WARM-UP: Journal Activity
Pick up the sheet from the front, glue it into your journal and complete it.
Preview- under your warm-up, number your paper 1-8
Answer true or false to the following statements
“The media” only refers to television.
2) The media decides which stories to air.
3) Biased means favoring one view over another.
4) Bias can affect what stories a media source decides are
important.
5) An issue can’t get on the public agenda if nobody has heard
about it.
6) Everyone agrees the media should play a role in setting the
public agenda.
7) If you watch the news, you will hear about all the issues that
exist.
8) In its role as watchdog, the media identifies candidates and
government problems.
1)
OBJECTIVES
CONTENT OBJECTIVE

How does the mass
media influence the
political process?
LANGUAGE OBJECTIVE

We will read, complete
an interactive computer
activity and take notes.
The Political Process with…
Vocabulary Check- Make an “X” by each word
MASS
MEDIA
Mass communication sources available for public useboth print and electronic
PROPAGANDA
Ideas that may involve misleading messages to
manipulate people
EDITORIAL
A news article expressing the view of the editor or
publisher
OP-ED
An essay in a newspaper or magazine that gives the
opinion of the writer
CAMPAIGN
An organized effort to advertise in order to gain support to win
an elected position
BIAS
To give unfair support to one side
(favoritism)
A public meeting used for open discussion on politics
FORUM
Reading: “The Role of the Mass
Media” pages 48-49
Read and highlight key ideas. Answer questions 11-13.
The mass media in the United States plays an important role in our political process. Mass media
are forms of communication that are created to reach large audiences. They include TV, radio,
newspapers, national magazines, books, and the Internet.





Mass media play different roles in elections. These include:
identifying candidates
emphasizing selected issues
broadcasting different points of view
writing editorials, creating political cartoons and publishing op-ed pieces.
Op-ed pieces are pieces of writing that express the opinions of columnists and guest writers. They
appear on the page opposite the editorial page in our newspapers, thus the name op-ed.
This increase in mass media makes it necessary for voters to evaluate the information presented
in political campaigns so that they can make informed choices about the candidates and the
issues. Some strategies for evaluating the accuracy of campaign speeches, literature, and
advertisements include separating fact from opinion, evaluating the reliability of information
sources, detecting bias, and identifying propaganda.
To evaluate the reliability of an information source, voters must ask themselves a
number of questions. For example, voters must decide if the source is trustworthy
and informed about the information it is sharing. They must also find out where the
source got its information and if the information is accurate and current, or up to date.
Bias is the distorting of an event or observation due to a person’s opinion or feelings
about the event or observation. In politics, mass media information may be biased to
support or not support a particular candidate or issue. In order to detect bias, voters
need to determine what the author’s or speaker’s political position is, who is paying
for the message, what sources were used, and whether different viewpoints were
shared.
Propaganda is the spreading of information for the purpose of influencing the
opinions of others. Mass media enables propaganda to be spread quickly to huge
audiences. Because of this, citizens need to be able to recognize it in its many forms
There are also many ways media play an important role in setting the public agenda.
They focus public attention on selected issues. They offer a forum in which
opposing viewpoints are communicated. Whereas they hold government
officials accountable to its citizens, or the public, government officials also use
the media to communicate with the public.
Campaigns and the Mass MediaPage 59
Essential Question- How does the mass
media influence the political process and
elections?
President Obama giving a
Press conference in the
White House
Notes
Political Parties work hard to campaign
and get their members elected into office
Where do the voters get information about
the candidates and issues in a campaign?
(write this as a question in your left hand column)
What role does the Mass Media have in elections?
Individuals
the mass media
What role does the mass media
play in elections? (Graphic organizer notes)
iewpoints of both sides are
broadcast
 Forums include- debates, TV, radio,
newspaper, Internet
Task Card
http://wtvr.com/2014/10/1
4/during-debate-virginiasenate-candidates-sparover-number-of-issues/
1. Click on the link about the Virginia Senate
race between Warner and Gillespie.
 2. After watching, answer question #1 on the
task card

dentify the candidates and hold them
accountable to the public
 In
advertisements, commercials and news
stories
Task Card
http://news.yahoo.com/vi
deo/gov-christie-talksobama-39151138089.html
1. Click on the link about holding President
Obama accountable to the public about ISIS
 2. After watching, answer question #2 on the
task card

mphasize selected issues to focus
public attention

Identify problems, topics, daily news
reports
Task Card
http://www.foxnews.com/
opinion/2014/10/13/ebola
-fumble-what-cdc-needsto-do-now/
1. Click on the link about holding President
Obama battling the Ebola virus
 2. After watching, answer question #3 on the
task card


rite and publish editorials, political
cartoons, op-ed pieces to show
opposing opinions

Try to influence the reader
Task Card
1. Study each of the images above about
Obamacare.
 2. Answer question #4 on the task card

The Mass Media can emphasize certain
candidates, political parties, issues or
opinions to try to change your opinion
about them.
How can voters make informed choices
then in elections?
Evaluating Campaign Ads
The public must evaluate
(judge) campaign speeches,
literature and advertisements
for the truth (accuracy).
(write this as a question in the left hand column)
How can the public evaluate the media?
Individuals have to decide
which
to take
1. Separate
fact from
opinion
FactCan it be
proven?
CE.5c
OpinionIs it how
someone
feels?
Task Card
http://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=qZWHDzbEBno
1. Click on the link about John Foust for
Virginia Congress
 2. After watching, answer question #5 on the
task card

2. Identifying propaganda
.
Is the information
exaggerated?
CE.5c
Task Card
http://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=3BdI_a6qwx4
1. Click on the link about the Virginia
congressional race between Comstock and
Foust
 2. After watching, answer question #6 on the
task card

3- Detect bias
CE.5c
Is the source only
showing one side?
Task Card
1. Study this image from the 2012 presidential
campaign.
 2. Answer question #7 on the task card.

4. Evaluate the source
Is the source reliable?
CE.5c
Task Card
1. Study this images debating whether or not
President Obama is a born citizen.
 2. Answer question #8 on the task card

Exit Ticket-Go back to your preview answers and answer
these questions again. Did you change some answers?
“The media” only refers to television.
2) The media decides which stories to air.
3) Biased means favoring one view over another.
4) Bias can affect what stories a media source decides are
important.
5) An issue can’t get on the public agenda if nobody has heard
about it.
6) Everyone agrees the media should play a role in setting the
public agenda.
7) If you watch the new, you will hear about all the issues that
exist.
8) In its role as watchdog, the media identifies candidates and
government problems.
1)
Summary

Write a summary at the bottom of the
page.
So what?
What is important to understand
about this?
CE.5c
Candidates for political office generally do a
great deal of advertising. Which of the
following is NOT a reason for candidates to
advertise?
a.
accurately show their position on issues
b.
seek campaign donations
c.
influence voters
d.
become wealthy
CE.5c
D
CE.5c
Which of the following can have the most
impact on a political election?
a.
the church
b.
the mass media
c.
political action committees
d.
campaign speeches
CE.5c
B
CE.5c
To evaluate advertisements accurately,
people must…
a.
use the scientific method.
b.
separate fact from opinion.
c.
read the newspaper every day.
d.
watch many news programs.
CE.5c
B
CE.5c
Propaganda
1.What is propaganda?
2. Where do you see it?
Endorsements (testimonials)
Definition
Support from wellknown people
Examples
 Celebrities
 Athletes
 Popular people
Stacked Cards
Definition
Showing only one side
of an issue
Examples
 Numbers
 Smiling
 Meaningless
Name-calling (mudslinging)
Definition
Attacking an opponent
Examples
 Negative
 “attack”ads
Symbolism
Definition
Popular symbols to
appeal to the public
Examples
 Patriotic
 Emotional (babies)
Just Plain Folk
Definition
Appeal to the average
voter
Examples
 Uses everyday
people
 Quick, easy
message
Bandwagon
Definition
Convince people that
everyone agrees
Examples
 Popular beliefs
 Popular figures
Other interesting commercials
Johnson 1964
 Kennedy 1960
 Bush Olympics
 I Like Ike
