Communications Question

Tracing a Political Story

For the paper, you should begin by explaining the political “story” you have chosen. In a paragraph, sum up the details as objectively as possible. Next, highlight each of the political actors who played a major part in or offered an opinion on this event or story. Explain why they were involved, whether it was by choice or by necessity, and how they responded to the situation via some form of communication.  Did they release a statement, utilize the press, post to a website, or twitter account, etc.? And how did the reactions or statements from each political actor vary? What motivations and constraints that we’ve talked about in class do you see playing a role in this particular situation? Use evidence from lecture and readings as appropriate. In following these political actors, you should pay special attention to the types of media sources they rely upon to communicate with the public.

These papers will be graded primarily on the strength of your argument and the use of evidence from both the media content and from the course materials (either lecture or textbook) to analyze the media content. Your paper should include at least 3 references to course materials (e.g., 3 diverse readings, lectures, etc.).

This paper should be 5 pages, double-spaced, 1 inch margins, 12-point font. Be sure to include citations for any information from the political authors you discuss and any reference to lecture or class reading as appropriate. This paper is due on Blackboard.

THE DYNAMICS OF POLITICAL
COMMUNICATION
CHAPTER 1
I N T RO D U C T I O N TO P O L I T I C A L C O M M U N I C AT I O N
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
HOW DOES POLITICAL
COMMUNICATION …
• Affect democracy?
• Affect us, the public?
Although politics today fills many with
disgust, it has led to:
• The abolition of slavery
• The Civil Rights Act
• Medicare
• The minimum wage
• Welfare
• Many other social goods
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
President Lincoln used the tools of political
communication to convince Congress to pass the 13th
Amendment abolishing slavery.
DEFINING POLITICAL
COMMUNICATION
• The flow of messages and information
that gives structure and meaning to the
political process (Pye, 1993, p. 442)
• Two sets of institutions – political and
media organizations – which are involved
in the course of message preparation in
much “horizontal” interaction with each
other while on a “vertical” axis, they are
separately and jointly engaged in
disseminating and processing information
and ideas to and from the mass citizenry
(Blumler, 2014, p. 39)
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
• The communicative activity of citizens,
individual political figures, public and
governmental institutions, the media,
political campaigns, advocacy groups and
social movements (Jamieson & Kenski,
2014)
• A complex, communicative activity in
which language and symbols, employed by
leaders, media, citizens, and citizen
groups, exert a multitude of effects on
individuals and society, as well as on
outcomes that bear on the public policy
of a nation, state, or community (Perloff)
A MULTILEVEL PHENOMENON
MACRO level effects
micro level effects
• Public opinion
• Individuals’ thoughts
• Institutional change
• Candidate assessments
• Political activism
• Feelings
• Public policy
• Attitudes
• Behavior
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
SYMBOLS AND LANGUAGE
Leaders use “language to move people to
think and act in ways that they might not
otherwise think and act” (Ball, 2011, p. 42).
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
A symbol is a form of language in which
one entity represents an idea or concept,
conveying rich psychological and cultural
meaning.
MEDIA & MEDIATIZATION
Mediatization emphasizes how media
have transformed the structural relations of
politics in society.
The process by which media have come to
play a central role in politics:
• Influencing institutions
• Performing strategic functions for political
elites
• Imparting information & misinformation
• Socializing young citizens into civic society
• Creating the public spectacle of politics
• Being the playing field on which politics
occurs
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
MEDIA TECHNOLOGY
• Changes in media technology transform
politics as well
• Political communication is now a multimedia game
• Online messages play a key role in
presidential elections
• Online media reveal content that would
have been hushed up years ago
• Boundaries between private and public
have disappeared in politics
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
DIVERSE, MULTIFACETED,
BLURRED LINES MEDIA
• “The media” is not singular; there are
many media and diverse platforms.
• Biased media co-exist with professional
journalism and social media.
• Conventional media used to serve as the
sole gatekeepers.
• Political communication in an
entertainment society is part of the
popular culture.
• Today we have a more multifaceted
media than ever before.
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
INTERPLAY AMONG LEADERS, MEDIA
AND CITIZENS
The flow of political communication
• Leaders and influence agents are the elite
• The media are the next player
• Centerpiece is the citizenry/public
• Messages flow between these groups
• Elites do not always dominate political
communication
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
A GLOBAL PHENOMENON
Similarities in the role of media in
democratic elections across the world:
• Candidates adapt their strategies to fit
the media
• Journalists are important for defining and
framing political issues
• Marketing and opinion polling are
mainstays
• Politics is personalized; media
communicate candidates’ personalities in
addition to issue stances
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
There are still substantial differences due to
cultural, structural, and economic factors.
Comparative political communication
studies the overlap and difference in
political media systems around the world.
CONCLUSIONS
• American presidential elections mix farce,
entertainment, policy issues, big money,
partisan politics, and democratic values
Political communication is…
• a complex activity bridging political and
media institutions
• Politics is disparaged, but influences our
lives in subtle, direct, and symbolic ways
• the domain of symbols
• Politics aims to reach consensus on
decisions that can benefit the larger
community
• influenced by technology
• a mediated experience
• multifaceted
• defined by a dynamic interplay among
leaders, media, and citizens
• a global phenomenon
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
THE DYNAMICS OF POLITICAL
COMMUNICATION
CHAPTER 1
I N T RO D U C T I O N TO P O L I T I C A L C O M M U N I C AT I O N
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
HOW DOES POLITICAL
COMMUNICATION …
• Affect democracy?
• Affect us, the public?
Although politics today fills many with
disgust, it has led to:
• The abolition of slavery
• The Civil Rights Act
• Medicare
• The minimum wage
• Welfare
• Many other social goods
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
President Lincoln used the tools of political
communication to convince Congress to pass the 13th
Amendment abolishing slavery.
DEFINING POLITICAL
COMMUNICATION
• The flow of messages and information
that gives structure and meaning to the
political process (Pye, 1993, p. 442)
• Two sets of institutions – political and
media organizations – which are involved
in the course of message preparation in
much “horizontal” interaction with each
other while on a “vertical” axis, they are
separately and jointly engaged in
disseminating and processing information
and ideas to and from the mass citizenry
(Blumler, 2014, p. 39)
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
• The communicative activity of citizens,
individual political figures, public and
governmental institutions, the media,
political campaigns, advocacy groups and
social movements (Jamieson & Kenski,
2014)
• A complex, communicative activity in
which language and symbols, employed by
leaders, media, citizens, and citizen
groups, exert a multitude of effects on
individuals and society, as well as on
outcomes that bear on the public policy
of a nation, state, or community (Perloff)
A MULTILEVEL PHENOMENON
MACRO level effects
micro level effects
• Public opinion
• Individuals’ thoughts
• Institutional change
• Candidate assessments
• Political activism
• Feelings
• Public policy
• Attitudes
• Behavior
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
SYMBOLS AND LANGUAGE
Leaders use “language to move people to
think and act in ways that they might not
otherwise think and act” (Ball, 2011, p. 42).
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
A symbol is a form of language in which
one entity represents an idea or concept,
conveying rich psychological and cultural
meaning.
MEDIA & MEDIATIZATION
Mediatization emphasizes how media
have transformed the structural relations of
politics in society.
The process by which media have come to
play a central role in politics:
• Influencing institutions
• Performing strategic functions for political
elites
• Imparting information & misinformation
• Socializing young citizens into civic society
• Creating the public spectacle of politics
• Being the playing field on which politics
occurs
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
MEDIA TECHNOLOGY
• Changes in media technology transform
politics as well
• Political communication is now a multimedia game
• Online messages play a key role in
presidential elections
• Online media reveal content that would
have been hushed up years ago
• Boundaries between private and public
have disappeared in politics
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
DIVERSE, MULTIFACETED,
BLURRED LINES MEDIA
• “The media” is not singular; there are
many media and diverse platforms.
• Biased media co-exist with professional
journalism and social media.
• Conventional media used to serve as the
sole gatekeepers.
• Political communication in an
entertainment society is part of the
popular culture.
• Today we have a more multifaceted
media than ever before.
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
INTERPLAY AMONG LEADERS, MEDIA
AND CITIZENS
The flow of political communication
• Leaders and influence agents are the elite
• The media are the next player
• Centerpiece is the citizenry/public
• Messages flow between these groups
• Elites do not always dominate political
communication
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
A GLOBAL PHENOMENON
Similarities in the role of media in
democratic elections across the world:
• Candidates adapt their strategies to fit
the media
• Journalists are important for defining and
framing political issues
• Marketing and opinion polling are
mainstays
• Politics is personalized; media
communicate candidates’ personalities in
addition to issue stances
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
There are still substantial differences due to
cultural, structural, and economic factors.
Comparative political communication
studies the overlap and difference in
political media systems around the world.
CONCLUSIONS
• American presidential elections mix farce,
entertainment, policy issues, big money,
partisan politics, and democratic values
Political communication is…
• a complex activity bridging political and
media institutions
• Politics is disparaged, but influences our
lives in subtle, direct, and symbolic ways
• the domain of symbols
• Politics aims to reach consensus on
decisions that can benefit the larger
community
• influenced by technology
• a mediated experience
• multifaceted
• defined by a dynamic interplay among
leaders, media, and citizens
• a global phenomenon
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
EARLY POLITICAL COMMUNICATION
SCHOLARSHIP: WALTER LIPPMANN
• Rejected liberal democracy concepts
such as the power of rational thought
and ability of the press to provide
accurate information
• Concluded people were prone to
psychologically distort information and
engage in stereotyping
• Recognized that media played a large role
in shaping public opinion
Walter Lippmann
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
ABC’S OF PROPAGANDA
• Testimonial – the ability of a
communication to call on the views of a
credible spokesperson
• Bandwagon – the persuasive influence
exerted by the perception that large
numbers of people supported a cause
• Transfer – the powerful impact that a
message could exert if it was associated
with a popular image or symbol
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
BUT HOW STRONG ARE MEDIA EFFECTS
REALLY?
• Lazarsfeld, Berelson, and Gaudet (1944)
found that media had only modest
influences, such as clarifying attitudes and
strengthening vote intentions
• Two-step flow: media influence is
mediated by influential opinion leaders
• Mass media are less important than
interpersonal influence
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
THE LIMITED EFFECTS MODEL
Joseph Klapper (1960) concluded that
media influences on society were small to
modest.
• People acquire strong preexisting
attitudes before coming to media
• Media works together with social
environmental factors
• Media only contributes to or reinforces
the effects of these other agents
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
A NEW PERSPECTIVE…
• Advent of television news changed
everything
• Strong televised images of the 1960s
clashed with the limited media effects
thesis
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
DATA LEADS TO NEW QUESTIONS …
• Nearly half of Republicans with exposure
to predominantly Democratic media
actually voted for the Democrat, President
Franklin D. Roosevelt
• Voters who had exposure to primarily
Republican newspapers and radio stations
were more likely to vote for the
Republican candidate than those who had
primarily Democratic media exposure
• Lazarsfeld focused only on voting
behavior, not other factors like discussion,
voters’ cognitions, or macro level factors
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
• Research began to show that media
could set the agenda or influence
people’s perceptions of problems
• Uses and gratifications research
emphasized that audiences actively use
media for specific gratifications like
knowledge or voting guidance
• Many new models began to suggest more
subtle, indirect effects of media
SIX EMERGING THEMES
• Media shapes our images of the world
• Social networks matter
• Early research was right about some
things and wrong about others
• Multiple political communication
perspectives can be simultaneously true
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
• Concerns about powerful media effects
are pervasive in American political
communication
• Current political communication
scholarship is full of continued debate
and dialogue
WHERE WE ARE NOW
• The dominant model used to emphasize
that political media had top-down
influences
• Mainstream media exist online alongside
competing platforms and a multitude of
online posts
• The mass mediated model has been
supplemented with a “networked
public sphere” (Friedland, Hove, &
Rojas, 2006)
• Citizens no longer exclusively receive
mediated political messages, but now also
initiate mediated political conversations
with friends, journalists, and leaders
• Frequently, citizens seek confirmation of
what they already think
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
SOCIAL SCIENCE AND POLITICAL
COMMUNICATION
• A theory is a large, sweeping
conceptualization that offers a wideranging explanation of a phenomenon
and generates concrete hypotheses about
when and why specific events will occur
• A hypothesis is a specific proposition
that can be tested through evidence
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
Political communication research starts
with a theory and hypothesis
SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH METHODS
• Content analysis systematically and
quantitatively examines the
characteristics, themes and symbols of a
message
• An experiment is a controlled study
that provides evidence of causation
through random assignment of individuals
to a treatment or control group
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
• A survey is a questionnaire or
interview-based study that documents a
correlation or relationship between two
or more variables in a real-world setting,
identifying factors that can best predict a
particular outcome
• Political communication researchers use
many variations on and techniques for
each of these methods
CONCLUSIONS
• The history of political communication
scholarship is full of twist and turns, but
also some continuities
• Political media influence our picture of
the world and helps construct political
beliefs
• Theory, hypotheses, and social science
research methods guide political
communication inquiries
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
Researchers have documented a number of
effects:
• Agenda-setting
• Framing
• Persuasion from cognitive processing
• And many more …
WHAT DO AMERICANS KNOW
ABOUT POLITICS?
Really?
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
Topic
How many?
Can name the three branches of government
Just over a fourth
Able to accurately define several central political
concepts such as liberal and conservative
Less than half
Know names of both US Senators from their state
35%
Don’t know that free speech is protected in all media
4 in 10
Incorrectly believe that the Constitution gives the
president the power to declare war
4 in 10
Can identify more than one of the five freedoms
ensured by the First Amendment
25%
Can name at least two of the five members of
The Simpsons
More than half
Can locate Central America or France on a map
Just over half
WHY DO PEOPLE KNOW SO LITTLE?
• Lack of incentive
• The way news is presented
• Expansion of media choices
• Leaders intentionally convey misleading political facts
• Politicians offer short, tweet-like quips devoid of meaningful information (to
capture attention)
• Increasing disconnect between politics and everyday life
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
A MORE OPTIMISTIC VIEW
• Realistically, its not possible to closely
follow politics and formulate thoughtful
perspectives on every issue given the
demands on citizens’ time and difficulty
of many issues
• Citizens use heuristics instead: cognitive
shortcuts used to help make political
decisions
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
• People may be short on political
knowledge but still be capable of making
reasonable decisions in elections
• Tests of political knowledge may also be
flawed, as they tend to ask people to
supply trivial facts unrelated to good
citizenship
• Good citizenship doesn’t require intimate
knowledge of every news issue
MASS COMMUNICATION PERSPECTIVE
ON POLITICAL KNOWLEDGE
• The classic mass communication
perspective examines effects of each
particular medium on knowledge
• Constructionism examines how
people construct meaning from media
messages to form beliefs and political
attitudes
• Effects depend on the interaction among
demographic categories, psychology of
the individual, and content of the
medium
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
• Users of information-rich websites are
probably more educated, motivated, and
capable of processing political
information
• Thus, the Internet may replicate the
cognitive benefits associated with the
print journalism of the past
PSYCHOLOGICAL APPROACH TO
POLITICAL KNOWLEDGE
• Psychological viewpoints focus on
cognitive and emotional attributes
individuals bring to political media
• A schema is “a cognitive structure
consisting of organized knowledge about
situations and individuals that has been
abstracted from prior experiences”
(Graber, 1988, p. 28)
Key observations:
• Processing news is active, not passive
• News that resonates with preexisting
beliefs is likely to reinforce and
strengthen attitudes
• Partisans are particularly likely to harbor
misperceptions even in the face of
countervailing evidence
• Beliefs can be held so strongly that
corrections can actually strengthen false
beliefs
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
SOCIOLOGICAL APPROACH TO
POLITICAL KNOWLEDGE
• The sociological approach emphasizes
demographic and social structural factors
• Education and social class are major
predictors of political knowledge
• There are knowledge gaps where
media exacerbate differences produced
by income and education
• When media accentuate knowledge gaps,
the system fails the poor and less
educated
Time 1
Time 2
Individuals high in socioeconomic status
Individuals low in socioeconomic status
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
POLITICAL KNOWLEDGE IN THE AGE OF
INTERNET AND SOCIAL MEDIA
• Social media is beginning to eclipse TV
among young adults
• Nearly 80% of American adults read
news on Facebook
• Online news influences political
participation by providing a feeling of
interactivity and connection
• Skeptics argue entertainment lures young
people from paying close attention to
news
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
CONCLUSIONS
• There are many reasons why Americans
lack political knowledge
• What people already know influences what
they can learn from media
• The mass media, Internet, and social
media provide voluminous information,
providing the raw materials of political
belief
• Citizens increasingly get news online
• There are striking inequalities in political
knowledge between levels of education
and wealth
© 2018 Taylor & Francis
• Low knowledge levels can have important
effects, such as negative attitudes toward
government