News Media
Types of Media
• Americans get their news from three sources:
broadcast media (radio and television), print media
(newspapers and magazines), and the Internet.
• Television news covers a few headlines with pictures,
superficially. As a result, politicians and other groups
seek to manipulate the news with “sound bites” that
dominate the market for at least a few days.
• Radio news is also a repetitive headline service without
pictures or detail, targeting an audience assumed to be
driving in cars and changing throughout the day.
Conservatives tend to listen to political talk radio for
information and affirmation of their political viewpoint.
Examples of Political Soundbites in the last
15 years in American Politics
• "During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating
the Internet." said by Al Gore during a 1999 CNN interview, and often misquoted as
"I invented the Internet."
• "Fuzzy math", initiated by George W. Bush, and used often by others since.
• "Mission Accomplished" Banner displayed by the USS Abraham Lincoln during a
speech by George W. Bush on 1 May 2003, referring to the Iraq War.
• "It's not a big truck. It's a series of tubes." said by Senator Ted Stevens, describing
the Internet and his opposition to Net neutrality
• "Yes, we can" used by Barack Obama during the 2008 presidential campaign.
• "The rent is too damn high", a quotation and political platform of Jimmy
McMillan in the 2010 New York governor's race.
• "You didn't build that", used by Barack Obama referring to federal infrastructure
and used by his opponent's supporters to suggest that he meant there is no
individual success in the United States.
• "Binders full of women", used by Mitt Romney during the second U.S. presidential
debate of 2012.
• “You could see there was blood coming out of her eyes. Blood coming out of
her… wherever.” Donald Trump of GOP debate moderator Megyn Kelly during a
CNN interview in August 2015
Types of Media - continued
• Newspapers and other print media remain the most
important news sources for three reasons:
• 1. Broadcast media rely on leading newspapers to set
their news media.
• 2. Print media provide more complete reports that can be
used for analysis.
• 3. Educated and influential individuals rely on print media
coverage in making national economic, social, and political
decisions.
• A transformation in news reports is taking place on the
Internet. Internet use is on the rise and is the favored news
source of younger Americans. Its advantages include the
combining of timely and in depth news coverage. It also
facilitates news discussion forums via blogs (weblogs) or
timely updated personal websites with commentaries on
the news.
Power of the New Media
• Blogs and other Internet forums are often
there to challenge the dominance of the
mainstream media.
• Their greater accessibility to entrepreneurial
reporting and lower production costs have
enabled today’s new media to act in ways that
traditional reporting often falls short.
• When the mainstream media overlook,
minimize, or provide important coverage and
force the hand of more conventional news
sources to follow suit.
Regulation of the Broadcast Media
• The American government does not control
the communications networks, but it regulates
the content and ownership of the broadcast
media.
• The print media are essentially free from
government interference, but the broadcast
media are regulated by the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC).
• The FCC’s regulations prohibit obscenity,
indecency, and profanity all the time, and
sexually explicit references during the daytime
to protect younger audiences.
Organization and Ownership of the
Media
• The American media world is enormous, but the
number of national news media is small and owned by
large conglomerates, making it unvaried.
• Most national and local news reports are influenced by
major news reporting sources such as the New York
Times, the Washington Post, and CNN. This news
similarity trend has accelerated with media ownership
changes facilitated by relaxation of governmental
regulations.
• Increasing media ownership concentration threatens
political equality. Lack of access to the broadcast
media undermines the ability of those with limited
resources to influence the political process.
Nationalization of the News
• National news media cover more or less the same
events and present similar information. This is to say
that similar news content is presented nationwide as a
result of concentrated media ownership.
• News nationalization has contributed to the
nationalization of political views in the United States.
Some radio stations and print media are aimed
exclusively at specific racial, ethnic, or religious groups.
• The alternative news groups are likely to retain and
present a news perception quite different from that of
the American mainstream. Internet blogs are examples
of news enclaves in which individuals seek out others
with views similar to their own.
News Coverage in the United States
• The three major factors influencing media
coverage include : 1. Journalists or news
producers, 2. News sources or topics, and 3.
The news audience.
• Journalists: Media content and coverage are
affected by the producers’ views, ideals, and
interests. Publishers historically have sought
to influence politics by manipulating news
coverage. Reporters can interpret stories at
their discretion. Consequently, they may
incorporate their views into news stories.
The Power of the Consumers
• The Power of Consumers. The media are businesses
seeking a profit and must cater to consumer
preferences.
• 1. Catering to the Audience. The media are very
responsive to the interests of the educated and
affluent public, which has a profound effect on media
content, particularly news coverage. Events and issues
of interest to lower middle class and working class
American events are under covered by the media.
• 2. The Media and Conflict. Although the media
respond to the most upscale audience, other groups
can publicize their interest through protest. However,
although protest can draw media attention, it does not
ensure effective competition for groups lacking
financial or organizational resources.
Media Power in American Politics
• Shaping Events. In American political history, the
media played a central role in three political
events:
• 1. Critical media led the civil rights movement of
the 1950s and 1960s to force Congress to put an
end to segregation.
• 2. The media were instrumental in compelling
the Nixon administration to put an end to
American involvement in the Vietnam war.
• 3. The media were central actors in the
Watergate affair, forcing President Nixon to resign
from office in disgrace.
The Sources of Media Power
• 1.
Agenda Setting: This is defined as the power of the
media to bring public attention to particular issues and
problems. In this case, groups or individuals seeking to
generate support for their interest must secure media
coverage. The media must be persuaded that an item
is newsworthy.
• 2. Framing. This is defined as the media’s power to
influence how people interpret events and issues. In
this case the media’s interpretation or evaluation of an
event or political action can sometimes determine how
people perceive the event or result.
• 3. Priming. This is defined as the process of
preparing the public to take a particular view of an
event or a political actor. In this case most citizens will
never meet their political leaders, but will base their
opinions about these leaders on their media image.
Perceptions of Media Bias
• Political bias, including bias in favor of or against a particular political party,
candidate, or policy.
• Advertising bias, corporate media depends on advertising revenue for
funding. This relationship promotes a bias to please the advertisers.
• Corporate bias, coverage' of political campaigns in such a way as to favor or
oppose corporate interests, and the reporting of issues to favor the
interests of the owners of the news media or its advertisers. Some critics
view the financing of news outlets through advertising as an inherent cause
of bias.
• Mainstream bias, a tendency to report what everyone else is reporting, and
to gather news from a relatively small number of easily available sources.
• Religious bias, including bias in which one religious or nonreligious
viewpoint is given preference over others.
• Bias for or against a group based because of their race, gender, age, class,
sexual orientation, or ethnicity.
• Sensationalism, bias in favor of the exceptional over the ordinary, giving the
impression that rare events, such as airplane crashes, are more common
than common events, such as automobile crashes.