Media in America: Roles, Biases, and Effects

2. America’s Democratic Republic Chapter 7: The News Media

3. In This Chapter • The roles of the news media in a democratic republic • How the news is gathered and disseminated • Why government officials are key news sources • Whether the news media have a liberal or a conservative bias • Why some media are more regulated than others • How the news media affect public opinion and policymaking

5. Roles of the News Media • Framers believed newspapers and pamphlets were for communication and deliberation • In a democratic society we must have good information about politics and policies • Roles of the media have changed

6. Roles of the News Media • Watchdog Over Government • Press must be free to report the news as it is, without censorship • 1st Amendment protection

7. Roles of the News Media • Clarifying Electoral Choices • What do the parties stand for? • What do we know about candidates’ • Personal character • Knowledge • Experience • Positions on the issues

8. Roles of the News Media • Providing Policy Information • Are current policies working? • What are the pros and cons of particular policies? • What are the alternatives?

9. Mainstream and Non-Mainstream Media • Decline in the audience for traditional news outlets • Newspapers • Network television news • Weekly and monthly news magazines

10. Mainstream and Non-Mainstream Media • Alternatives to mainstream • Internet • News • Blogs • Podcasts • Support for specific candidates • Financial contributions

13. Mainstream and Non-Mainstream Media • Continuing Importance of Mainstream Media • Central role in gathering and reporting news • Non-mainstream media use this • Collection of nationally prominent newspapers, news magazines, TV news organizations • Own web sites with reporting and analyses • Wire services

16. How the News Media Work • Organization • Privately owned • Corporations • Mergers • Concentration of ownership • Monopolies?

17. How the News Media Work • Uniformity and Diversity • Most depend on the same sources • News sources are contracting • AP wire service

19. How the News Media Work • Profit Motives • Primary purpose is to make profit • Must • Appeal to audience • Attract advertisers • Satisfy shareholders

20. How the News Media Work • Political Newsmaking • Limited geographic base for news = predictable events are covered • Expensive equipment • Time for editing

21. How the News Media Work • Political Newsmaking • Beats and Routines • Official governmental institutions and sources • Some news is created or originated by these institutions and sources

22. How the News Media Work • News Management • Heavy reliance on official sources = government control • “Spin”

23. How the Mainstream News Media Work • Newsworthiness • Editors’ judgments are quick • Elements • Novelty • Drama and human interests • Relevance to American lives • High stakes • Celebrity status

24. How the News Media Work • Templates • A generally agreed-upon slant • Public knows big story • Point is to fill in the details

25. How the News Media Work • Episodic Foreign Coverage • Lack of affordability for foreign bureaus • Dependence on “stringers” • Temporary teams responding to crises • Limited areas of the world are covered

26. How the News Media Work • Interpreting • Informal rules of objective journalism • Explicit interpretations are generally avoided • Use of experts known as pundits • Academics or former government officials • Generally the same ones are used • Reflect a NYC/Washington view

27. How the News Media Work • Is the news biased? • Reporters are generally more liberal than the average American, but • Media are owned by corporations, who typically are more conservative

29. How the News Media Work • Biases That Matter • Reporters dependence on official sources • Marketplace • Profit motive

30. How the News Media Work • Themes or Tendencies in the News • Nationalism • Approval of American economic system • Negativity and scandal • Infotainment • Limited, fragmented and incoherent political information

32. Effects of the News Media on Politics • Agenda setting • What topics are most important? • Framing • Interpretation affects how people think about various issues • Fueling cynicism • Adversarial or attack journalism

34. Government Regulation of the Media • Print Media • 1st Amendment • Government attempts to censor media, e.g., Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798 • Prior restraint is generally not permitted

35. Government Regulation of the Media • Electronic Media • Government licensing of airwaves • Radio Act of 1927 • Communications Act of 1934 • Equal Time Rule • Regulation of ownership to prohibit monopolies • Fairness Doctrine 1949

36. Government Regulation of the Media • Electronic Media • Deregulation • Telecommunications Act of 1996 • Cable TV • Internet

38. The Media • Democratic and Republican Encounters • Flow of information must be free and full • Scholars and media critics v. free market and consumerism • Questions about the media’s civic responsibility

39. Summary • Modern media can transmit information to citizens through printed, broadcast, and internet methods • Government officials provide reporters with most political news • Although media bias does exist, it is a mixture of liberal and conservative views • Other news formats are much more regulated than the Internet

40. Question 1 • A meeting between President Bush and Tony Blair in 2003 was overshadowed by which news event? • 9/11 terrorist attacks • The accidental shooting of a hunting partner by Vice President Cheney • Paris Hilton’s divorce • New Edition’s reunion tour

41. Answer • A meeting between President Bush and Tony Blair in 2003 was overshadowed by which news event? • 9/11 terrorist attacks • The accidental shooting of a hunting partner by Vice President Cheney • Paris Hilton’s divorce • New Edition’s reunion tour

42. Question 2 • Which technological advance has increased the availability of information to individuals the most? • Stand mixers • Microphones • The Internet • Radio

43. Answer • Which technological advance has increased the availability of information to individuals the most? • Stand mixers • Microphones • The Internet • Radio

44. Question 3 • A reporter’s work is usually organized around a particular __________. • Subject matter • Terrain • Individual • Beat

45. Answer • A reporter’s work is usually organized around a particular __________. • Subject matter • Terrain • Individual • Beat

46. Question 4 • The tendency of news networks to sensationalize news results in: • Infotainment • Boring news • Inaccurate factual reporting • Less reporters in the field

47. Answer • The tendency of news networks to sensationalize news results in: • Infotainment • Boring news • Inaccurate factual reporting • Less reporters in the field

48. Question 5 • How could the regulation of Internet news reporting affect popular political opinions?