Chapter 12
Mass Media
Periods of Journalistic History
 The Party Press
 Partisan newspapers
 Small circulation/high subscription rates
 Political/business elites
Periods of Journalistic History
 The Popular Press
 Mass readership/daily newspapers grow due to mass
production
 Often use of yellow journalism or sensationalism to increase
subscriptions
 Success made a press independent of the government feasible
Periods of Journalistic History
 Magazines of Opinion
 Yellow journalism increased so middle class sought alternative
news
 National magazines
 “muckraker”: Watchdog function, expose conduct contrary to
public interest
Periods of Journalistic History
 Broadcast Journalism
 Radio 1920s and TV in late 1940s
 Politicians could address voters directly
 Rise of entertainment choices means you can ignore
politicians
 Presidents usually covered
 Increase in cable: targeted audiences
Periods of Journalistic History
 The Internet
 Explosive growth
 Methods of campaign finance and facilitation between voters
and political activists being revolutionized
National Press
 Significance:
 Get attention from politicians
 National reporters and editors are
 Better paid
 Tend to come from prestigious universities
 Have a more liberal outlook
With the exception of Fox news which caters to conservatives
or Republicans
 Often do investigative or interpretive stories
National Press
 The national press takes on the following roles:
 Gatekeeper: influences what subjects become national political
issues and for how long (occupy wall street)
 Scorekeeper: tracks political reputations and candidacies,
media momentum during the presidential primary season is
crucial
 Watchdog: investigates personalities and exposes scandals
Interpreting Political News
 Goal: to be unbiased
 Many people feel that journalists and especially those in
national media are liberal leaning
 Conservative talk show hosts and Fox news offer a conservative
slant to news
 Factors influencing stories:
 Urgent deadlines
 Desire to attract an audience
 Professional obligation to be fair
 Need to develop sources
Interpreting Political News
 Stories can be classified as:
 Routine Stories
 Feature Stories
 Insider stories
Interpreting Political News
 Leaks to the press are becoming more common. Why?
 The branches of government are competing with each other
and the press is a weapon in the competition
 It is not illegal to print most government secrets
Interpreting Political News
 Since Vietnam, Watergate, and the Iran-contra affair,
the press and politicians don’t trust each other
 Attack journalism: seizing upon any bit of info or
rumor that might call into question the qualifications
or character of a public official
 Most people don’t like this kind of news
 Competition for ratings has made media a big business,
reducing public confidence even further
Sensationalism in the Media
 Intense competition among many media outlets means
that each has a small share of the audience
 Sensationalism draws an audience and is cheaper than
investigative reporting
 Reporters, meanwhile, may not be checking sources
carefully because of pressure to break news stories first
 Public trust of news media increased somewhat after
attacks of September 11, but now public distrust in
accuracy of news media has reached record highs
Government Constraints on Journalism
 The First Amendment prevents the Government from
censoring the media
 How does the government fight back against unwanted
“insider” stories?
 The number of press secretaries in both the executive
and legislative branches has increased dramatically
 Press releases are given: often uncontroversial and
sterile
Government Constraints on
Journalism
 Leaks and background stores are awarded to favorite
reporters
 On the record: reporter can quote official by name
 Off the record: what the official says cannot be used
 On background: info can be used, but not attributed to
source by name
 On deep background: info can be used, but not attributed to
anybody, including an anonymous source
 Presidential rewards and punishments for reporters
based on their stories