The Impact of the Media

Question 1

What 2 media stations are legally required to remain politically neutral?

Answer 1

• BBC

- ITC

Question 2

What newspaper in 1992 general election was famously vocal in support of the Conservatives ?

Answer 2

the Sun

Question 3

What did Paul Whiteley estimate about the Suns decision to back labour in 1997?

Answer 3

that this would cost the Conservatives 500,000 votes

Question 4

What are the two most major polling companies?

Answer 4

• MORI

- NOP

Question 5

Why are exit polls normally more accurate?

Answer 5

because they use larger samples and ask people how they have voted

Question 6

in 2010, what did the BBC, ITV and sky predict each of the parties seats won within?

Answer 6

within 4 seats of the actual outcome

Question 7

Why are opinion polls banned in some countries such as France in the days leading up to the election?

Answer 7

for fear that they might influence voting intentions

Question 8

What are the reasons why opinion polls are banned in some countries due to voting intentions?

Answer 8

1) Might vote for most popular party
2) Might vote for underdogs
3) They might not turn out to vote if their party appears to be doing well

Question 9

Who believed in 1997 their loss in Enfield was as result of tactical voting based upon poll findings?

Answer 9

Michael Portillo

Question 10

What are 4 reasons which lead to polling errors?

Answer 10

1) Respondents were not registered
2) Respondents were lying
3) Respondents were unrepresentative of the broader electorate
4) Many respondents were floating voters

Question 11

What was the poll error percentage in 1992?

Answer 11

8.9%

Question 12

Why may respondents lie to opinion polls in 1992?

Answer 12

they may be too embarrassed to say they had voted Conservative

Question 13

What is the Hegemonic theory?

Answer 13

That those who work in media have a particular view due to their education, age and social class and therefore may write a particular perspective however unconscious of their bias

Question 14

What is the Manipulative theory?

Answer 14

That the mass media is controlled by an elite that uses it with the sole purpose of preserving its own position and therefore submerges a radical agenda in meaningless trivia

Question 15

What 2 writers argued that media influence was limited by 3 processes ?

Answer 15

Leon Festinger 1950s

David Denver 1980’s

Question 16

What were the 3 processes in which Leon Festinger 1950’s and David Denver 1980’s argued limited media influence?

Answer 16

• Selective exposure
• Selective perception
• Selective retention

Question 17

What is selective exposure?

Answer 17

individuals generally choose to be exposed to newspapers and television programmes that reflect rather than challenge their outlook

Question 18

What is selective perception?

Answer 18

individuals mentally edit the media that they are exposed to, filtering content that doesn’t fit with their own ideas

Question 19

What is selective retention?

Answer 19

People tend to forget programme and newspaper content that challenges their views while retaining material that can be used to justify their position