EXAM 3 Flashcards
Micro Effects
individuals
Macro Effects
political system, institutions, society
Periodic Effects
elections
Continuous Effects
media scrutiny of politicians
Interest in Political Communication increased after 1970
- Voting behaviors became unpredictable
- Increased concern for TV negative effects
- European studies received attention and stimulated
additional research - Emphasis on cognitive dimensions expanded research focus
- Interest in negative political advertising/campaigning;
decreased voter turnout
Ideal Functional Goals of mass media in a democracy
- Surveillance of events that impinge on citizen welfare
- Identify issues – origins and resolution options
- Provide advocacy platform for spokespersons 4. Transmit diverse content among and between politicians and
public - Scrutinize government for accountability
- Provide information so citizens become active participants
not spectators - Resistance to subversion of media autonomy
- Respectful consideration of audience as thoughtful,
concerned citizens
Actual shortfalls of mass media
- Profit-dominated entity
- Covers pseudo events to entertain and attract audiences
- Covers events rather than issues
- Issues addressed from viewpoint of news network’s
institutional agenda - Dramatization of coverage
Political advertising
presents particular candidate images,
information about key issues, sometimes influencing voting
Framing
abstract notions that media use to present news in
particular way, often using metaphors or catchphrases
Normalization
issues can be solved within existing system
Micro Level Political Communication Effects
- Formation and change of opinion
- Cognitive effects
- Individual perceptions of political system
- Political (voting) behavior
Formation and change of opinion
Early voting studies found media had limited impact on
audience opinions
Later studies indicated political media messages produced
stronger effects than previously thought
Several studies have used persuasion models (ELM, reasoned
action) as basis for understanding political effects
Cognitive Effects
Agenda Setting
Priming
Knowledge Gain
Framing and Interpretation
Framing and interpretation
journalistic framing and tone
of story presentation affects message interpretation by
audience
Priming
exposure to message activates related thoughts
Knowledge gain
audience learns although not persuaded
Voter Perceptions
Are voters motivated by self-interest or broader concerns?
TV coverage may give perception that individuals are
responsible for social problems
Episodic vs. thematic framing
Spiral of silence – those who don’t agree with majority view
afraid to speak up
Political Behavior
Voting is a complex behavior influenced by many factors
Political advertisements have proven effective
People remember negative ads more than positive ads
Failure to respond to negative ads can be disastrous
Negative Ads Effective when
- perceived as fair
2. focus on important issues
Descriptive Macro Studies
Only small number of citizens are politically active and
informed
High cost of political advertising forces brevity and misplaces
emphasis from comprehensive discussion of issues to superficial factors such as appearance/image
Discussion networks affect civic participation
Macro Level Effects on Policy Making
Investigative reporting contributes to civic reforms Local media publicity needed to support costly civic projects
Publicity helps lawmakers achieve goals/raise money
Gregen’s notion of monadic clusters
Mobile communication (strong ties)-------> Small, likeminded enclaves------> Political detachment or Dialogic disruption
Individual characteristics of factors that influence media effects
higher education level
informed people are less likely to be affected by agenda setting
political partisanship
personal skepticism of media affects ability to learn from news
interest in political communications
Information Processing
Level 1 Skimming
Level 2 Reading
Level 3 Reading and discussion
Agenda Setting
A type of communication effect showing a strong link
between importance placed on issues by news media and importance of issues to public
News media set public agenda but causal direction
between news media and public difficult to establish in a compelling way
Public opinion measured before and after media
coverage of issues
Election campaigns suitable for study and popular
among researchers
Gatekeeping
time and space restraints restrict information flow
control over flow of news information by media professionals
Attribute Agenda Setting
press coverage of certain
issue attributes influences voters
Framing
viewpoints, sources used, and word choices invite people to think about an issue in a particular way
Walter Lippmann
columnist, social commentator
Pseudo-Enviornment
news is merely a reflection of reality and therefore can be distorted
The Cognitive Paradigm
1960-70s researchers rejected persuasion paradigm
to explain agenda-setting effects
Three factors influence each other bidirectionally
The 3 Factors of the cognitive paradigm
- A person’s behavior
- A person’s cognitive abilities
- Environmental events
Chapel Hill Study
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Agenda Setting research
Phase 1: Initial Study
Chapel Hill Study (1972), McCombs & Shaw
Phase 2: Replication
Charlotte Voter Study (1977), Shaw & McCombs
Laboratory Study (1982), Iyengar, Peters, & Kinder
Phase 3: Contingent Factors
1976 Candidate Study (1981), Weaver, Graber,
McCombs, & Eyal
Phase 4: Who Sets the Media Agenda?
Media Agenda Sources (1991), Shoemaker & Reese
1976 Candidate Study (1981)
Examined dynamics of voters’ perceptions of candidates and
news media portrayals
Contingent factors affect agenda-setting process
Occupation
Education
Geographic location
Charlotte Voter Study (1977)
Voters with greater orientation needs or who used mass media more
often were more likely to have agendas matching media agenda
Laboratory Study (1982)
Research participants who viewed stories about weak US defense capabilities rated issue more important
Media Agenda Sources (1991)
Many influences on daily media agenda
Sociological factors related to news organization and outside
agencies
Ideological factors
Reporter and editor individuality
Media work routineKey sources of media routines
Audience
Media Organization
external Sources
Audience Routines
Institutional news values
Defensive routines - “objectivity”
The structure of the story and audience appeal – the story-telling approach
Media Organization
The “news net”
Pre-defined “angles” Scripts
Reliance on other media
Reliance on wire services
the news net
“Beat” system of local newspapers
Deadlines
Planned events
External Sources
Routine channels
Informal channels
Enterprise channels
Source bureaucracy
Frames of reference
a person’s perceptions of the world
Prospect theory
depends on point of reference of info given
Psychological roots of framing theory
micro-level studies of
individuals
Sociological roots of framing theory
macro-level studies of society
Attribution theory
people simplify their perceptions of social
reality by making judgments about what causes others to act
Frame analysus
rely on socially shared meanings to
categorize info into “schemas” or primary frameworks
Effects of Framing
Frames invite people to think about things in a
certain way
Both accessibility and applicability are important
processes in framing
Frame building
how frames are constructed by news professionals
frame setting
examines effects on audiences
from news frames
Types of Frames
Gains versus losses Episodic (specific event) versus thematic (reported
within general context)
Strategy versus issue Human interest Conflict Economic consequences Typing limits research and ignores cultural “master
frames”
Cultivation theory
over time, heavy television
viewers develop world views similar to what is seen on television (mean world syndrome)
Institutional process analysis
how messages are
made, managed, and distributed
Message system analysi
the way images are
portrayed in media content
Two research methods for cultivation research
- Content analysis of TV programs
2. Survey methods to evaluate viewer perceptions
Examples of how TV distorts reality
Young, energetic, appealing characters
Older people rare and often portray sick or dying characters
Violent crime involves more than half of all characters – in
reality less than 1%
Mainstreaming
a dominant set of attitudes and values is repetitively presented on TV
Resonance
some real-world events support
distorted image and reinforce cultivation effect
Cognitive Paradigm
viewers learn from watching
television then construct an outlook on real world from what was learned
Availability heuristic
cognitive shortcuts accessible to heavy viewers enable quick responses about social reality that access portrayals on television
Mental Models approach
focuses on how people
construct thoughts about things
Malleable
Considers interaction of memories, reasoning, experiences
Television stories are situation models that can be used to
interpret new situations
Heavy television viewers:
Romanticized and were more accepting of single-parent
families and unwed mothers
Believed luxury items were more easily available
Are less likely to have knowledge of environmental issues
Children who are heavy television viewers:
Hold erroneous and unhealthy views of nutrition
Exhibit earlier onset of smoking
Have greater acceptance of gender/sexual stereotypes
Have negative perceptions of mentally ill
Heavy television news viewing leads to
overestimation of juvenile crime problems
Heavy crime drama viewing leads to
concern for crime in society
Longitudinal study found players of a video game likely
to
overestimate real-world tendencies to armed robbery
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Reasons given for fright appeal
- Catharsis
- Identification or “vicarious experience”
- Noxious experience
- Religious experience
- Gender socialization
Catharsis
when audience members witness graphic violence on the screen or read about it in books, they purge or rid themselves of their own violent tendencies or inclinations
identification/vicarious experience
Viewers get sadistic pleasure by identifying with monsters and killers.
noxious experience
Viewers can enjoy the relief they feel when the scary media experience is over. One researcher compares to the sudden end to a bad toothache.
