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THE FOURTH BRANCH: WATCHDOG OR LAPDOG?

THE FOURTH BRANCH: WATCHDOG OR LAPDOG?. What role does the press play in American politics as a whole? What role should unelected officials in the media have in USFP? Is the media biased (next slide for some data on public opinion).

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THE FOURTH BRANCH: WATCHDOG OR LAPDOG?

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  1. THE FOURTH BRANCH: WATCHDOG OR LAPDOG? • What role does the press play in American politics as a whole? • What role should unelected officials in the media have in USFP? Is the media biased (next slide for some data on public opinion)

  2. 2009 Pew survey: 63 percent of respondents said news articles were often inaccurate and only 29 percent said the media generally “get the facts straight” • Seventy-four percent said news organizations favored one side or another in reporting on political and social issues, and the same percentage said the media were often influenced by powerful interests. • Negative opinions grew since 2007 among both major parties, but significantly more so among Democrats. The percentage of Democrats calling the media inaccurate rose to 59, from 43; the percentage who said the media took sides rose to 67, from 54.

  3. HOW DOES THE MEDIA COVER USFP? What is covered? Foreign policy in the TV news • 40% cvg. in 1970s15% in 1995 • Superficiality: Crisis, drama, & personality centered • Parachute journalism: So arbitrary, and what about the long-term effects? • The 3 minute TV version of events

  4. HOW INFLUENTIAL IS THE MEDIA IN USFP? • Issue identification & framing: Somalia, Bosnia, & Haiti • Soft news vs. hard news public opinion • Pundits and elites have more power with USFP • Transformation of latent opinion into mobilized opinion is harder with USFP • Opinion formation has its limits • Stunningly low political information levels in the population • Selective exposure • Ideology, partisanship, and cognitive dissonance • Rigidity of belief

  5. WHAT IS THE MEDIA’S RELATIONSHIP WITH THE USFP ESTABLISHMENT? What motivates the media? • Objectivity, patriotism, or market-share? It depends Is the media a tool of presidential power? • “Wagging the dog”? The empirical evidence says no. • Going public… and going private: Lots of this going on • “Spin-control” and “framing” • The media and signaling to other countries Does the executive branch control media content in USFP? • The media is more reliant on the government for content in foreign affairs • The extreme case: The Pentagon and embedding 3000 reporters in Iraq • Inter-branch conflict and leaks

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