The Media's Influence on Public Opinion
Humans are not born with fully formulated attitudes about politics, so where do they come from? The answer is political socialization, which is the way in which people learn about politics . There are a number of elements or agents involved in creating our political awareness, but this paper will focus on the mass media¡¯s role (particularly forms of news media) in constructing political reality in Western society.
One way that the media shapes our political reality is by mixing facts with opinions and in doing so manipulates messages. The amount of time and emphasis allocated to particular types of stories can also have an influence on what issues viewers perceive to be significant, over reporting some issues, while neglecting others, positions some issues at an unmerited advantage to others. The mass media¡¯s persuasive power over Western Democratic government is in its ability to spotlight issues and events labeling them as politically significant. The media also sets a pace for what topics need attention, and governments usually respond accordingly. News media¡¯s ability to persuade is changing with the Internet, now people no longer have to be content with spoon feedings of information they can easily investigate deeper if the wish to. This paper will show the ways in which the media have an influence on people¡¯s political attitudes and the political the process itself, and also the changes that are occurring, in the media¡¯s influence, as the Internet gains popularity as a source of information.
To understand news media¡¯s influence it is important to understand how people use the media. On a basic level of analysis, communication media bridges the gap between us and the world outside of our isolated communities. A lot of people, also, count on news media to make sense of the world in an efficient way, as McCullagh contests that our world is becoming more complicated and people require more information. Most North Americans count on television
One way that the media shapes our political reality is by mixing facts with opinions and in doing so manipulates messages. The amount of time and emphasis allocated to particular types of stories can also have an influence on what issues viewers perceive to be significant, over reporting some issues, while neglecting others, positions some issues at an unmerited advantage to others. The mass media¡¯s persuasive power over Western Democratic government is in its ability to spotlight issues and events labeling them as politically significant. The media also sets a pace for what topics need attention, and governments usually respond accordingly. News media¡¯s ability to persuade is changing with the Internet, now people no longer have to be content with spoon feedings of information they can easily investigate deeper if the wish to. This paper will show the ways in which the media have an influence on people¡¯s political attitudes and the political the process itself, and also the changes that are occurring, in the media¡¯s influence, as the Internet gains popularity as a source of information.
To understand news media¡¯s influence it is important to understand how people use the media. On a basic level of analysis, communication media bridges the gap between us and the world outside of our isolated communities. A lot of people, also, count on news media to make sense of the world in an efficient way, as McCullagh contests that our world is becoming more complicated and people require more information. Most North Americans count on television
Cited: Bardoel, Jo. The Internet, Journalism and Public Communication. The International Journal for Communication Studies. Vol. 64(5): 501-511, 2002. Accessed on November 8, 2005 on SAGE Publications. Bennett, W. Lance. ¡°Global Media and Politics: Transnational Communication Regimes and Civic Cultures,¡± Annual Review of Politics 7 (2004), 125-148. Accessed on November 8, 2005 on SAGE Publications. Barnhurst, Kevin and Steele, Catherine. ¡°The Journalism of Opinion: Network News Coverage of U.S. Presidential Campaigns, 1968-1988,¡± Critical Studies in Mass Communication 13(1996):198. Collins, Jarrod M. Theory of Agenda Setting. http://www.colostate.edu/Depts/Speech/rccs/theory42.htm#CENTRAL. Accessed on Oct 20, 2005. Dyck, Rand, ed. Studying Politics: An Introduction to Political Science. Scarborough: Nelson, 2003. Johnson-Cartee, Karen S. News Narratives and News Framing: Construction of Political Reality. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2005. Lewis, Justin. Constructing Public Opinion: How Political Elites Do What They Like and Why We Seem to Go Along with It. New York: Columbia University Press, 2001. McCullaugh, Ciaran. Media Power: A Sociological Introduction. Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire, New York: Palgrave, 2002. Prior, Marcus. ¡°News vs. Entertainment: How Increasing Media Choices Widens Gaps in Political Knowledge and Turnouts,¡± American Journal of Political Science 49(2005): 577-592. Accessed on November 14, 2005 on SAGE Publications. Purvis, Hoyt. Media, Politics, and Government. Fort Worth: Harcourt College Publishers, 2001.