Paper 1: Voting behaviour and the media Flashcards
Scotland voting preferences and reasons
Left wing, traditionally Labour, but since 2015 there has been SNP dominance, return of Tories in 2017
Due to opposition to London-centred policies and New Right policies
Northern Ireland voting preferences and reasons
Has own party system split between DUP and Sinn Fein
Party votes reflects religious, cultural and ideological differences of the region
Wales voting preferences and reasons
Very heavy Labour bias with some strong Tory support
Because industrial areas favour Labour, rural areas vote Tory of Lib Dem, far west more likely to vote nationalist
London voting preferences and reasons
Majority Labour
Increased ethnic diversity, greater economic disparity across the city, reliance on public services
Rural England voting preferences and reasons
Overwhelmingly Conservative
Mostly white, economically and socially conservative
Industrial North voting preferences and reasons
Mostly Labour
Higher levels of unemployment than elsewhere inn the country, greater rates of poverty and urban decay
Home Counties voting preferences and reasons
Predominantly Conservative London commuter belt- economically prosperous and higher class status, mostly white, economically conservative
Why would people traditionally vote along class lines in the UK?
It was part of your identity, was an expression of class solidarity if you were a worker and voted Labour and an expression of status if you voted Conservative
Class AB description, typical occupations and % of population
High managerial, administrative, professional occupations
Banker, doctor, senior executive
22%
Class C1 description, typical occupations and % of population
Supervisory, clerical abd junior managerial positions
Teacher, office manager, IT manager
31%
Class C2 description, typical occupations and % of population
Skilled manual occupations
Plumber, hairdresser, mechanic, train driver
21%
Class DE description, typical occupations and % of population
Semi-skilled and unskilled manual occupations unemployed and lowest grade occupations
Labourer, bar staff, employed
Does the class system still matter in UK politics? Yes:
Issues of tax and welfare remain key distinction between 2 main parties
many still identify with party identified with class
Geographical trends still reflect relative makeup of region
Class inequality and lack of social mobility remain major concern to most voters
Does the class system still matter in UK politics? No:
Major issues such as immigration cross class divisions Size and role of working class has declined by more than 1/2 making it less of a political presence Increasing property ownership and improved education make it difficult to categorise classes Successful parties have to appeal across a wide range of issues, not just relating to class
Examples of class dealignment
1964, 74% of AB citizens voted Conservative compared to just 40% in 2010
2017 46% AB citizens votes Conservative yet 42% of C2 voted Conservative too which is unexpected
Gender as a factor in voting behaviour
Virtually no difference between the way men and women vote
In the past there more women voted Conservative and there was a bid to win the ‘Tory Housewife’ vote
Recently parties have been making an effort to appeal to women e.g. Labour’s pink mini bus in 2015 and the all female shortlist from Labour party
2.5% fewer women turned out to vote than men
Age as a factor in voting behaviour
Younger voters tend to lean to the left an older voters to the right and older you are, the more likely to vote
47 is the age where people are most likely to switch from voting Labour to Tory
Pension reform, NHS are of most concern to the elderly who do vote so this where parties focus their campaign
But Corbyn in 2017 increased turnout in under 30s massively
Examples of how age is a factor in voting behaviour
18-19 19% Conservative 66% Labour 57% turnout
40-49 39% Conservative 44% Labour 66% turnout
70+ 69% Conservative 19% Labour 84% turnout
Ethnicity as a factor in voting behaviour
Strong link that black and minority ethnic (BME) vote Labour over Conservative possibly linked to economic factors because tend to be from lower classes
Also history of Conservative ant-immigrant attitude e.g Enoch Powell
Also large concentration of BME living in industrial
Examples of how ethnicity is a factor in voting behaviour
2017 21% Conservative 65% Labour
Individual factors that affect voting behaviour: Rational choice theory
Idea that ppl make logical choice based on own best interests overall
If everyone followed this then electoral victory would be in the best interests of the country
Individual factors that affect voting behaviour: Issue voting
Voters vote on one issue above all others, judge party on their stance of their issue and chooses one which reflects their own view
Individual factors that affect voting behaviour: Economic or valence issues
Valence is where voters share common preference and will elect party that has best competency so best to fulfill this role. If govt. does well first time, they will elect them again
Individual factors that affect voting behaviour: Tactical voting
Due to nature of FPTP, if fav candidate is unlikely to win, they will vote for second fav if they have more of a chance of winning e.g David Cameron in 2015 election
What is included in media?
Broadcasting, publishing, and internet as means of communication
Broadsheet media and examples
Usually seen as ‘highbrow’, deal with weighty political debates and present info in a measured way
Telegraph, Independent
Tabloid media and examples
Populist newspapers which focus more on sensation and entertainment
The Sun, Daily Mail
Magazines and examples
Can provide important check and help to inform high level debates as political and satirical magazines make reports on political activity and scrutinise the work of politicians
Private Eye, Spectator, Economist
The Sun
Very Conservative, circulation of 1,667 and 59% of readers support the preferred party
Daily Mail
Very Conservative, circulation of 1,514 and 74% of readers support the preferred party
Daily Mirror
Very Labour, circulation of 725 and 68% of readers support the preferred party
Daily telegraph
Very Conservative, circulation of 472 and 79% of readers support the preferred party
Daily Express
Very UKIP, circulation of 393 and 77% of readers support the preferred party
The Times
Moderately Conservative, circulation of 451 and 58% of readers support the preferred party
Daily Star
No preference, circulation of 443
Financial Times
Conservative/Lib Dem, circulation of 189 and 40/14% of readers support the preferred party
The Guardian
Moderately Labour, circulation of 157 and 73 % of readers support the preferred party
Do newspapers influence voting?
Suggested that newspapers reflect political views of reader rather than influencing them, despite popular opinion that they do influence the reader
e.g 1992 election Tories won surprise victory and was declared that ‘It was the Sun wot won it’
Radio media
News headlines- Every station gives basic, informative headlines usually without bias
Commercial radio- No. of talk radio stations designed to engage in political discussion/debate
BBC Radio- Many platforms for political discussion where shows interview and challenge politicians and public perceptions
TV media: News Broadcasts
All terrestrial channels obliged to have regular and impartial news broadcasts which occur for set times and duration, BBC have been accused of left-wing bias but has never been substantiated
TV media: Party Political Broadcasts
5 minute broadcasts that occur at set times, usually after news broadcast, across the channels
Regulations to ensure all parties are given a fair and equal chance to influence public opinion
TV and Media: News Channels
Provide 24hr coverage which can drive political events by raising public awareness and hyping events to appear more serious than they are
Sky news, CNN
TV and Media: Political Programming
Involves extended interviews and discussion of political issues allowing public to engage and sometimes participate
Question time, Andrew Marr show
TV and Media: TV Debates
Common feature of election campaigns with BBC, ITV and Channel 4 all having held leadership elections in recent years
Debates held under strict conditions and overseen by Electoral Commission
Social media in campaigning
Internet is unregulated so opportunity for any political group to gain attentions
Useful to small parties like UKIP who don’t have resources to compete with larger parties
How effective is social media campaigning?
Hard to judge as tends to be high use among young ppl and less with older
e.g rise of Momentum since 2015 election which is a radical wing of Labour Party and heavily backed by younger voters
What are opinion polls?
Parties, think tanks, interested individuals and media all commission variety of polls to try and work out how the parties are faring and the polls are often used to test key policies, leadership policies and success of a campaign
What happens if opinion polls are used well or not?
If used well, can be useful tool to help parties tailor policies and messages to target key demographics
When done badly, polls can misrepresent public opinion and affect the way people vote
An example of opinion polls affecting voting behaviour
2015 general election, most polls predicted draw, resulting in 2nd hung parliament and was talk of Labour-SNP coalition which Tories began to campaign against, hoping to win an outright victory
This may have caused ppl to vote tactically, favouring Tories over Labour and taking votes away from Lib-Dems, also may have encouraged more Tories to vote in fear of Labour-SNP coalition
Are opinion polls often wrong?
2017 they were wrong, as it showed in most that Tories had lead of between 5% and 12% however they barely came 2% ahead of Labour
Wrong in Scottish and EU referendum, and 2015+ 2017 general elections
Does it matter if opinion polls are inaccurate?
They may affect voting behaviour, but difficult to say
Likely that public will increasingly ignore their findings
For banning opinion polls
They may influence the way ppl vote
They have proved inaccurate so mislead the public
Arguably, politicians shouldn’t be slaves to changing public opinion as expressed in the polls
Against banning opinion polls
Would infringe on freedom of expression
If the are banned, they will become available privately for organisations that can afford to pay for them
Give valuable info which can guide politicians
Polls would still be publishe abroad and ppl could access them online
Role media plays in politics today
Focus on leaders and personalities which turns them into celebs
Online sources have become overly partisan and mock and ridicule rather than providing informed info
Media have made entertainment out of politics
War Reporting
Patriotic reporting of Falklands War helped to create positive impression of Thatcher and swing public opinion towards her
Headline ‘Stick it up your Junta!’ about the sinking of the Belgrano served Britain nationalism
Sleaze
During ‘92 parliament media reported a no. of sex and corruption scandals that afflicted Tories, leading to party being associated with terms ‘Sleaze’ and ‘nasty party’ helping to move public to Blair
Bliar
BBC reporting and press coverage of ‘dodgy dossier’ and ‘sexing up’ the case for war in Iraq became political scandal and resulted in death of weapons inspector which damaged Blair’s reputation
1974 election turnout
79%
2001 election turnout
59%
2015 election turnout
66%
2017 election turnout
69%
Why did voting among young people fall by 50% between 1992 and 2015?
Young ppl using alternate ways to participate
Politicians have introduced policies that discriminate against the youth e.g rising uni fees
Younger ppl tend to be more interested in single issues as seen by increased pressure group activity
Many feel need to abstain as no party reflects their views
Class and voter turnout
More affluent ppl are more likely to vote which ads further disadvantage to the Labour Party, especially as young people are also less likely to vote
