political Science 1 – US Government course taught in partnership with accredited colleges to assure students receive college credit. The class is taught from the perspective of industry professionals who work in local/state/federal bureaucracies and/or political/union campaigns. This course program may operate at the site of a partnering college or instructor of record who licenses ALPS course materials from WestCal Academy or at WestCal Academy’s main campus in partnership with an accredited college. WestCal Academy
This slide covers the following:
1. Bureaucratic Power
2. Iron Triangles
3. Presidential Control Of The Bureaucracy
4. Congress And Its Members
5. Congress Versus The Executive Branch
6. Supreme Court
7. Legitimacy Factor In Law Making
8. Federal Court Structure
9. Elite Propaganda & Cinemocracy
10. Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense”
Rural Minnesota is losing it's voice. That's the conclusion of a study where researchers talked to 50 prominent Minnesota decision makers and surveyed 120+ more. Due to a combination of reasons, the state's rural population is becoming increasingly left out and left behind on the discussions that affect our everyday lives. Read on to find out what people are saying and how they think the issue can be resolved.
Carrots or Sticks: The Choice and Impact of EU Democratic Sanctions and AidPaulina Pospieszna
Both the provision of democracy aid and the imposition of sanctions are tools to promote
democracy. Yet, it is unclear under which conditions states choose to set positive or negative
incentives. In order to answer which tool—democracy aid or democratic sanctions—is more
effective, one has to analyse the actual form of the provision of aid. Sanctions and democracy aid
can also be employed at the same time. The goal of this study is to determine their joint effect on
democratization in recipient countries. We argue that sending civil society aid or democracy aid
channeled through NGOs and the civil society when sanctions are in place, enhances the
effectiveness of sanctions as a democracy promotion tool because the civil society can be
empowered to introduce democratic changes in its country—so additionally to the top-down
pressure created by sanctions, there is bottom-up pressure exerted by the civil society. Our results
suggest that democratic sanctions are more likely to be successful if democracy aid bypasses the
government in a target state. Conversely, other forms of aid provision tend to decrease the
effectiveness of sanctions. In order to precisely explain the joint impact of positive and negative
incentives on democratization, we employ a new comprehensive dataset on economic sanctions
for the period between 1989 and 2015 which integrates and updates the Threats and Imposition of
Economic Sanctions and the GIGA sanctions data sets, merged with disaggregated OECD aid data
and V-Dem as well as PolityIV democracy scores.
Informed Citizen Akron #2: Improving Candidate-Focused Media Coverage in the ...Jefferson Center
Following the momentum of the first Informed Citizen Akron, 18 Akron-area residents continued to learn from media experts, to deliberate, and to generate recommendations for how local and Ohio-based media partners can improve issue-based coverage during the 2016 presidential election.
The Problems Associated with Political Campaign Persuasion through Propaganda...ijtsrd
The research article is based on the problems that are related to psychological facts in political campaigns. It explained the problems and challenges with the political campaign due to the psychological effect on the national election. National elections are not based on democratic principles as some different factors and variables could put influence on the choice of voters and due to which selection of a candidate might not according to the choice of an individual. It could also have to face different kinds of problems that are related to political campaigns. It is psychological fact that voters expect from the political bodies to give better performance and also select the leader according to the abilities but some factors influence their willingness and it could result in different problems therefore propagandas of political campaigns are also considered important to in political campaigns. Prof. Lawrence Lowell "The Problems Associated with Political Campaign Persuasion through Propaganda and its’ Psychological Effects on National Election" Published in International Journal of Trend in Scientific Research and Development (ijtsrd), ISSN: 2456-6470, Volume-5 | Issue-1 , December 2020, URL: https://www.ijtsrd.com/papers/ijtsrd35760.pdf Paper URL : https://www.ijtsrd.com/management/other/35760/the-problems-associated-with-political-campaign-persuasion-through-propaganda-and-its’-psychological-effects-on-national-election/prof-lawrence-lowell
Through content analysis of their coverage on a large-scale media event, this paper examines the difference of agendas set by traditional media (represented by newspapers) and new media (represented by micro-blogs) in China. The results show that the agendas discussed by the Chinese people on micro-blogs are not significantly influenced by newspapers. In terms of the topics of the news, newspapers are more concerned with the Chinese economy and people's livelihood while micro-blogs are more concerned with political and legal reforms in China. As for media tone, newspapers are more likely to cover the event positively while micro-blogs tend to be negative. These findings that the Chinese government may be incapable of exercising their traditionally strong media agenda influence over newer digital media suggest that Chinese citizens, or netizens, may enjoy more freedom of speech in micro-blogging.
Zhang, G., Bowman, N. D., Shao, G., & Guan, D. (2015, May). “The people dissent, or The People’s consent?” Comparing news agendas of traditional and new media surrounding a large-scale Chinese political event. Paper presented at the International Communication Association, Puerto Rico.
Chapter Objectives1. Identify the stages of the policymaking pro.docxmccormicknadine86
Chapter Objectives
1. Identify the stages of the policymaking process.
2. Compare patterns of policy change, specifically budgetary incrementalism and punctuated equilibrium.
3. Discuss the various actors involved in making public policy and the different types of policy.
4. Examine the role of bureaucracies in policymaking and the politics involved.
At the beginning of 2018, one of the biggest policy areas under consideration by Congress and the president was immigration policy and specifically how to deal with people who were brought illegally to the United States as children. These individuals are commonly known as “Dreamers,” after legislation that was proposed to address the issue—the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act, or DREAM Act. In 2014, then president Barack Obama signed an executive order giving legal protection to children who were brought to the United States illegally by their parents, often called Dreamers. With many calling such an order unconstitutional, President Donald Trump rescinded the order in September 2017, calling on Congress to come up with a permanent legislative solution. In January 2018, after months of negotiating with no solution, congressional Democrats refused to vote on a short-term continuing resolution to continue funding the government without a deal on Dreamers, thereby shutting it down for three days, in order to push the issue of DACA, or the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. In this instance, Democrats utilized their leverage in the Senate to force Republicans to finalize a policy that could be passed and adopted by Congress. Portrayed in the media, the issue has become embroiled in repeated recriminations between Democrats and President Trump, strong language, and tough negotiations. However, all of this obscures different analytical tools that political scientists use to examine the politics of policy areas like immigration.
While DACA and Dreamers deals with a small slice of immigration policy, a basic conundrum is why the United States has not been able to engage in comprehensive immigration reform for over two decades despite several tries in the US Congress. This chapter introduces some of the many ways through which political scientists may attempt to answer such a question. Why has it gotten stuck in the policy formulation and adoption stages? What actors are involved, and what do they want out of immigration policy? How does immigration policy compare with other policy areas in terms of achievement or even difficulty? In attempting to answer these questions, political scientists can begin to understand the policy dynamics of immigration specifically and public policy in general.
Looking at the immigration debates of early 2018, most of the attention has been devoted to the roles of the president and Congress. However, other actors are equally involved in the setting and carrying out of policy—in particular, bureaucracies like the Department of Homeland Security, whi ...
Chapter Objectives1. Identify the stages of the policymaking pro.docxspoonerneddy
Chapter Objectives
1. Identify the stages of the policymaking process.
2. Compare patterns of policy change, specifically budgetary incrementalism and punctuated equilibrium.
3. Discuss the various actors involved in making public policy and the different types of policy.
4. Examine the role of bureaucracies in policymaking and the politics involved.
At the beginning of 2018, one of the biggest policy areas under consideration by Congress and the president was immigration policy and specifically how to deal with people who were brought illegally to the United States as children. These individuals are commonly known as “Dreamers,” after legislation that was proposed to address the issue—the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act, or DREAM Act. In 2014, then president Barack Obama signed an executive order giving legal protection to children who were brought to the United States illegally by their parents, often called Dreamers. With many calling such an order unconstitutional, President Donald Trump rescinded the order in September 2017, calling on Congress to come up with a permanent legislative solution. In January 2018, after months of negotiating with no solution, congressional Democrats refused to vote on a short-term continuing resolution to continue funding the government without a deal on Dreamers, thereby shutting it down for three days, in order to push the issue of DACA, or the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. In this instance, Democrats utilized their leverage in the Senate to force Republicans to finalize a policy that could be passed and adopted by Congress. Portrayed in the media, the issue has become embroiled in repeated recriminations between Democrats and President Trump, strong language, and tough negotiations. However, all of this obscures different analytical tools that political scientists use to examine the politics of policy areas like immigration.
While DACA and Dreamers deals with a small slice of immigration policy, a basic conundrum is why the United States has not been able to engage in comprehensive immigration reform for over two decades despite several tries in the US Congress. This chapter introduces some of the many ways through which political scientists may attempt to answer such a question. Why has it gotten stuck in the policy formulation and adoption stages? What actors are involved, and what do they want out of immigration policy? How does immigration policy compare with other policy areas in terms of achievement or even difficulty? In attempting to answer these questions, political scientists can begin to understand the policy dynamics of immigration specifically and public policy in general.
Looking at the immigration debates of early 2018, most of the attention has been devoted to the roles of the president and Congress. However, other actors are equally involved in the setting and carrying out of policy—in particular, bureaucracies like the Department of Homeland Security, whi.
Group Theory : Public Policy
Procedural Public Policy Essay
Roles Of Public And Public Policy
Public Policy Process
Essay on The Creation of Public Policy
Stakeholders In Public Policy Essay
Political Power And Public Policy
Public Policy Controversy
Climate Change and Public Policy Essay examples
Public Policy Analysis: Gun Control Essay
Essay On Public Policy
Public Policy Essay
Essay on Public Policy and Administration
Public Policy Importance
Politics And Public Policy Essay
Major Public Policy Issues In The United States
Critical Analysis
Women s Rights : Women And Public Policy
Public Policy Essay : Drug Policy
Slide 7 WestCal Political Science 1 - US Government 2015-2016WestCal Academy
American Leadership Policy Studies (ALPS) is a for-college credit certificate program that teaches the fundamentals of American government. ALPS includes a custom tailored Political Science 1 – US Government course taught in partnership with accredited colleges to assure students receive college credit. The class is taught from the perspective of industry professionals who work in local/state/federal bureaucracies and/or political/union campaigns. This course program may operate at the site of a partnering college or instructor of record who licenses ALPS course materials from WestCal Academy or at WestCal Academy’s main campus in partnership with an accredited college. WestCal Academy
This slide covers the following:
1. Bureaucratic Power
2. Iron Triangles
3. Presidential Control Of The Bureaucracy
4. Congress And Its Members
5. Congress Versus The Executive Branch
6. Supreme Court
7. Legitimacy Factor In Law Making
8. Federal Court Structure
9. Elite Propaganda & Cinemocracy
10. Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense”
Rural Minnesota is losing it's voice. That's the conclusion of a study where researchers talked to 50 prominent Minnesota decision makers and surveyed 120+ more. Due to a combination of reasons, the state's rural population is becoming increasingly left out and left behind on the discussions that affect our everyday lives. Read on to find out what people are saying and how they think the issue can be resolved.
Carrots or Sticks: The Choice and Impact of EU Democratic Sanctions and AidPaulina Pospieszna
Both the provision of democracy aid and the imposition of sanctions are tools to promote
democracy. Yet, it is unclear under which conditions states choose to set positive or negative
incentives. In order to answer which tool—democracy aid or democratic sanctions—is more
effective, one has to analyse the actual form of the provision of aid. Sanctions and democracy aid
can also be employed at the same time. The goal of this study is to determine their joint effect on
democratization in recipient countries. We argue that sending civil society aid or democracy aid
channeled through NGOs and the civil society when sanctions are in place, enhances the
effectiveness of sanctions as a democracy promotion tool because the civil society can be
empowered to introduce democratic changes in its country—so additionally to the top-down
pressure created by sanctions, there is bottom-up pressure exerted by the civil society. Our results
suggest that democratic sanctions are more likely to be successful if democracy aid bypasses the
government in a target state. Conversely, other forms of aid provision tend to decrease the
effectiveness of sanctions. In order to precisely explain the joint impact of positive and negative
incentives on democratization, we employ a new comprehensive dataset on economic sanctions
for the period between 1989 and 2015 which integrates and updates the Threats and Imposition of
Economic Sanctions and the GIGA sanctions data sets, merged with disaggregated OECD aid data
and V-Dem as well as PolityIV democracy scores.
Informed Citizen Akron #2: Improving Candidate-Focused Media Coverage in the ...Jefferson Center
Following the momentum of the first Informed Citizen Akron, 18 Akron-area residents continued to learn from media experts, to deliberate, and to generate recommendations for how local and Ohio-based media partners can improve issue-based coverage during the 2016 presidential election.
The Problems Associated with Political Campaign Persuasion through Propaganda...ijtsrd
The research article is based on the problems that are related to psychological facts in political campaigns. It explained the problems and challenges with the political campaign due to the psychological effect on the national election. National elections are not based on democratic principles as some different factors and variables could put influence on the choice of voters and due to which selection of a candidate might not according to the choice of an individual. It could also have to face different kinds of problems that are related to political campaigns. It is psychological fact that voters expect from the political bodies to give better performance and also select the leader according to the abilities but some factors influence their willingness and it could result in different problems therefore propagandas of political campaigns are also considered important to in political campaigns. Prof. Lawrence Lowell "The Problems Associated with Political Campaign Persuasion through Propaganda and its’ Psychological Effects on National Election" Published in International Journal of Trend in Scientific Research and Development (ijtsrd), ISSN: 2456-6470, Volume-5 | Issue-1 , December 2020, URL: https://www.ijtsrd.com/papers/ijtsrd35760.pdf Paper URL : https://www.ijtsrd.com/management/other/35760/the-problems-associated-with-political-campaign-persuasion-through-propaganda-and-its’-psychological-effects-on-national-election/prof-lawrence-lowell
Through content analysis of their coverage on a large-scale media event, this paper examines the difference of agendas set by traditional media (represented by newspapers) and new media (represented by micro-blogs) in China. The results show that the agendas discussed by the Chinese people on micro-blogs are not significantly influenced by newspapers. In terms of the topics of the news, newspapers are more concerned with the Chinese economy and people's livelihood while micro-blogs are more concerned with political and legal reforms in China. As for media tone, newspapers are more likely to cover the event positively while micro-blogs tend to be negative. These findings that the Chinese government may be incapable of exercising their traditionally strong media agenda influence over newer digital media suggest that Chinese citizens, or netizens, may enjoy more freedom of speech in micro-blogging.
Zhang, G., Bowman, N. D., Shao, G., & Guan, D. (2015, May). “The people dissent, or The People’s consent?” Comparing news agendas of traditional and new media surrounding a large-scale Chinese political event. Paper presented at the International Communication Association, Puerto Rico.
Chapter Objectives1. Identify the stages of the policymaking pro.docxmccormicknadine86
Chapter Objectives
1. Identify the stages of the policymaking process.
2. Compare patterns of policy change, specifically budgetary incrementalism and punctuated equilibrium.
3. Discuss the various actors involved in making public policy and the different types of policy.
4. Examine the role of bureaucracies in policymaking and the politics involved.
At the beginning of 2018, one of the biggest policy areas under consideration by Congress and the president was immigration policy and specifically how to deal with people who were brought illegally to the United States as children. These individuals are commonly known as “Dreamers,” after legislation that was proposed to address the issue—the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act, or DREAM Act. In 2014, then president Barack Obama signed an executive order giving legal protection to children who were brought to the United States illegally by their parents, often called Dreamers. With many calling such an order unconstitutional, President Donald Trump rescinded the order in September 2017, calling on Congress to come up with a permanent legislative solution. In January 2018, after months of negotiating with no solution, congressional Democrats refused to vote on a short-term continuing resolution to continue funding the government without a deal on Dreamers, thereby shutting it down for three days, in order to push the issue of DACA, or the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. In this instance, Democrats utilized their leverage in the Senate to force Republicans to finalize a policy that could be passed and adopted by Congress. Portrayed in the media, the issue has become embroiled in repeated recriminations between Democrats and President Trump, strong language, and tough negotiations. However, all of this obscures different analytical tools that political scientists use to examine the politics of policy areas like immigration.
While DACA and Dreamers deals with a small slice of immigration policy, a basic conundrum is why the United States has not been able to engage in comprehensive immigration reform for over two decades despite several tries in the US Congress. This chapter introduces some of the many ways through which political scientists may attempt to answer such a question. Why has it gotten stuck in the policy formulation and adoption stages? What actors are involved, and what do they want out of immigration policy? How does immigration policy compare with other policy areas in terms of achievement or even difficulty? In attempting to answer these questions, political scientists can begin to understand the policy dynamics of immigration specifically and public policy in general.
Looking at the immigration debates of early 2018, most of the attention has been devoted to the roles of the president and Congress. However, other actors are equally involved in the setting and carrying out of policy—in particular, bureaucracies like the Department of Homeland Security, whi ...
Chapter Objectives1. Identify the stages of the policymaking pro.docxspoonerneddy
Chapter Objectives
1. Identify the stages of the policymaking process.
2. Compare patterns of policy change, specifically budgetary incrementalism and punctuated equilibrium.
3. Discuss the various actors involved in making public policy and the different types of policy.
4. Examine the role of bureaucracies in policymaking and the politics involved.
At the beginning of 2018, one of the biggest policy areas under consideration by Congress and the president was immigration policy and specifically how to deal with people who were brought illegally to the United States as children. These individuals are commonly known as “Dreamers,” after legislation that was proposed to address the issue—the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act, or DREAM Act. In 2014, then president Barack Obama signed an executive order giving legal protection to children who were brought to the United States illegally by their parents, often called Dreamers. With many calling such an order unconstitutional, President Donald Trump rescinded the order in September 2017, calling on Congress to come up with a permanent legislative solution. In January 2018, after months of negotiating with no solution, congressional Democrats refused to vote on a short-term continuing resolution to continue funding the government without a deal on Dreamers, thereby shutting it down for three days, in order to push the issue of DACA, or the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. In this instance, Democrats utilized their leverage in the Senate to force Republicans to finalize a policy that could be passed and adopted by Congress. Portrayed in the media, the issue has become embroiled in repeated recriminations between Democrats and President Trump, strong language, and tough negotiations. However, all of this obscures different analytical tools that political scientists use to examine the politics of policy areas like immigration.
While DACA and Dreamers deals with a small slice of immigration policy, a basic conundrum is why the United States has not been able to engage in comprehensive immigration reform for over two decades despite several tries in the US Congress. This chapter introduces some of the many ways through which political scientists may attempt to answer such a question. Why has it gotten stuck in the policy formulation and adoption stages? What actors are involved, and what do they want out of immigration policy? How does immigration policy compare with other policy areas in terms of achievement or even difficulty? In attempting to answer these questions, political scientists can begin to understand the policy dynamics of immigration specifically and public policy in general.
Looking at the immigration debates of early 2018, most of the attention has been devoted to the roles of the president and Congress. However, other actors are equally involved in the setting and carrying out of policy—in particular, bureaucracies like the Department of Homeland Security, whi.
Group Theory : Public Policy
Procedural Public Policy Essay
Roles Of Public And Public Policy
Public Policy Process
Essay on The Creation of Public Policy
Stakeholders In Public Policy Essay
Political Power And Public Policy
Public Policy Controversy
Climate Change and Public Policy Essay examples
Public Policy Analysis: Gun Control Essay
Essay On Public Policy
Public Policy Essay
Essay on Public Policy and Administration
Public Policy Importance
Politics And Public Policy Essay
Major Public Policy Issues In The United States
Critical Analysis
Women s Rights : Women And Public Policy
Public Policy Essay : Drug Policy
The Relationship Between Mass Media and Politics.pdfBenedictCusack
In today's society, the role of mass media in politics is undeniable. Mass media has a significant impact on the way politics is conducted, from the way news is reported to the messages that are sent through social media. To comprehend the relationship between mass media and politics, it is crucial to understand its role. This blog post explores the effect of mass media on the way people think and communicate, and how it influences politics and our lives.
Running head EFFECT OF THE MEDIA ON POLITICS1EFFECT OF THE .docxtodd271
Running head: EFFECT OF THE MEDIA ON POLITICS 1
EFFECT OF THE MEDIA ON POLITICS 6
Effects of the media on politics
Name:
Course:
Instructor’s Name:
Date:
Effects of the Media on Politics
The media, through its primary role in communication, has always been at the heart of American society. Technological advancements in the recent past have changed how people consume information, increasing the accessibility to the media. One of the aspects of American society that has been impacted by the more accessible media is American politics. The media is now more visible in the political scene. For instance, according to a research by the Pew Research Center on the primary source of political information in the 2016 American Presidential elections, researchers found that 24% of the Americans that learned about the elections did so from cable news, 14% from local TV, 14% from social media, 13% from news websites/apps and 10% from network nightly news (Mitchell et al., 2016). In contrast, only 1% of the American voters relied on the candidate’s or campaign website (Mitchell et al., 2016). Therefore, the different streams of media are the primary source of information in the American political scene.
The primacy of the media as a source of political information comes with a range of both positive and negative impacts. This study examines the role that the media plays in American politics by asking the question; what is the utility of the media in American politics? This research shows that the media has significant positive and negative effects on the political discourse, political reputation, and political participation, but the opportunities for benefits seem to be outweighed by the potential for harm. While the media enriches the political discourse through fact-checking, builds a political reputation by connecting the politicians to their constituents and energizes democracy by stimulating political participation, it also has a polarizing effect on the political discourse, can be used for character assassination through fake news, and robs its users of the time they would have used to participate in the political process.
Literature Review
Effect of the media on political discourse
Scholars studying the role of the media in politics are divided about the value that the media brings to the political discourse in American politics. On one side, there are those that claim that the media has the overall effect of enriching the political discourse in American politics. One of the dominant views among scholars that subscribe to this position is that the media acts as a referee for the participants in the political discourse (including other media outlets) and keeps them accountable. In “The Effect of Fact-Checking on Elites: A Field Experiment on U.S. State Legislators,” Brendan Nyhan and Jason Reifler (2015) argue that the political discourse in a democratic society is enriched by the fact-checking practice of the media outlets. In a nutshell.
Dissection 1As technology continues to develop and advance, we are.docxlefrancoishazlett
Dissection 1
As technology continues to develop and advance, we are exposed to greater impacts on everyday life. This holds true especially for advances in media technology. The media is a universal aspect of life on a day to day basis. A time when it really becomes prevalent is in regards to government and political information. The Internet has become an important tool for people around the world to not only gain political knowledge, but to engage themselves in the political process itself. Some scholars suggest that this may "revitalize democratic society, enabling citizens to command the political and economic resources needed to become effectively self-governing" (Winner, 2003,p. 167). I use this reference to express just how times have changed because of this social networking medium. The idea that the Internet may create a shift in how certain people view democracy is not a new one. The revolutions of the newspaper, radio, and television each raised the same questions. Certain media sites share news from a conservative perspective while others are more liberal, and this is an ongoing debate in society, is there such a thing being able to learn about a situation, without having your views challenged, or have reassurance that you are right in how you see our current situation. My point being, it is difficult to find different issues than those in previous posts have discussed, because other than a few controversies different media outlets, report on what they feel is important, making it hard to establish what really is a problem or important.
Multiple media sites such as; CNN, NY magazine, Whitehouse.gov, bbc, MSNBC, FOX and CBS to name a few outlets have covered heightened controversial issues such as the enforcement on immigration (Travel ban), retracting the Affordable Care Act, interrogation techniques, border patrol, building and funding of a wall, to name a few. When we read the news, it feels like literally the only thing ever being spoken about are the horrible things happening in this world. But when it comes to politics, why do media outlets pick and choose what to speak about. Take CNN and ABC, at one point, prior to FOX news surpassing other media reporters in ratings, had the biggest audiences, however, according to business insider, they also were also not the most trusted in America. Conservative leaning outlets seem to be the least trusted, yet liberal outlets also, ranked lower than Wall Street journal and NY times. Once a media outlet establishes who their audience is, they can then adjust what content they will focus on because that is how you keep people coming back for more, how you can relate to them.
Pal discusses criteria related to that of implementation and how certain indicators can be used to determine whether a policy can actually be successful, depending on administration standards, and provided that these new policies are free of conflict, no external constraints, valid theory and any misco.
Comment pol-04 ( add 5)So if the time of the Members gets more and.docxclarebernice
Comment pol-04 ( add 5)So if the time of the Members gets more and more reduced by fundraising duties, does the power shift to the full-time staff? Any thoughts?
Response one pol-04
As we begin our focus on Congress in this class, I find it to be interesting timing. Many of the categories discussed in this week’s lesson are happening right in front of us. I could not help but have examples streaming through my head while reading this week’s lesson and assigned reading. Possible the most interesting category was plebiscitary politics. I say this due to all of the direct contact politicians from Congress are having with the American people. Last night I just began flipping through the news outlets on television and every show had at least one sitting member of congress on the show. Then I searched a few popular political hashtags on twitter and it was filled with congressional members’ accounts. As posed in this week’s lesson, is all of this “camera time” causing things in Congress to be at a stalemate? No more is it the compromising body (Grulke, 2018). I feel that this is an area where things could be genuinely discussed and debated between Congress and constituents, however the constant state of campaigning (which is another category but I believe these two are linked) does not lend the interaction to be genuine and mutually beneficial, rather it is used to maintain and garner more votes. Much like how town hall meetings were used before the age of 24 hour news and social media, politicians have the ability and opportunity to reach out to more people than ever before through these “tools”; I just do not believe they are using them properly, rather just for self-gain.
As I mentioned above, I believe the categories plebiscitary politics and governing as campaigning have become intrinsically linked. The constant state of campaigning by congressional members, specifically in the House of Representatives, means less time actually governing (Grulke, 2018). Utilizing the “tools” mention above in the plebiscitary category, members are always seeking more contributions from donors and making sure they are saying whatever they need to, to achieve more votes; not focused on making the best decisions for the majority or protecting the minority. With the having a two year term cycle for members of the House, the minute they have secured another term they are out campaigning immediately for the next election. That is just ludicrous! I do not believe in “career” politicians, especially in the House of Representatives since the Framer’s intended the House to be comprised of the “common citizen”. Perhaps it is time to impose term limits for members of Congress? You get two years to work to make a difference, that is it; make those two years count! Having term limits would also allow for more citizens to be in Congress, mixing it up (Morgan, 2017). This way there is more diversity working its way through congress, not just attorneys and wealthy business peop ...
IntroductionAccording to Robert E. Dento and Gray C. Woodward.docxnormanibarber20063
Introduction
According to Robert E. Dento and Gray C. Woodward (1998), two of the most famous contributor to the political communication studies in America, said that political communication mainly refers the way in which senders to transfer the political messages to the receivers. The methods of sending the message, which will effect a region’s political environment, normally include political speeches, news media coverage, and ordinary citizen’s talk. The concentrations usually focus on the discussions of who has the authority to sanction, to allocation of public resources, who has the authority to make decision, as well as social meaning like what makes someone an American. As a result, it is obviously to see that the nature of political communication is not only the source of a message, but it is the transformation of political content and purpose to citizens. Therefore, the purpose of political communication strategy can be defined as to influence public knowledge, beliefs, and action on political matter. (McNair B, 2003)
However, due to the progress of Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) in the 20th century, the traditional mass media, which includes TV shows, newspapers and magazines, and radio, is losing its place to the latest type of media, such as the Internet and real-time communication tools in the area of political communication. For example, in February, 2011, the Americans had closed the video station, the ‘ Voice of America’, which has been conducted for more than half century. It used to be regarded as a powerful mass media in political communication tool. But, does it mean that the American government has weakened its use of mass media in political communication? The answer is no. When the announcement of shutting down the ‘Voice of America’, Hillary Clinton, the Secretary of State, has given a freestyle presentation at George Washington University, and it was published on the Internet, synchronously. the event itself indicates that the American government has realized that the powerful capability of newly mass media. (Platform Magazine, 2015) and the government is getting ready to use this tool to reinforce it political status.
Consequently, this essay will discuss how the new mass media affects American political communication strategy in election, as well as the practice of strategies. At the same time, the three discussion points will be analyzed in the following part.
The characteristics of newly mass media in Election
The concept relates to the emergence of ‘newly mass media’ results form the development of ICTs. The ICTs enables some real-time communication tool, such as Facebook, Twitter and Youtube, to become a critical platform for citizens to express their political issues. Consequently, as a government, which is famous by its democratic social media, it was announced by Hillary that the US would spend 2.5 billion in the enhancement of “internet democracy”. Thus, the year of 2011 is regarded as .
Public Choice. Political economic digest series - 5 Akash Shrestha
In this series we’ll be discussing about Public Choice. Public Choice Theory is directed toward the study of politics based on ecomonic principles. We generally, tend to think that politicians and government officials are benevolent “public servants” who faithfully carry out the “will of the people.” In tending to the public’s business, voters, politicians, and policymakers are supposed somehow to rise above their own self-interests. However it is not true at all.
The presentation is a simple breakdown of the theory with examples from an Indian as well as international Media context. The intent of the same is to understand the theory with real life instances of where it is used.
हम आग्रह करते हैं कि जो भी सत्ता में आए, वह संविधान का पालन करे, उसकी रक्षा करे और उसे बनाए रखे।" प्रस्ताव में कुल तीन प्रमुख हस्तक्षेप और उनके तंत्र भी प्रस्तुत किए गए। पहला हस्तक्षेप स्वतंत्र मीडिया को प्रोत्साहित करके, वास्तविकता पर आधारित काउंटर नैरेटिव का निर्माण करके और सत्तारूढ़ सरकार द्वारा नियोजित मनोवैज्ञानिक हेरफेर की रणनीति का मुकाबला करके लोगों द्वारा निर्धारित कथा को बनाए रखना और उस पर कार्यकरना था।
In a May 9, 2024 paper, Juri Opitz from the University of Zurich, along with Shira Wein and Nathan Schneider form Georgetown University, discussed the importance of linguistic expertise in natural language processing (NLP) in an era dominated by large language models (LLMs).
The authors explained that while machine translation (MT) previously relied heavily on linguists, the landscape has shifted. “Linguistics is no longer front and center in the way we build NLP systems,” they said. With the emergence of LLMs, which can generate fluent text without the need for specialized modules to handle grammar or semantic coherence, the need for linguistic expertise in NLP is being questioned.
01062024_First India Newspaper Jaipur.pdfFIRST INDIA
Find Latest India News and Breaking News these days from India on Politics, Business, Entertainment, Technology, Sports, Lifestyle and Coronavirus News in India and the world over that you can't miss. For real time update Visit our social media handle. Read First India NewsPaper in your morning replace. Visit First India.
CLICK:- https://firstindia.co.in/
#First_India_NewsPaper
role of women and girls in various terror groupssadiakorobi2
Women have three distinct types of involvement: direct involvement in terrorist acts; enabling of others to commit such acts; and facilitating the disengagement of others from violent or extremist groups.
03062024_First India Newspaper Jaipur.pdfFIRST INDIA
Find Latest India News and Breaking News these days from India on Politics, Business, Entertainment, Technology, Sports, Lifestyle and Coronavirus News in India and the world over that you can't miss. For real time update Visit our social media handle. Read First India NewsPaper in your morning replace. Visit First India.
CLICK:- https://firstindia.co.in/
#First_India_NewsPaper
‘वोटर्स विल मस्ट प्रीवेल’ (मतदाताओं को जीतना होगा) अभियान द्वारा जारी हेल्पलाइन नंबर, 4 जून को सुबह 7 बजे से दोपहर 12 बजे तक मतगणना प्रक्रिया में कहीं भी किसी भी तरह के उल्लंघन की रिपोर्ट करने के लिए खुला रहेगा।
31052024_First India Newspaper Jaipur.pdfFIRST INDIA
Find Latest India News and Breaking News these days from India on Politics, Business, Entertainment, Technology, Sports, Lifestyle and Coronavirus News in India and the world over that you can't miss. For real time update Visit our social media handle. Read First India NewsPaper in your morning replace. Visit First India.
CLICK:- https://firstindia.co.in/
#First_India_NewsPaper
1. Kohler 1
Christina Kohler
31 March, 2016
The Media Driven Political Agenda
A primary feature of the United States Congress and state legislatures is the power to
establish the political agenda and make imperative public policy decisions. While multiple
factors affect legislative agenda building, such as personal preferences and partisan pressures, the
mass media and their link to constituents are becoming a vital influence on the behavior of
legislators. The media landscape is changing and news is spreading faster and reaching far more
people than ever before. Media have always participated in politics; however, the first thought
regarding media and politics is less about media affecting the agenda, but rather about media’s
portrayal of politicians in Congress and state legislatures. Another approach should be examined:
how mass media are indirectly affecting legislators and their decision-making. As mass media
communicate news to the public, they affect the public opinion of constituents, which tends to
lead to mass hysteria about a salient issue. As a result, the changing attitudes of constituents due
to media’s representation of an issue, puts pressure on their representatives in Congress and state
legislatures to go into action and influence the public policy agenda to please their constituents.
Prior to examining the role media play in legislative public policy making, the legislative
agenda process and the significance of legislative responsiveness in regard to constituents is
necessary to understand. Following these assessments will be an analysis of literature relating to
the field of media and its effect on the public and behavior of legislators. To what extend the
media impact legislative decisions is hard to numerically measure; however, the following
analysis of the hypothesis that a causal link exists between media, constituencies and legislators,
should confirm that the link is in fact largely present in today’s politics.
2. Kohler 2
Firstly, knowing what the political agenda is in the legislative branch is crucial to
comprehending the connection between media and the actions of legislators. In terms of this
entire analysis, the agenda in Congress and state legislatures will include determining what goes
on the agenda and how the legislators vote for specific policies on the agenda. According to John
Kingdon in his book Agendas, Alternatives, and Public Policies, public policy making is
comprised of a “set of processes,” which include, setting the agenda, specifying alternatives from
which legislators choose from, making an “authoritative choice,” as in a “legislative vote,” and
then implementing the decision (1995, p. 2-3). Kingdon gives a simple definition of
governmental agenda: “list of subjects to which officials are paying some serious attention at any
given time” (1995, p.196). The process of agenda setting narrows the list of subjects legislators
wish to focus on.
According to Kingdon, a reason exists for why some policies become more prominent on
the agenda and why some alternatives are considered more than others (1995, p. 3). Having
alternatives on the agenda, from which a choice is made, requires that a certain factor must
influence a legislator’s decision. These factors can be collective and numerous for a certain issue
on an agenda. Specific policies and problems “occupy the attention of governmental officials”
because officials learn about certain conditions and these conditions become defined through
some means (Kingdon, 1995, p. 197). As it is discussed later, as problems are defined and
learned about, and while other influential factors remain prevalent, the news media stand out
among the influences; the media spread news to the public and legislators, which allows a
condition to become a problem. The media build on a condition of a public issue or concern and
will define that condition for the public.
3. Kohler 3
Secondly, after learning about agenda setting in American politics, studying the
relationship between legislators and their constituency is useful. Constituents are the link
connecting media and congressmen. Although media reach both the public and governmental
officials, the hypothesis focuses on the news media affecting constituents first, which then puts
pressure on legislators. In the United States citizens elect those who will represent them in the
legislature. As a consequence, a legislator tends to care about those who elect him or her,
especially for reelection purposes. In his book Congressmen’s Voting Decisions, Kingdon states
that the constituency is the “only action in the political system to which the congressman is
ultimately accountable” (1992, p. 29). Kingdon considers constituency to be the second most
important influence on legislative voting decisions after fellow congressmen, and sometimes
nearly as important as congressmen (1992, p. 22). Because constituents are a primary influence,
legislators are concerned about the public opinion and attitudes about certain issues on the
agenda.
Constituents may feel strongly about a topic in the news. In response, legislators will play
the role as delegate and “behave in accordance with the wishes of constituents” (Smith et al.,
2015, p. 101). Sometimes it is hard to act as a delegate, when the constituency lacks information
about a topic or if the legislator doesn’t know the majority opinion on an issue. In this case, the
salience of the issue is most likely low and the average person in the constituency doesn’t care
about the outcome. The legislator will act on his or her own judgment and vote how they want.
However, it is often time the case that constituents will reach out to members of Congress or
state legislatures about a certain issue they feel strongly about, once it comes to their attention.
This is direct communication, which is often in the form of mail. The significance of direct
communication from constituents is its use as an attention getter. Problems a congressman might
4. Kohler 4
not be aware of or might be aware of but weren’t “placed in the forefront of his thinking, are
brought to his attention by mail” (Kingdon, 1992, p.55). Now certain problems are brought to a
policy maker’s mind and may be added or taken from the agenda. Direct communication also lets
a legislator know how the constituents think about a certain issue and the intensity of that issue
(Kingdon, 1992, p.55-56). As a result a legislator can act more as a delegate and vote according
to the constituent’s wishes. This is the fundamental link between constituents and legislators.
Public opinion becomes a large matter for legislator decision-making. Even though
legislators will never be able to please everyone in their constituency, as media affect a
constituency and constituents communicate directly with their representatives, legislators will try
vote according to the popular wants and beliefs. According to the book, Agendas, Alternatives,
and Public Policies, public opinion might push items on the legislative agenda “because the vast
number of people interested in the issue would make it popular for vote-seeking politicians”
(Kingdon, 1995, p. 65). Public opinion is an important part of the agenda setting process. It may
direct the government to do something, “but it more often constrains government from doing
something” (Kingdom, 1995, p.65). This establishes the importance of public opinion among
constituencies of state and federal legislators. And how does strong public opinion regarding a
certain issue arise?
Thirdly, with everything that has been said above, it will make sense incorporating the
involvement of media. Kingdon states in, Agendas, Alternatives, and Public Policies that other
scholars have learned that, “the mass public’s attention to governmental issues tracks rather
closely on media coverage of those issues” (1995, p. 57). This can be applied to the
government’s political agenda. In the book, Politics and Public Policy, the authors write, “shifts
in public support for government policies, often stimulated by media coverage, have brought
5. Kohler 5
about important changes” (VanHorn et al., 1992, p. 240). Media’s role has been prevalent in the
past. For example, coverage of the Vietnam War led to mass public hysteria about America’s
involvement, which led to the public’s desire for new governmental policies (VanHorn et al.,
1992, p. 240). Although, that is an extreme example, media coverage is currently influencing
changes in government policy because of an increase in the spread of news to the public through
a variety of mediums.
Reading the literature about the influence of media on the legislative agenda, two major
characteristics stand out; one is the saliency that arises about a particular issue because of the
media and the frequency of presenting that issue to the public. The second characteristic, and the
one that the case studies below will represent, is the bias of the news media and the message that
the media aim at the public. Although media have the power to accomplish these two points, new
media involving online videos and stories, as well as social media, are increasing the
involvement of media in the public and therefore, increasing the pressure that the public will
eventually place on legislators in Congress and state legislatures.
Firstly, a point made in much of the media literature is the frequency as issue is reported
to the public and thus the development of saliency of certain policies. Briefly mentioned earlier,
intensity of public opinion and the saliency of an issue are important factors for legislators to
consider when voting. According to the political journal, Front-Page News and Real-World
Cues: A New Look at Agenda-Setting by the Media, one aspect of the “political agenda” are the
“issues, which reflect the concerns of a large proportion of the general public” (Erbring et al.,
1980, p. 16-17). The importance of saliency is that if an issue on the agenda is a salient one in
the eyes of constituents, legislators will tend to vote in favor of his or her constituents, or
otherwise, run the risk of losing favor with their constituency. Saliency can arise from a number
6. Kohler 6
of factors, such as the people’s problems relating to policy matters, the problem itself inevitably
making itself known, interest groups in efforts to persuade the public, or simply politicians
informing the public about it. The political journal mentioned above mentions these other
factors, including “real-world conditions” or “personal experiences” (Erbring et al., 1980, p. 18).
However, with its own separate agenda, another factor is the mass media, as they spread the
news of a particular issue over multiple platforms and increases the number of times the public
sees a particular issue in the news. Thus, the public naturally places importance on that issue and
establishes a need for it to be on the policy agenda in government.
The high frequency of specific issues appearing in the news builds on the saliency of
those issues. According to the political journal, Front-Page News and Real-World Cues: A New
Look at Agenda-Setting by the Media, constituents in the public will may attention to information
that “they anticipate will be relevant, casually bypassing or forgetting that which is not” (Erbring
et al., 1980, p. 28). The media play a psychological affect on members of the voting public.
Personal relevance to a current policy issue, for example, healthcare, will psychologically force
certain individuals to pay attention to the media coverage that is relevant to them, i.e. healthcare
coverage, or otherwise ignore the media coverage if it does not apply. The high frequency that an
issue, such as healthcare, could be played over the media, would potentially affect the
importance the public places on the policy issue. This leads to another point that as saliency
increases as a result of frequent media coverage, alternatives for legislators to consider will
appear on the agenda. According to the political journal, Front-Page News and Real-World
Cues: A New Look at Agenda-Setting by the Media, “Agenda-setting refers to the process by
which problems become salient as political issues around which policy alternative can be
7. Kohler 7
defined” (Erbring et al., 1980, p. 16-17). Many policies or alternatives regarding a specific issue
within healthcare could then be brought to the agenda for legislators to consider.
Other literature strengthens the argument that the mass media are among the factors
influencing constituency and their policy opinions. Much of the literature on this matter makes
the claim that saliency of matters become political and become part of setting the agenda. In the
academic journal, Media and Agenda Setting: Effects on the Public, Interest Group Leaders,
Policy Makers, and Policy, agenda setting is the “process by which problems become salient as
political issues meriting the attention of the polity” (Cook et al., 1983, p. 17). Media have the
power to change or shape attitudes and opinions of individuals and groups in the public. As a
result, their issue priorities will “shift” (p 17). How this is done is by the immediacy of news and
policy issues appearing in the media and quickly the news can spread to the public.
Secondly in the literature on media and Congress, once an issue is on the agenda and
policy alternatives exist, the next step is media’s development of public opinion about a specific
policy in the agenda. This is when the message and biasness of the media come into the picture.
The media’s message can either be frequently publicized over time or immediate, and will shape
public opinion based on the media’s angle of an issue. If they decide the matter is of great
priority to them, members of a legislator’s constituency will voice their opinion to their
representative, and he or she will act accordingly.
The authors of the academic journal, Media and Agenda Setting: Effects on the Public,
Interest Group Leaders, Policy Makers, and Policy, did a research study to see if the media do
have “agenda-setting capacity, i.e., an ability to influence judgments of issue importance” and
whether that does affect policy (Cook et al., 1983, p. 18). They assigned a sample of 150 people
to an experimental group and then 150 to a control group. Both groups were to watch two
8. Kohler 8
different news programs about fraud and abuse in home health care. One program showed the
“results of an extensive investigation of fraud and abuse in the federally funded home health care
program” while the other program did not go into detail (Cook et al., 1983, p. 19). Policy makers
in government were also part of the experiment. They were interviewed about their views on the
subject and on a variety of other social issues, their estimates of what the public things, and
whether they think policy action is necessary to help the problem of “inadequate home health
care” (Cook et al., 1983, p. 22). The data “strongly” suggest that the target program, the program
showing the fraud and abuse, did influence the issue’s importance in public’s opinion. The data
for the policy makers collected from interviews before and after the experiment, suggest no
difference exists between whether the governmental policy makers were exposed to the media
program or not. Either way the target program did alter their “perception of the issue’s
importance, their belief that policy action was necessary, and their perception of the public’s
view of issue importance” (Cook et al, 1983, p. 28). The results of the study are conclusive that
there is an influential power of the media in political agenda setting. The message of the
influential program was a negative one about the fraud in home healthcare. Most of those who
watched the negative details of this investigative expose developed strong feelings about the
issue and thus had a realization for the need for policy action in the legislature.
The bias of certain media groups on various media platforms causes a biased message to
reach the public, and causes hysteria about the issue. The recent case studies to be analyzed
represent the negative side of the media and how topics become critical issues in the public’s
eyes because the of stretched truth presented to them. The academic journal, The Influence of
News Media on Political Elites: Investigating Strategic Responsiveness in Congress, addresses
the theory that media may affect the behavior of member of Congress because of strategic
9. Kohler 9
responsiveness, meaning taking into account the constituents’ preferences about critical topics in
the current news. Martin Gilens, author of the book Affluence and Influence: Economic
Inequality and Political Power in America, members of Congress are more likely to listen to
their party early in a legislative term and are more likely to be “attentive to their constituents’
preferences as elections approach (as cited in Arceneaux et al., 2016, p. 5). As elections
approach, legislators are keen to make constituents happy and win their vote for reelection. The
authors theorize that the legislator’s do heed their constituents’ preferences, which the media
influences, and that this can especially be seen when an election period is near. “Elections keep
career minded politicians connected to those they represent” (Arceneaux et al., 2016, p. 6).
Regardless of the political context, the article makes it clear that members are more likely to
listen to the constituents when an issue is salient and the media help influence this. Legislators
often have a hard time knowing what their constituents’ preferences are because constituents
may not care as much about some issues on the agenda. Media also provide legislators with
information about what their constituents preferences are based on what they are watching or
reading in the news. Or otherwise, legislators get their information from the constituents
directly. The authors of the academic article write, “legislators are more likely to consider
constituent preferences when voters are paying attention” to the news (Arceneaux et al., 2016, p.
7).
Recently, news media have expanded due to technological advancements. James
Hamilton, author of the article “The Market and the Media” writes that now media companies
have the opportunity to “narrowcast” television content (as cited in Arceneaux et al., 2016, p. 7).
In the case of the journal, The Influence of News Media on Political Elites, television news media
have expanded and with that television news programs and channels based along partisan lines
10. Kohler 10
have emerged. Partisan news media create messages that strongly influence a viewer to think one
way about an issue. The authors specifically looked at Fox News to conduct research. Many
Americans are aware that Fox News offers a conservative view of current political issues.
Authors, Groseclose and Milyo, of the article “A Measure of Media Bias” wrote that Fox News
was the “first partisan network in the cable landscape, and it was rolled out incrementally across
local cable systems” (as cited in Arceneaux et al., 2016, p. 6). During this time Fox News wasn’t
nationally aired, so the researchers could measure more accurately the locations that did see it
and those that did not. The results of the study conducted with Fox News are as follows: of the
members of Congress that were from districts that shows Fox News, Democratic members had a
faster rate of declining partisanship than non-Fox News members, and Republican members had
an increasing rate of partisanship than non-Fox News Republicans who remained moderate
(Arceneaux et al., 2016, p. 15). These results prove that Fox News had power over the decisions
made in Congress. The constituencies that saw the news broadcast, whether they were
Republican or Democrat, shifted their views to a more conservative stance, which shifted their
representative’s views and consequently their actions in Congress. Since Fox News is a
conservative news network, the Republicans became more conservative while the Democrats
moved away from their liberal views to more conservative. Media have grown extensively since
this study because of the number of mediums that are now available and media’s political
influence has most likely grown as well.
Lastly, although the traditional print media are still influential in politics, in recent years
television, online, and even social media have advanced their political influence. Mentioned
above the television medium for news has expanded and now with far more news channels, more
individuals in legislator’s constituencies are exposed. Following television is the expanding
11. Kohler 11
influence of online media sources and even social media. The case studies below present data for
online media influence. Besides online, social media are becoming a fairly recent tool for
spreading news. Because this is the newest form of media involved in the political arena, it is not
yet a subject that has been thoroughly investigated. The academic article “The Impact of Twitter
Adoption on Decision Making in Politics” discusses a study conducted last year to prove that the
social networking service, Twitter, impacts voting behavior of Congressmen. The study
compared the differences in voting behavior before and after joining Twitter. The main finding
was that after the adoption of Twitter, the “political difference between Congressmen and the
constituent shrinks” (Mousavi & Gu, 2015, p. 4858). This means that as a result of Twitter and
its use to communicate information among the public, Congressmen learned more about their
constituency and shifted their voting behavior to match. More specifically it means that a
Congressman who was more conservative than their constituents, had a less conservative voting
behavior after the adoption of Twitter (Mousavi & Gu, 2015, p. 4861). The same goes for
Democrats and their liberal voting behavior in comparison with their less extreme constituency.
Social media are at the beginning of investigation so research is still limited. However, from this
study, researchers have learned that social media have an impact on voting behavior on policies
in Congress because of the affect it has on their constituency.
Finally, analyzing two recent case studies extends the research about media’s message
and it’s impact on the interest of the public and thus its impact on Congressmen and state
legislator’s agenda setting and voting behavior. The first case study is the release of the Planned
Parenthood videos. According to the Web-based research center, Media Matters for America, in
July 2015, Center for Medical Progress, a pro-life organization, released a series of videos,
which they secretly filmed in Planned Parenthood clinics. The videos claimed to show that
12. Kohler 12
Planned Parenthood employees were trying to sell fetal organs and other body parts. According
to Media Matters, the videos have been “deceptively edited” and the information is false and
Planned Parenthood had no wrongdoing (Power, 2015). When the videos were released, they
went viral on YouTube and other online networking sites, causing interest from the general
public to skyrocket. Figure 1 below represents the Google data collected from “Google Trends”
showing the frequency of people searching the term “Planned Parenthood Video” on the Internet.
The peak of interest takes place during the month of July when the videos were released.
Figure 1
After the release of these videos, during an interview with CQ Role Call, Representative
Tim Murphy, who is a member of the House Pro-Life Caucus, said he had seen the clip weeks
before. The interviewer asked why he and others waited until the week the videos came out to
“take action” (Khurshid, 2015). Murphy’s response was simply that he did not know and then
asked not to be quoted from the interview. Another Pro-Life Caucus Representative Trent Franks
of Arizona also said that he had seen the video a month before (Khurshid, 2015). Franks gave an
13. Kohler 13
evasive answer. However, with the videos released, and the public reacted, legislators took
action. In response to the videos and the public outcry, Senator Rand Paul introduced a bill to
basically defund Planned Parenthood. He wanted to “strip Planned Parenthood of the federal
dollars it receives annually” (Power, 2015).
This Planned Parenthood case gets to the point of this analysis of the media because from
interviews with Representatives in Congress, it is clear that lawmakers were not stimulated into
action when they had simply seen the videos. They acted once the videos not only reached the
public, but also caused a spike in the public’s interest. This could mean that Congressmen did not
have as much of an interest pursuing the matter because they believed the videos were false.
Once there was a media outcry then they were forced to react. Or it could mean that the
Congressmen intended to act but wanted to wait for a spike in interest to get enough momentum
behind their agenda. Either way, this case study proves that media’s message, in this case online
media, influenced public opinion about Planned Parenthood, who pressured their representatives
in Congress.
The second case study focuses on the Religious Freedom Restoration Act that was passed
in the legislature and then signed by Governor Mike Pence in Indiana in mid March 2015. This
study focuses on the outburst of media and the public as a result of the passing of the act. The act
states that a business can refuse to serve a gay couple because it’s their religious freedom. As a
result of the opposition outburst, legislators in Indiana’s state government worked on reforming
the newly passed act. According to the article, “Indian Gov. Mike Pence signs revised RFRA
bill,” the new version of the act was passed in both houses in the legislature after many “hours of
discussion” (Rader, 2015). Figure 2 shows the outburst after the bill was signed through the use
14. Kohler 14
of data from Internet searches. The outburst begins decreasing around the time the reformed bill
was signed at the beginning of April.
Figure 2
The unique characteristic of this case study is the use of social media, especially Twitter,
to spread the opposition about this bill. According to the article, “Internet Reacts to Indiana’s
New Religious Freedom’ Law,” the newly passed act has “quickly ricocheted to the top of
Internet chatter and is the focus of tweets and posts from a range of public figures” (Abramson,
2015). The use of this form of media connects regular people with the media. Legislators
respond simultaneously to the media and the constituents directly involved with the social media.
Also with the rise of social media more people become aware of the issue and react in the same
way. Mass hysteria about the issue result and legislators listen. This case study is another
example of the major impact media can have on legislator’s behavior in Congress and state
legislatures.
While there is strong reason to believe that media does have an indirect influence on
legislators through their constituencies, a few drawbacks exist that hinder this hypothesis.
15. Kohler 15
Mentioned briefly above, measuring the specific influence media has over legislators is difficult.
The authors of the journal, Front-Page News and Real-World Cues: A New Look at Agenda-
Setting by the Media, mention the difficulty to measure the distribution of media to the public
and the saliency the public places on issues (Erbring et al., 1980, p. 18). In addition to the
difficulty of measuring saliency, measuring to what extend legislators take media into
consideration is hard. Measuring this link from one issue or event to another may be the most
effective means to finding out media’s impact, like what was done with the case studies above.
However, this also may not be as accurate as a researcher might hope. Other factors such as
personal preferences, interest groups, and fellow congressmen are in the picture. Media’s
presence among these factors is there but to what extent is hard to determine.
In addition to the difficulty of measuring, the knowledge that media have other influential
factors in politics makes it difficult to differentiate between them for a specific issue. First of all
there may be a more direct approach between media and members of Congress, which
completely bypasses constituents. Legislators might only change their approach because they see
the media about an issue and their opinion changes as a result. This is a matter of personal
preferences, rather than constituency, in which members vote based on what they want to see on
the agenda. According to Media and Agenda Setting, in the study that was conducted using two
groups to watch two different news programs regarding abuse and fraud in home healthcare, the
researchers came to the conclusion that although members of the public were “aroused over the
expose” there was a chance they were skipped when influencing legislators (Cook et al., 1983, p.
32). The conclusion suggests that legislators are not aware of the problem until they see it in the
news and as a result change their voting behavior, regardless of what their constituents are
thinking.
16. Kohler 16
With everything mentioned above still in mind, the concluding thought is that the link
between media’s impact on constituents and legislator’s responsiveness to constituents is a
realistic and important link in legislative politics. Media have always had a role in the political
arena; however, to be more specific, this role takes advantage of the public’s opinion to affect the
voting behavior of legislators. From the research above, especially with the second case study, an
exciting discovery has been made regarding the new forms of media. Ordinary people in the
public have the power to be a part of the media through social media. Because of this new
development media and the constituents have converged and now legislators listen to both
simultaneously. Media has the power to strongly influence public opinion and the fact that this is
either a natural consequence of media or not is unclear. For the argument of this analysis, it is not
important. Although to what extent the hypothesis of this paper is true, the literature and research
used uphold the hypothesis that media can cause public interest of a topic to increase rapidly,
which has the power to change the way a legislator thinks about that topic in terms of policy
making and voting behavior.
17. Kohler 17
References
Abramson, A. (2015, March 30). Internet Reacts to Indiana's New 'Religious Freedom' Law.
Retrieved March 27, 2016, from http://abcnews.go.com/US/internet-reacts-indianas-
religious-freedom-law/story?id=30007776
Arceneaux, K., Johnson, M., Lindstädt, R. and Vander Wielen, R. J. (2016), The Influence of
News Media on Political Elites: Investigating Strategic Responsiveness in Congress.
American Journal of Political Science, 60(1), 5–15. doi: 10.1111/ajps.12171
Cook, F. L., Tyler, T. R., Goetz, E. G., Gordon, M. T., Protess, D., Leff, D. R., & Molotch, H.
L.. (1983). Media and Agenda Setting: Effects on the Public, Interest Group Leaders,
Policy Makers, and Policy. The Public Opinion Quarterly, 47(1), 16–32. Retrieved from
http://www.jstor.org/stable/2748703
Erbring, L., Goldenberg, E. N., & Miller, A. H.. (1980). Front-Page News and Real-World Cues:
A New Look at Agenda-Setting by the Media.American Journal of Political
Science, 24(1), 16–28. http://doi.org/10.2307/2110923
Google Trends. (n.d.). Retrieved March 26, 2016, from https://www.google.com/trends/
Khurshid, S. (2015, July 16). Lawmakers Knew About Planned Parenthood Video Weeks Ago
(Video). Retrieved March 26, 2016, from http://www.rollcall.com/218/interview-didnt-
happen/?dcz
Kingdon, J. W. (1995). Agendas, Alternatives, and Public Policies (2nd ed.). New York, NY:
Harper Collins College.
Kingdon book at home
Mousavi, R., & Gu, B. (2015). The Impact of Twitter Adoption on Decision Making in Politics.
2015 48th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, 4854-4861. Retrieved
18. Kohler 18
March 26, 2016, from
https://www.computer.org/csdl/proceedings/hicss/2015/7367/00/7367e854.pdf.
Power, L. (2015, July 23). How A Lie Becomes A Law: GOP Introduces Legislation To Defund
Planned Parenthood Based On Deceptively Edited Videos. Retrieved March 26, 2016,
from http://mediamatters.org/research/2015/07/23/how-a-lie-becomes-a-law-gop-
introduces-legislat/204559
Rader, K. (2015, April 01). Indiana Gov. Mike Pence Signs Revised RFRA Bill. Retrieved
March 27, 2016, from http://www.wthr.com/story/28698272/clock-is-ticking-on-rfra-
clarification-at-indiana-statehouse
Smith, S. S., Roberts, J. M., & Wielen, R. J. (2015). The American Congress (9th ed.).
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
VanHorn, C. E., Baumer, D. C., & Gormley, W. T., Jr. (1992). Politics & Public Policy.
Congressional Quarterly.