Journalism 614:
Sociological Approaches:
Social conflict and structure
What are your social norms?
 What would spur a negative reaction?
– from your peers?
– from your family?
 What behaviors are taboo?
– Social sanctions or isolation for adopting
– Serious threat to social status
Sociological Approaches:
 Social Control
 Social Norms
1. Social Control
 Present in all social systems
– Mechanisms for:
• Establishing conformity, compliance, authority
• Discouraging/punishing deviance
 Applies pressure on individuals through:
– Incentives (rewards for conformity)
– Sanctions (punishments for deviance)
Social Control  Opinion
 Media as a system of social control
– Public opinion as the outcome
 Opinion shaped by message environment
– E.g., Current events
• Fear and social control (high alert, global
warming, economic collapse)
Opinion  Social Control
 Public opinion as the causal force
– Opinion as force that shapes mass behavior
 Public opinion as a form of social control
– Ex. Massive support for Bush post 9/11 limits
citizens ability to speak out.
2. Social Norms
 Norm: Expected pattern of behavior
– Stereotypes of behavioral expectations
– Shared norms: characteristic of all groups
 Norms (positive and negative aspects):
– Maintain order (e.g., stopping at red lights)
– Enforce conformity (e.g., keeping promises)
– Reduce diversity (e.g., clothing trends)
Enforcing Social Norms
 Social control:
– Examples of social norm agents:
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Parents - prescribed actions
Peers - peer pressure
Teachers - enforced expectations
Religious institutions - moral guidelines
Mass media - suggested exemplars
Perceived opinion - acceptable lattitude
Norms are Situation-specific
 Jumping up and down shrieking
– Yes: At a football game
– No: In class
 Drinking beer
– Yes: At a party
– No: In class
 Walking around naked
– Yes: In a locker room
– No: In class
Violation of Social Norms
 What about individuals that behave in ways
that violate social norms?
– Cognitive value
• Attention-seeking
• Ego-enhancement
– Social value
• Sub-group bonding
• Conflict with larger group builds solidarity
Media, Social Control, and Social Norms
 Media convey social control/norm messages
 Depictions of public opinion as social
control/norm messages:
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1. Public opinion polls
2. Sweeping generalizations
3. Ridiculing “abnormal” behavior
4. Penalties for legal violations
Mass Society Theory
 Social transition from:
– Homogeneous communities
• Small, rural, tightly-knit, cohesive, personal
• Gemeinschaft
– To Heterogeneous communities
• Large, urban, chaotic, transient, impersonal
• Gesellschaft
Concerns about Mass Society
 Breakdown social ties, social order
 Anonymity, isolation, anomie, polarization
 Decline in public responsibility
 Potential for mass manipulation of publics
– Isolation from others increases media power
 Concerns about media reinforcing norms
that maintain economic/political institutions
Capitalism and Democracy
 Economic norms:
– Self-reliance, competition, material acquisition, pursuit
of profit, private property/ownership
– Free markets as supreme economic guide
– Legitimacy of business institutions
 Political norms:
– Representative democracy, free speech, civil liberties,
limited government, equality
– Constitution as supreme political document
– Legitimacy of political institutions
Conflict in Beliefs - Media
 Sometimes norms are in conflict
– E.g., Equality and capitalism
• System based on inequity of outcomes
• Equal opportunity, but not necessarily results
• Problems admitting unequal opportunities
 Media can play an important role is setting
the terms of the conflict, highlighting social
divisions, and fostering consensus beliefs
Ex. Consensus Beliefs: American Dream
 Four tenets of the American Dream:
– 1. American Dream should be open to all
– 2. Belief in the probability of success
– 3. Success and failure are a function of effort
– 4. Pursuit of material acquisition is a virtue
Battle Lines of Opinion Conflict
 Divisions within the consensus:
– Social class
– Political parties
– Race/ethnicity
– Gender
Social Class Divisions
 Most Americans think of themselves as
middle class
– Social class as a concept is relatively taboo
 Public support for income redistribution:
– U relationship:
Major difference:
-Hi SES Liberals vs.
Conservatives
Lo
Med
Hi
SES
Another Class Division
 Support for Civil Liberties
– Hi SES: Greater support for individual liberties
– Lo SES: Greater levels of authoritarianism
– This finding may be more a function of
education than social class
• Research also shows that education contributes to
more liberal orientations in high SES individuals
Political Party Divisions
 Democrats:
– Liberal positions on social/economic issues
• Support for reducing social and income disparities
 Republicans:
– Conservative positions on social/economic issues
• Support for free market and “law and order”
Racial/Ethnic Divisions
 America’s most salient divide
 Contrasting views on racial equality
– Large differences in support for:
• Affirmative action
• Anti-discrimination policies
• Support for the president?
Racial/Ethnic Divisions
QUESTIONS
WHITES
BLACKS
Justice system biased against blacks
33%
54%
Racist police widespread problem
52%
68%
Unfairly treated by police because of race
9%
34%
Police testify truthfully
70%
33%
Blacks treated more harshly by justice system
45%
77%
White juries more likely to convict blacks than whites
40%
59%
Black juries more likely to convict whites than blacks
36%
18%
Jury reached correct verdict in O.J. trial
42%
78%
Gender Divisions
 The Gender Gap
– In the 1980’s, political gap between men and
women widens
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Women more likely to vote Democratic
Women less supportive of wars
Women less supportive of capital punishment
Women more supportive of gun control
 Difference in motivations for participation:
– Women more socially-motivated, men more
economically-motivated
One thing brings all these groups together…
AN EXTERNAL THREAT/
INTERNATIONAL CRISIS
Rallying around the Flag
 The propensity for the American public
to put aside political differences and
social cleavages to support the president,
his policies, and the country during
international crises
What is the rally effect?
 Robust phenomenon in public opinion
 Recurrent phenomenon in public opinion
 Occurs across political parties
 Occurs across a range of topics
 The public rallies behind leadership, roots
for the nation, in times of crisis, attack, war
Traumatic Event: 9/11
The Start of War
Rallies Bolster Approval
War begins
Comparable to Other Rally Events
Terror Attacks
Gulf War I
Victory in WWII
Pearl Harbor
Cuban Missile Crisis
General Mood Also Rallies
 In general, are you satisfied or dissatisfied with the way
things are going in the United States at this time?
Rallying Around the Economy
Public expresses confidence in economy in spite of attacks
Another rally effect, paralleling the other trends
Right now, do you think that economic conditions in the
country as a whole are getting better or getting worse?
Bush job approval by Party ID
Support for the war and Party ID
Satisfaction with U.S. by Party
But Rallies Fade….
Is Iraq War Worth It?
March, 2004
Explanations of Rally Effects
 Psychologists
– The Bandwagon Effect (Trotter)
 Sociology:
– Conflict Functionalism theory (Coser)
The Bandwagon Effect
 Deep roots in Asch’s study of conformity
– “following the lead of others”
– Herd instinct
 Original concept from voting studies
– Concern about bandwagon voting
• “Going with the winner”
– Initial leaders gain momentum
– Primary elections as example
Obama as a Bandwagon Effect?
Conflict Functionalism
 Elaborate theory of:
– Conflict dynamics
– Functions
 Core principle:
– Conflict with an external group increases
internal solidarity
– Principle applies at many levels:
• From roommates to nations
Conditions for Rally Effects
 International conflict
 Vilified enemy
 Decisive action taken by the President
 Short Duration
 Successful Resolution
 Substantial media attention
 High public interest
 Official control of info flow
War, Media, & Rallies
 War changes importance of media roles:
– Providing information (decreases)
– Explaining significance (decreases)
– Building solidarity (increases)
– Reducing tension (increases)
Identifying the Enemy
 Conflict Functionalism relies on enemy
– Vilified enemy - External source of conflict
– Power of rally enhanced by demonized enemy
 Governments also recognize this power:
– Leads to use of propaganda
Propaganda Techniques
 Classic techniques of demonization
– Lee & Lee (1939) and (1952)
• identify 9 common techniques
• First book analyzed Father Coughlin speeches
• Second is systematic study of propaganda
 Function:
– Induce motivation to fight
– Frame issue and parties to conflict
– Stimulate and manage opinion formation
– Enhance rally effects