Mass Media II

Tocqueville on the influence of the media (p. 186):

It makes political life circulate in every corner of that vast land. Its eyes are never shut, and it lays bare the secret shifts of politics, forcing public figures in turn to appear before the tribune of public opinion. The press rallies public opinion around certain doctrines and gives shape to party slogans; through the press the parties, without actually meeting, listen and argue with one another.

Manipulation and oppo.
Oppo books

Trust and perceptions of bias:

• Gallup survey 
• Pew survey

Then and Now

The CBS Evening News on November 18, 1964

The CBS Evening News on March 28, 2012:

Changes in the media

• Newspapers
• Network TV News
• Cable
• Internet
• The Internet in Campaign 2010

Online

• Aggregator sites: Drudge Report and Real Clear Politics
• Original news site: Politico
• Opinion/news sites: Huffington Post and National Review Online
• Raw materials:  Buzzfeed and C-SPAN Video
• YouTube: The Macaca Moment

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Exclusive - John Yoo Extended Interview Pt. 1
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Health Care Reform

1 TRILLION DOLLARS.

I saw this pretty cool video this morning which helps put things into context when we talk about our debt in the trillions of dollars, or the bailout in the trillions. Thought this was interesting.

"Air Midterm"

Relax. This “air midterm” does not count toward your grade; do not even turn it in. Instead, use it to appraise your own progress in the course. Try out this test, either in your head or on paper. If you flounder, then you should take more care with class sessions and assigned readings.

I. Identifications. Explain the meaning and significance of the following items. Each answer should be a brief paragraph. What is fair game for an identification?

• Items that we have discussed in class or on the blog;
• Items that appear in bold or italics in the readings;
• Items that cover several pages in the readings.

Here are examples:

• Natural rights
• Great Compromise
• Nullification
• Dual citizenship
• Social Gospel
• The Lemon Test
• Fourteenth Amendment
• Libertarians
• Astroturf lobbying
• Divided government
• “A City on a Hill”

II. Short answers. Each should be a brief paragraph.

1. Explain how basic features of our constitutional system shape PIG and PO.
2. Briefly explain: “Religion, which never intervenes directly in the government of American society, should therefore be considered as the first of their political institutions, for although it did not give them the taste for liberty, it singularly facilitates their use thereof.
3. Briefly explain: “[O]f those men who have overturned the liberties of republics, the greatest number have begun their career by paying an obsequious court to the people; commencing demagogues, and ending tyrants.”
4. What are some of the disadvantages of federalism?
5. Explain how direct democracy is still part of American politics.

III. General Essays. Each answer should take 3-4 small bluebook pages.

1.  “In republican government, the legislative authority necessarily predominates. The remedy for this inconveniency is to divide the legislature into different branches; and to render them, by different modes of election and different principles of action, as little connected with each other as the nature of their common functions and their common dependence on the society will admit.” Explain how the health care debate illustrates the meaning of this passage.
2. Explain how the Internet can both advance and hinder deliberative democracy.
3. According to Tocqueville, what are the main causes that check majority tyranny and maintain a democratic republic in the United States? Does the system work as he described it?

IV. Bonus questions (one point each) Very briefly identify the following:

• Edward R. Murrow
• Kimberly Dozier
• Shirley Sherrod
• Jim VandeHei
• Steve LaBelle

how the media can manipulate our viewpoint

The colored picture in the middle is the original picture. It is said that the one in the left is from Aljazeera,  an independent broadcaster owned by the state of Qatar and the one in the right is from Fox News. (I can't find the articles which the pictures are quoted so I don't know if they are really from Aljazeera and Fox News).

Using the picture in the left will have very different effect from using the picture in the right. The media can manipulate our viewpoint by showing us only a proportion of the original picture.

Media I

Ruckus media manual

Media Bias

Data on partisanship and news audiences

Public knowledge

Religion and US Politics (Revisited)

Though the United States of America is decidedly a "religious nation" (via http://www.pewglobal.org/2002/12/19/among-wealthy-nations/) a more recent poll conducted by the PEW Research Center suggests an increasing number of citizens are wary of the mixing between church and state. Is #secularism trending right now?

Back in 2001, when PEW first asked the question, just 12 percent of Americans complained that their politicians talked too much about religion. That number has been on the rise and, in fact, hit a record high in Wednesday’s poll. Despite the divide between party lines (Democrats, historically, have always been fairly wary of the mixing of church and state) 38 percent of Americans, including 24 percent of Republicans, now say their political leaders are excessive in their expressions of faith and prayer. Additionally more Americans than ever, 54 percent, believe churches should keep out of politics entirely (up from 43 percent in 1996).

The discrepancy between Romney and Santorum supporters is also telling: 55% of Santorum-backers think politicians don't talk enough about religion, compared to only 23% of those Republicans in favor of Mr. Romney. 

Rick Santorum is quite public regarding the influence his religion has had on his platform (via ABC News) while Mitt Romney (though socially conservative) tends to avoid discussion of his Mormonism. Though evangelicals form a considerable portion of the Republican constituency, does Mitt Romney's relative success (via RealClearPolitics) suggest Rick Santorum is "too Christian"?

Elections and Campaigns

Party in the Electorate

• Cinematic Map of Party Strength 
• Polarization and Landslide Counties 
• Party Identification by State 
• National Party Identification: history & demographics 
• Latest Party Identification Data 

The Big Picture: Electoral Context

• Redistricting and Hall of Shame 
• Forecasting presidential elections -- 2012 
• Incumbency advantage 

Campaign Finance

• Financial incumbency advantage 
• The best explanation of campaign fundraising in the history of film:

The Ground War

• Lincoln's manual for community organizing
• Obama's commandments

1. You are an Organizer.
2. Things are always great. Be positive.
3. Think with your head: be driven by your heart.
4. People will come to the campaign for Barack. They stay because of you.
5. Empower yourself and others will be empowered.
6. Respect your community and your coworkers.
7. NEVER lie.
8. The phone is your greatest tool and your best friend.
9. If it is not written down, it does not exist.
10. Campaigns are won when goals are met.
11. Have goals. Be accountable. Make others accountable.
12. “Some” is not a number, “soon” is not a time. Only hard numbers count.
13. Keep it simple.
14. Listen actively.
15. Time is the most valuable resource you have. Don’t waste it.
16. Have a back-up plan for every situation.
17. Look and act professional. You are Barack’s surrogate in your community.
18. When you’re not working, remember that the other side is.

The Air War

Third Assignment

Choose one:

1. Take part in the legislative simulation as a congressional aide, a journalist, an interest group representative, or some other “player.” Do research on your real-life counterparts, and cite the relevant literature. (For instance, if you are playing an aide, consult studies of congressional staff.) Afterward, briefly your role and analyze your activity. What were you trying to accomplish and how? What opportunities and constraints did you face? What did you learn about Congress?
2. Choose a specific interest group such as: a trade association (e.g., PhRMA), a policy group (AIPAC), a corporation (Google), or a labor union (SEIU). Pick a specific policy goal that this organization is pursuing. Why is it pursuing that goal? What resources does it bring to bear on the issue? What strategy is it using? What are the prospects for success?
3. Would the United States be better off with a multiparty system? In your answer consider the advantages and disadvantages of the two-party system. You may want to ponder Michael Eisner's thoughts in today's Los Angeles Times.
4. Pick a tossup 2012 Senate race. Why is it so close? What is your best estimate as to who will win in November?
5. Do the “How a Member Decides to Vote” exercise at the Center on Congress site. Explain your role and your voting decision. Do some research on how Congress has actually dealt with the issue and then appraise the exercise itself. Did it oversimplify or distort the story, or was it an accurate depiction?
6. Watch "We Didn't Start the Fire."  Read the lyrics.  Explain how the items in one verse relate to American political history.  Remember that the verses are in rough (though not exact) chronological order.  Also remember that the items may be is significant in more than one way. "Little Rock," for instance, played one political part in 1957, and quite another in 1992.  Not every item has a direct and serious relationship to U.S. politics, but a surprising number do.

• Essays should be typed, stapled, double-spaced, and no more than four pages long. I will not read past the fourth page. 
• Put your name on a cover sheet. Do not identify yourself on the text pages. 
• Cite your sources with endnotes, which should be in a standard style (e.g., Turabian or Chicago Manual of Style). Endnote pages do not count against the page limit. 
• Watch your spelling, grammar, diction, and punctuation. Errors will count against you. 
• Return essays by the start of class, Wednesday, April 4. Late essays will drop a letter grade. I will grant no extensions except for illness or emergency.

Interracial Marriage - States' Rights

Obama is the son of a white mother and a black father. Before last Tuesday’s primary in Alabama and Mississippi, A poll conducted by Public Policy Polling revealed that 21% of Alabama republicans and 29% of Mississippi republicans believe interracial marriage should be illegal.

In 1967 the Supreme Court ruled in Loving v. Virginia that Virginia's anti-miscegenation statute, the Racial Integrity Act of 1924, was unconstitutional. This courts ruling struck down against interracial marriage bans that existed in 16 states including Alabama and Mississippi. However, Alabama kept the interracial marriage ban.  Alabama did not repeal the law until 2000 by referendum. 

Why did Alabama not have to repeal the law immediately?  How much power does the Federal Government have over states’ constitutions? Can the Federal Government impose amendments to state constitutions? 

Gas Policies

President Bush took a lot of heat for the Iraq War, partly because people thought the desire for oil was part of the reason for it. (The Bush administration was wise to stop calling it "Operation Iraqi Liberation")
Now, President Obama is taking a fair amount of heat for rapidly rising gas prices. Are the same people criticizing Obama now as criticized Bush then? If so, how do they explain this apparent inconsistency of opinion?

Political Parties

In our last class we studied political parties and discussed their mandates and philosophies. I found this chart on the internet which depicts the ideals of various parties and their stance on different issues.

I found the chart very useful because it concisely illustrates the differences and similarities between several political parties.
The chart broadly categorizes parties under the banners of 'Left' and 'Right' and then provides detail about their philosophies. (It's a pretty well designed infogram as well).

We often assume that a politician can be a Democrat or a Republican but this chart also explores other political philosophies as well.

Hope it Helps

A Really Basic Account of Presidential Elections

A Refresher on Primaries

Parties!

Party in Government and Party Organization

.........................Legislative............................Executive

Party in Gov..... House Dem Caucus................POTUS
........................House GOP Conference
........................Senate Dem Caucus
........................Senate GOP Conference

Party Org........DCCC, NRCC, DSCC, NRSC......DNC, RNC

Party in the Electorate

• Cinematic Map of Party Strength
• Polarization and Landslide Counties
• Party Identification by State
• National Party Identification: history & demographics
• Latest Party Identification Data

The battle for religious freedom/sex/women/the White House

The Republican primary candidates have expressed a lot of interest in female genitalia. No, I’m not talking about Rick Santorum’s seven children or Newt Gingrich’s wives. I’m talking about the debate over contraception and abortion funding. The religious right thinks the baby-killing-open-legged left is waging a war on religious freedom. The progressive left thinks the missionary-position-only right is waging a war on women’s reproductive freedoms. Either way, there’s some kind of war being waged on someone (I guess?).

This strikes me as a dangerous choice on the part of the GOP candidates. Having a strong position in this debate runs the risk of ostracizing a large population of female swing voters in the general election in an attempt to win over a majority of older republican voters in the primary. To be fair, a recent poll shows that it hasn’t helped Obama as much as expected. It also runs the risk of losing some of the youth vote.  Moreover, the overwhelming majority of Americans don’t think this is the conversation to be having.

So my question is this: what issues would you press if you were running the campaign of a GOP candidate (let’s say Romney or Santorum)? Would you continue to press the risky social issues, or go after less polarizing issues like the economy?

My advice would be to stop going after Obama on the reproductive matters. Keep talking about healthcare, but minimalize discussion on denying contraception and abortion. My reasoning: Social issues might help to win over some of the voters in the primary, but it will tarnish your chances with quite a few swing voters, which in turn affects the public’s perception of your electability. As November nears, I think electability will become more important to the same voters that you would pander to on social issues. The economy is also a viable target, but recent statistics look to be *a little bit* promising for the Obama campaign. Healthcare has been one place where Republicans have been able to argue with the president both ideologically and practically without losing potential voters because of divisive rhetoric.

I’d love to know your thoughts.

Interest Group Politics

Lobbying data

Thank You for Smoking:

Question on the motivation of voting

I am not sure if it is appropriate to post this question here but I am confused about this. Today's class reminded me of Chinese voting behaviors. I think in China, it is hard to say that civic duty leads people to vote for political campaigns. China seems to lack the voting environment like America's. Does Americans' civic duty differentiates America from other countries ?  

Opinion & Participation

Measuring Public Opinion

• Polls and Surveys: FAQs
• Nonresponse bias
• Nonattitudes (or pseudo-opinions)
• A recent survey questionnaire
• Whom do you sample?
• Question wording: the example of civil rights

A recent focus group:

Ideology

Political Socialization

Participation

• Census data on 2008 and 2010
• Historical voter turnout

Technology and Public Opinion, Political Participation

1.When I read Chapter 8, the Anti-PX Environmental Movement at Xiamen, China appeared in my mind. It may be the largest urban-based demonstrations in China. Residents at Xiamen worried about the toxic PX from a potential chemical plant since 2002 and used mobile phone messages to gather people to protest the chemical plant. The Anti-PX Movement at Xiamen showed that the development of technology did influence the environment of public opinions and political participation in China.

2. Students at Georgetown University analyzed China's missle and nuclear arsenal hiding tunnels through traditionally dependable research resources and online data such as Google Earth and blogs. Though some doubt that online data is not trustful, this research shows that the gigantic information on the Internet has changed the researcing way of security studies.