Unit 4 - Chapter 7 Flashcards
high tech politics
a politics in which the behavior of citizens and policymakers and the political agenda itself are increasingly shaped by technology
mass media
television, radio, newspapers, magazines, the internet, and other forms of communication
media events
events that are purposely staged for the media and that are significant just because the media is there (politicians use in campaigns a lot)
investigative journalism
the use of in-depth reporting to unearth scandals, scams, and schemes, at times putting reporters in adversarial relationships with political leaders
print media
newspapers and magazines, as compared with electronic media
electronic media
television, radio, and the internet, as compared with print media
press conferences
meetings of public officials with reporters
media tends to focus on the __, not the ___
why, what (want to know who’s winning campaigns rather than their policies, part of increasingly negative political coverage)
three major events that made political media coverage more cynical:
vietnam war, watergate, monica lewinsky scandal
net neutrality
a former FCC policy saying that Internet service providers must provide equal access to broadband for all websites to their customers (Dems approve, Reps don’t, reversed when Trump was president)
narrowcasting
Media programming on cable TV or the internet that is focused on a particular interest and aimed at a particular audience, unlike broadcasting (think Fox News)
FCC
Federal Communications Commission, initially made to regulate airwaves, but now does everything media related but internet
selective exposure
the process which through people consciously choose to get the news from information sources that have viewpoints compatible with their own
candidates who communicate with supports via the internet ___
help with strengthening voters’ predispositions
chains
groups of newspapers published by media conglomerates and today accounting for over 80% of the nation’s daily newspaper circulation
beats
specific locations from which news frequently emanates, such as Congress of the White House. Most top reporters work a particular beat, thereby becoming specialists in what goes on at that location
trial balloons
policy ideas floated to the media for the purpose of assessing the likely political reaction
sound bites
short video clips of approximately 10 seconds, typically all that’s shown from a politician’s speech on the nightly news
talking head
a shot of a person’s face talking directly to the camera, and since such shots are visually not stimulating, the major networks rarely show politicians talking very long
policy agenda
the issues that attract the serious attention of public officials and other people actively involved in politics at a point in time
policy entrepreneurs
people who invest their political “capital” in an issue, either in or out of government, in interest groups, elected positions, etc. (aka political activists)
gatekeeper
agenda setting, the media determining what people pay attention to
scorekeeper
the media keeping track of whose raised more money or who’s ahead in an election
watchdog
the media exposing things like scandals and schemes
photo op
staged picture which is done to receive a particular reaction from the people
hyperdemocracy
because of the explosion of technology there’s excess information, gov. can’t find out who to listen to, leads to gridlock
fairness doctrine
a law many states still follow where news have to give opportunity for equal media coverage for both sides
horse race coverage
media explaining who’s ahead in election, but not focusing on policy issues
adversarial press
adopting a stance of opposition to expose perceived wrongdoings
symbiotic relationship
what the president and media have, they need each other even if they don’t like each other
trends in modern news:
outlets bought by large corporations, increase in fragmentation in news outlets, people turn more to TV and trust it more, increase in information access so credibility is hard to find
coverage of branches by media
executive branch covered most (good for business, easy to cover), judicial gets least (legal stuff, seen as boring), legislative gets some (prioritize stories because of its size)
spin vs. bias
intentionally making someone look good vs. telling story based on own viewpoint (could be intentional or not)
