exam 2 Flashcards
civil liberties
Basic political freedoms that protect citizens from governmental abuses of power. (page 92)
Civil War amendments
The Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments to the Constitution, which abolished slavery and granted civil liberties and voting rights to freed slaves after the Civil War. (page 96)
due process clause
Part of the Fourteenth Amendment that forbids states from denying “life, liberty, or property” to any person without due process of law. (A nearly identical clause in the Fifth Amendment applies only to the national government.) (page 96)
selective incorporation
selective incorporation
establishment clause
Part of the First Amendment that states “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion,” which has been interpreted to mean that Congress cannot sponsor or favor any religion. (page 98)
free exercise clause
Part of the First Amendment that states that Congress cannot prohibit or interfere with the practice of religion. (page 98)
Lemon test
The Supreme Court uses this test, established in Lemon v. Kurtzman, to determine whether a practice violates the First Amendment’s establishment clause. (page 100)
strict scrutiny
The highest level of scrutiny the courts can use when determining whether a law is constitutional. To meet this standard, the law or policy must be shown to serve a “compelling state interest” or goal, it must be narrowly tailored to achieve that goal, and it must be the least restrictive means of achieving that goal. (page 102)
intermediate scrutiny
The middle level of scrutiny the courts can use when determining whether a law is constitutional. To meet this standard, the law or policy must be “content neutral,” must further an important government interest in a way that is “substantially related” to that interest, and must use means that are a close fit to the government’s goal and not substantially broader than is necessary to accomplish that goal. (page 102)
clear and present danger test
Established in Schenck v. United States, this test allows the government to restrict certain types of speech deemed dangerous. (page 103)
direct incitement test
Established in Brandenburg v. Ohio, this test protects threatening speech under the First Amendment unless that speech aims to and is likely to cause imminent “lawless action.” (page 103)
symbolic speech
Nonverbal expression, such as the use of signs or symbols. It benefits from many of the same constitutional protections as verbal speech. (page 104)
hate speech
Expression that is offensive or abusive, particularly in terms of race, gender, or sexual orientation. It is currently protected under the First Amendment. (page 105)
prior restraint
A limit on freedom of the press that allows the government to prohibit the media from publishing certain materials. (page 107)
slander
Spoken false statements that damage a person’s reputation. They can be regulated by the government but are often difficult to distinguish from permissible speech. (page 109)
libel
Written false statements that damage a person’s reputation. They can be regulated by the government but are often difficult to distinguish from permissible speech. (pag
libel
Written false statements that damage a person’s reputation. They can be regulated by the government but are often difficult to distinguish from permissible speech. (pag
commercial speech
Public expression with the aim of making a profit. It has received greater protection under the First Amendment in recent years but remains less protected than political speech. (page 109)
Miller test
Established in Miller v. California, this three-part test is used by the Supreme Court to determine whether speech meets the criteria for obscenity. If so, it can be restricted by the government. (page 110)
due process rights
The idea that laws and legal proceedings must be fair. The Constitution guarantees that the government cannot take away a person’s “life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.” Other specific due process rights are found in the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Amendments, such as protection from self-incrimination and freedom from illegal searches. (page 112)
exclusionary rule
The principle that illegally or unconstitutionally acquired evidence cannot be used in a criminal trial. (page 114)
Miranda rights
The list of civil liberties described in the Fifth Amendment that must be read to a suspect before anything the suspect says can be used in a trial. (page 116)
double jeopardy
Being tried twice for the same crime. This is prevented by the Fifth Amendment. (page 116)
privacy rights
Liberties protected by several amendments in the Bill of Rights that shield certain personal aspects of citizens’ lives from governmental interference, such as the Fourth Amendment’s protection against unreasonable searches and seizures. (page 118)
civil rights
Rights that guarantee individuals freedom from discrimination. These rights are generally grounded in the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and more specifically laid out in laws passed by Congress, such as the 1964 Civil Rights Act. (page 128)
Jim Crow laws
State and local laws that mandated racial segregation in all public facilities in the South, many border states, and some northern communities between 1876 and 1964. (page 131)
“separate but equal” doctrine
The idea that racial segregation was acceptable as long as the separate facilities were of equal quality; supported by Plessy v. Ferguson and struck down by Brown v. Board of Education. (page 131)
protectionism
The idea under which some people have tried to rationalize discriminatory policies by claiming that some groups, like women or African Americans, should be denied certain rights for their own safety or well-being. (page 133)
de jure
Relating to actions or circumstances that occur “by law,” such as the legally enforced segregation of schools in the American South before the 1960s. (page 146)
de facto
Relating to actions or circumstances that occur outside the law or “by fact,” such as the segregation of schools that resulted from housing patterns and other factors rather than from laws. (page 146)
rational basis test
The use of evidence to suggest that differences in the behavior of two groups can rationalize unequal treatment of these groups. (page 149)
public opinion
Citizens’ views on politics and government actions. (page 170)
latent opinion
An opinion formed on the spot, when it is needed (as distinct from a deeply held opinion that is stable over time). (page 171)
political socialization
The process by which an individual’s political opinions are shaped by other people and the surrounding culture. (page 172)
mass survey
A way to measure public opinion by interviewing a large sample of the population. (page 179)
population
The group of people whom a researcher or pollster wants to study, such as evangelicals, senior citizens, or Americans. (page 179)
sample
Within a population, the group of people surveyed in order to gauge the whole population’s opinion. Researchers use samples because it would be impossible to interview the entire population. (page 179)
sampling error
The predicted difference between the average opinion expressed by survey respondents and the average opinion in the population, sometimes called the margin of error. Increasing the number of respondents lowers the sampling error. (page 182)
ideological polarization
The effect on public opinion when many citizens move away from moderate positions and toward either end of the political spectrum, identifying themselves as either liberals or conservatives. (page 186)
policy mood
The level of public support for expanding the government’s role in society; whether the public wants government action on a specific issue. (page 189)
mass media
Sources that provide information to the average citizen, such as newspapers, television networks, radio stations, and websites. (page 192)
Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
A government agency created in 1934 to regulate American radio stations and later expanded to regulate television, wireless communications technologies, and other broadcast media. (page 194)
broadcast media
Communications technologies, such as television and radio, that transmit information over airwaves. (page 194)
equal time provision
An FCC regulation requiring broadcast media to provide equal air time on any non-news programming to all candidates running for an office. (page 195)
media conglomerates
Companies that control a large number of media sources across several types of media outlets. (page 195)
media effects
The influence of media coverage on average citizens’ opinions and actions. (page 196)
hostile media effect
The tendency of people to see neutral media coverage of an event as biased against their point of view. (page 196)
filtering
The influence on public opinion that results from journalists’ and editors’ decisions about which of many potential news stories to report. (page 197)
framing
The influence on public opinion caused by the way a story is presented or covered, including the details, explanations, and context offered in the report. (page 197)
