Ch. 11.1
Public Opinion

Forming Public Opinion
 Public opinion includes the ideas and attitudes that most people hold about elected officials, candidates, government, and political issues
 It helps shape the decisions of every president as well as the timing of the decisions

Forming Public Opinion
 Public opinion is not uniform.
 Many shades of opinions exist on most issues.
 Enough people most hold a particular opinion to make government officials listen to them

Forming Public Opinion

People’s backgrounds and life experiences influence their opinions.
 Television, radio, newspapers, magazines, recordings, movies, and books are called the mass media because they communicate broadly to masses of people.
 Issues and events the mass media cover and the way they cover them affect people’s attitudes.

Forming Public Opinion
 Political leaders and public officials influence public opinion.
 They state their views in the mass media, hoping to persuade people to support their positions.

Forming Public Opinion
 People who share a point of view about an issue may form an interest group.
 The group will then work to persuade people and officials toward their point of view.

Components of Public Opinion
 Experts often describe public opinion in terms of: direction, intensity, and stability
 Direction refers to whether opinions on an issue are positive or negative; for or against
 Intensity refers to the strength of opinion on an issue
 Stability means how firmly people hold their views; public opinion on political candidates is relatively unstable.

Measuring Public Opinion
 Election results give a broad measure of public opinion.
 A more accurate measure comes from asking people to answer questions in a survey, or public opinion poll.
 Elected officials use polls to monitor public opinion.
 Most presidents have a pollster — a specialist whose job is to conduct polls regularly.

Measuring Public Opinion
 Polling organizations question people selected at random from all over the United States.
 To present a fairly accurate picture of public opinion, a sample must reflect the characteristics of the entire population.
 Usually 1500 people: men and women, all races, incomes, ages, and viewpoints

Measuring Public Opinion
 The questions asked in the survey must be fair and unbiased or you can manipulate the process.

“Do you favor cutting taxes?”

“Do you favor cutting taxes if it means letting poor children go hungry?”
 2 similar questions can give you 2 different answers: Do not lead the person being surveyed

Measuring Public Opinion
 Some people believe polls support democracy by allowing officials to keep in touch with citizen’s opinions on issues.
 Critics claim polling makes officials more concerned with following the public than in leading

Measuring Public Opinion
 Many people worry that polls distort elections.
 During campaigns, the media constantly report who is ahead at the moment, taking the focus off of the issues.
 Polls treat elections like a horse race. Ignoring the candidates views and just focusing on who is in the lead.

Measuring Public Opinion
 Polls may discourage voters from showing up at the polling place if they think the outcome has already been determined (exit polls & the western time zone voters)

Ch. 11.2: The Mass Media
 The mass media influences politics and government.
 They also form a link between the people and elected officials
 Newspapers, magazines, newsletters, and books are known as the print media
 Radio, television, and the internet are known as the electronic media

Types of Media
 Keep in mind that the media are businesses that operate for the greatest profit.
 They run the news they think will attract the largest audience

Types of Media
 Television is the most important medium for politics because it reaches the most people. 98% of America has a TV set
 Print media gives the more in depth coverage however.
 Internet is the fastest way to get information, you can get it whenever you wish.
 Problem is that there is so much information to sort through

Media’s Impact on Politics and
Government
 From campaigns to elections, the mass media has had a major impact on public opinion and how our leaders perform
 The problems that receive the most time, money, and effort from government leaders make up the public agenda.
 Media has great influence on which problems government considers important. Publicize some issues while others go unnoticed

Media’s Impact on Politics and
Government
 The modern media enables people with little to no political experience to run for and win office. Ex. Arnold and Jesse Ventura
 Al Franken D-MN, U.S. Senate 2008

Media’s Impact on Politics and
Government
 Elected officials and the press need one another, yet they often clash.

“Politicians live and die by the press.”
 Politician want the media to show the world they are hard working and effective leaders but do not want them to report any “indiscretions.”

Media’s Impact on Politics and
Government
 Elected officials with the help of press secretaries, hold news conferences, give interviews, and stage huge media events.
 Officials may also secretly pass on, or leak, information to friendly reporters.
 Leaks allow officials to test public reaction before deciding whether to publicly move ahead with a proposal or nomination. If unpopular, you quietly drop it.

Media’s Impact on Politics and
Government
 Leaks are also used to make competing officials look bad, change public opinion on an issue, or to gain favor with a reporter.
 Leaks benefit reporters by allowing them to report “inside” information; careers can be built this way

Media’s Impact on Politics and
Government

The mass media plays an important “watchdog” role as well.
 By exposing government misconduct, they serve both their interests and the public interest.
 Recently, however, journalists have begun looking for scandal in officials’ private as well as public lives.
 Critics argue that these tactics drive many good, qualified men/women out of politics.

Media’s Impact on Politics and
Government

There is tension between the American citizens’ need for information and the need for government to keep secrets to protect national security.
 The government can control information the media report by classifying it as secret and limiting coverage of military actions

The Department of Defense will limit the media’s access to battlefields and maneuvers. Most of the time media has to rely on official briefings to gain any knowledge about progress.

Protecting the Media
 Democracy requires the free flow of information and ideas
 The First Amendment protects freedom of the press, which today includes all forms of media
 The Supreme Court has ruled that freedom of the press includes freedom from prior restraint, or government censorship of material before it is published.
 Journalists can report what they want, even if it is unpopular or embarrassing to officials

Protecting the Media
 Freedom of the press does not allow reporters to publish false information that will harm someone’s reputation (libel)
 The Supreme Court ruled that to win a libel suit, public officials must prove malice —that the publisher knew the material was false or showed reckless disregard for the truth

Protecting the Media
 The government has the power to decide who gets access to the limited number of airwaves available for radio and TV broadcasts
 The FCC cannot censor broadcasts, but can penalize stations that violate it established rules.

Ch. 11.3: Interest Groups
 Interest groups form to promote a shared viewpoint.
 By pooling resources, members can increase their chances of influencing decision makers.
 The 1 st Amendment protects our right to belong to interest groups by guaranteeing the right to assemble peacefully and to petition the government

Types of Interest Groups
 Groups based on economic interests are some of the most powerful.
 They want to influence decisions that affect their industry such as: taxes, safety regulations, rules for bidding on government contracts
 Ex. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce —promotion of free enterprise and The Tobacco Institute

Types of Interest Groups
 Labor Unions work for the economic interests of workers.
 Largest is the AFL-CIO
 Concerned with working conditions, benefits, pensions, and medical care for workers
 Ex. AMA, ABA, NFLPA

Types of Interest Groups
 People have also organized to promote an ethnic group, age group, or gender group
 Ex. NAACP (African Americans)
AARP (retired persons)
NOW (women)
 Special causes have been addressed as well:
Sierra Club (concerned with protecting nature

Types of Interest Groups
 Public Interest Groups support causes that affect the lives of Americans in general, rather than just the special interests of their own members
 Common Cause promotes laws to control pollution and protect consumer rights; have over
250,000 members promoting the needs of all citizens

Influencing Government
 The primary goal for all interest groups is to influence public policy.
 Public policy is the course of action the government takes in response to an issue or problem.

Influencing Government
 Election Activities : Interest groups back candidates who agree with their beliefs.
 Many form PACs that use money from members to support candidates

Influencing Government
 Going to Court : Interest groups also try to influence public policy by bringing court cases.
 Groups use the court system to argue that a law or government policy is unconstitutional

Influencing Government
 Lobbying Lawmakers : Lobbyists are representatives of interest groups who contact government officials directly to influence their policy making.
 Lobbyists understand how the government functions; know where to go and whom to see
 They know how to make friends and talk persuasively

Influencing Government
 For lobbyists, information is the most important resource.
 Lawmakers need information about issues; lobbyists provide it
 Lobbyists suggest solutions to problems, draft bills for lawmakers to consider, and testify in hearings on bills.

Techniques of Interest Groups
 All interest groups want to influence public opinion both to increase their memberships and to convince people of the rightness of their cause.
 Advertisements on radio and TV, direct mailings, and organization of protests or public events to gain media coverage.


Techniques of Interest Groups
To promote their views, interest groups also use propaganda techniques:
1.
Endorsements: people admire the person endorsing a candidate, they will support the candidate too.
2.
Card Stacking: when someone presents only one side of the issue, often by distorting the facts

Techniques of Interest Groups
3.
Bandwagon: convincing people that everyone else agrees with a certain viewpoint or that everyone is going to vote for a certain candidate; be on the winning team
4.
Glittering Generalities: using statements that sound good but are essentially meaningless

5.
Techniques of Interest Groups
Symbolism: the use and misuse of symbols when appealing to the public
6.
“Just plain folk”: the idea of making people think that a candidate is just like them with the same desires and concerns.
7.
Name calling: an attempt to turn people against an opponent by using an unpleasant label or description.

Regulation of Interest Groups
 The Constitution does guarantee us the right to participate in interest groups, but state/federal government can pass laws regulating their activities.
 Laws regulate the activities of interest groups to prevent abuses, such as winning lawmakers votes by offering gifts and meals.

Regulation of Interest Groups
 The Federal Election Campaign Finance Act limits the amount PACs can contribute to candidates for national office.
 The Federal Regulation of Lobbying Act requires lobbyists to register to the Clerk of the House and the Secretary of the Senate and disclose who hired them, how much they are paid, and how they spend money related to their work.

Regulation of Interest Groups
 These laws only apply to full time lobbyists
 Laws require a waiting period before government officials can become lobbyists
 Purpose is to prevent ex-public officials from taking unfair advantage of their insider
D.C. knowledge and friendships .