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Insert Cartoon of reason people vote
Participation in the Political Process
1. Voting (Be able to describe historical trends in voting) Eligibility
Elimination of property requirements in nearly all states (1830) Elimination of racial discrimination in 15th Amendment (1870) Elimination of sexual discrimination in 19th Amendment (1920) Elimination of poll taxes in 24th Amendment (1964) Elimination of literacy tests in Voting Rights Act (1965) Partial elimination of state registration laws in Voting Rights Act
(1965) Reduction of voting age to 18 in 26th Amendment (1971) Potential further elimination of state registration laws in Motor
Voter Act (1993) Reduction of residency requirement to 1 or 2 months in most states
Statistics on Voter TurnoutParticipation of voters in
Presidential Elections Registered voters
1992
122,000,000 2000 130,000,000 2008 169,000,000
Voting on election day
1992
55% of all eligible voters 85% of registered voters
1996 49% of all eligible voters 82% of registered voters
2000 51% of all eligible voters 86% of registered voters
200455.3% of all eligible voters
200856.8 % of all eligible
voters70.7 % of registered
voters
Voting for Highest state offices – participation of 33+%
Congressional midterm elections- participation of 33+%
Lesser state and local offices – participation of 20+%
38% of electorate voting every 2 years- core electorate
Analysis……
High rates of voter participation in Presidential Years!
YearVoting-agepopulation
Voterregistration Voter turnout
Turnout of voting-age population (percent)
2008* 231,229,580 NA 132,618,580* 56.8%
2006 220,600,000 135,889,600 80,588,000 37.1%
2004 221,256,931 174,800,000 122,294,978 55.3
2002 215,473,000 150,990,598 79,830,119 37.0
2000 205,815,000 156,421,311 105,586,274 51.3
1998 200,929,000 141,850,558 73,117,022 36.4
1996 196,511,000 146,211,960 96,456,345 49.1
1994 193,650,000 130,292,822 75,105,860 38.8
1992 189,529,000 133,821,178 104,405,155 55.1
1990 185,812,000 121,105,630 67,859,189 36.5
1988 182,778,000 126,379,628 91,594,693 50.1
1986 178,566,000 118,399,984 64,991,128 36.4
1984 174,466,000 124,150,614 92,652,680 53.1
Analysis of Voter Turnout…Voter turnout rates reached a long time low in the
elections of 1996 and 2000In 2004 extraordinary efforts by political parties,
candidate campaigns, and interest groups increased the voter turnout to about 60%.
The highest turnouts in American history happened around the turn of the 20th century, when higher voter fraud artificially elevated voter rates
Profile of individuals most likely to vote (Core Electorate)
Middle aged or older Poor record for 18 to 24 year olds! (That is you!!!!)
WhiteHighly educatedLiving outside the southMaleMarriedEmployment in white collar jobLong time resident of an areaWealthy
Disappearance of racial factor with consideration of socioeconomic status
Reasons for VotingOne of the duties and
obligations of citizenship
Belief in concept that every vote counts (Florida in 2000)
Predicted closeness of an election
Joy of participation in political process
Desire to influence outcome of elections and the direction of the nation’s policies
Identification with a specific party and or party’s candidate
Response to volunteers and campaign staff’s get-out-the-vote efforts Door-to-door canvassing Voter registration drives
Reasons for Not Voting Lack of interest (Lacks
Political Efficacy) Lack of faith in political
system Lack of government
responsiveness to the individual voter
Lack of any real choice between candidates
Indecision on merits and/or positions of candidates
Domination of area by one party
Illness on election dayLack of transportation
(poor/elderly)Out of district on
election dayFailure to obtain an
absentee ballot (young and old)
Reasons for voter decisions on given Candidates
Party affiliation - partisanship Declining importance in recent years
Interest in particular issue or issues Increase in single issue voting Problems with issue voting
Lack of clarity in a candidates position (easy issues) Agreement on candidates position but not means of implementation (hard
issues) Agreement with different candidates on different issues
Reasons for votes decisions on candidates Cont’
Prospective vision Favorable comparison of position statements and choice of
candidate (Takes real effort) Retrospective vision
Basis of judgment on results not intentions Personal appeal (role of the Media?)
Past accomplishments Perception of competence and political ability Perception of ability to deal with crisis, other elected officials and
branches of government
2. Campaign Roles Citizens can play Member of paid political staff Donation of time as a volunteer (Active Role)
Phone calling and door-to-door campaigning Selling of prospective candidates Registration of potential voters
Mailing literature and letters of endorsement Hosting fund-raising parties Hosting meet-the-candidate parties Distributing handbills on election day Displaying bumper stickers, buttons, and or other election
paraphernalia Keeping abreast of the issues (Passive Role)
Read newspapers Watch television Hold political discussions Communicating with the candidate on the issues Donation of $ (10% of voters do this)
Nomination as a candidateAttractiveness of political career in 20th century
Salary and benefits Public recognition Perception of power Belief in ability to impact the direction of government
Reasons for not seeking a political office Cost of campaigns Absence from current job or position Demands on time and family Loss of privacy Mudslinging campaigns Possibility of defeat
Additional Actions citizens can takeContact with elected officials on issues or need for
personal assistance 30% of the people per year
Membership in a group or association hoping to impact political decisions 90% of the population in one group 50% of the population in 3 or more groups 4% of the groups with politics only focus
Filing a lawsuit to challenge a government actionUse of Civil Disobedience
Intentional breaking of a law to bring attention to an issue
Role of Public OpinionWhat do citizens want from government?Definition
Opinions of people about elected officials, candidates, public policy, and government institutions
Reflections of personal values, beliefs, and attitudes Values –basic guiding goals and priorities Beliefs – understanding of events and visions of the
future Attitudes – judgments about the interactions of life
Creation of linkage between public opinion and government policy
Inconsistencies in Public OpinionsDissatisfaction in 1992 (Not always easy to
interpret)
Disapproval of George Bush’s job as president by more than 60% Disapproval of the job of Congress by nearly 80% Little or no trust in the government to do the right
thing most or all the time by more than 60%
Satisfaction in 1992Pride in being an American by more than 90%General belief in the workings of democracy by
more than 60%
2010Obama’s approval rating in the 30% range50% of Americans have confidence in their
government
73% of people believe business can run things more efficiently than government
76% of people believe the government needs to build roads and conduct research
End-of-Presidency Job Approval Ratings
President Rating (%) Election ResultsBill Clinton(2 terms, D, 2001)
66 VP Gore (D) wins popular vote but Bush (R) wins electoral college vote
Ronald Reagan(2 terms, R, 1989)
63 VP Bush (R) defeats Dukakis (D)
John F. Kennedy(partial term, D, 1963)
63 (VP) Johnson (D) defeats Goldwater (R)
Dwight Eisenhower(2 terms, R, 1961)
59 Kennedy (D) defeats Nixon (R)
George H. Bush(1 term, R, 1993)
56 Clinton (D) defeats Bush (R)
Gerald Ford(partial term, R, 1977)
53 Carter (D) defeats Ford (R)
Lyndon Johnson(1+ terms, D, 1969)
49 Nixon (R) defeats Humphrey (Johnson did not run) (D)
Jimmy Carter(1 term, D, 1981)
34 Reagan (R) defeats Carter (D)
George W. Bush(2 terms, R, 2009)
34 Obama (D) defeats McCain (R)
Richard Nixon(partial term, R, 1974)
24 Carter (D) defeats (VP) Ford (R)
Public Opinion PollingSampling
Random Complete listing of all available people Selection of a random number to be interviewed
Equal chance of every person to be chosen
Multistage cluster Division of the nation into regions of equal population Division of regions into sub regions Choice of several sub regions in each region Selection of random sample from each sub region
Random-digit telephone dialers Selection of every X number of houses in the subregion
Sampling errorDifference between the sample and the entire population
Margin of errorProbability of the entire population within X
percentageIncrease in the accuracy of the poll with an
increase in the sample sizePotential for inaccuracy (Watch out for..)
Emotionally loaded questionsSubtle differences in wordingLack of truthfulness on the part of the
respondents
Opinions of Various GroupsMust design campaigns to get their support!
Gender DifferencesExamples of the gender gap
Women’s shift to the Republican party in the Eisenhower Era Party of Peace
Importance of health issues to women and defense issues to men
Age differences Examples of generation gap
18 to 30 year olds only group with majority Republican identification
Less attachment to the idea of a large military to preserve the peace among the young
Class DifferencesExamples of an education and income gap
Support for government direct assistance programs among people with less money and less education
More support for protection of civil liberties by upper and middle classes
Regional DifferencesExamples of a geographic gap
Major support for a strong military in the south Major support for prayer in the schools in the south Minimum support for civil rights by many white
Southerners
Racial Differences Example of Race gap
Question of guilt or innocence of O.J. Simpson Strong support for civil rights laws by blacks
Acquisition of Political Knowledge and Opinions in the Socialization Process (How do we acquire our political tastes?)
Timeline Preschool (1-4)
Ideas of authority and rules Elementary school (5-10)
Concept of government as an institution Portrayal of political figures as honest and benevolent
Adolescence (11-18) Beginning of identification with a political party Ability to think of politics in the abstract as liberal or
conservative Adulthood (18+)
Generally no change in basic political beliefs Open concern for jobs and personal welfare Responsible for continuity of US politics
Influences
FamilyGeneral imitation of members’ views
SchoolsTeaching about the organization of society
and governmentTeaching compliance to rules and authorityTeaching of patriotismTendency of college experience to liberalize
views
Mass media Impacts
Setting of the public policy agenda Content of news coverage (CNBC v. FOX) Stress on issues or people (where in the line up, what page?)
Development of a party identification Guiding short-term opinions and voting
Creation of vision of political efficacy (trust in government) Internal-personal ability to influence government External government ability to handle personal concerns General decline in both areas over the long-term
Mass Media cont’ Limitations of mass media
Prescreening of incoming information Choice of what to watch or read, sound bites
Party loyalty (Republican – FOX) Choice of party candidate regardless of information
Importance of local issues and personal communication Increasing concern with local support rather than regional or
national
Mass Media DefinitionsMedia
Means for the transmission of thoughts and ideas
MassImpact on a large number of people
Media Statistics (HUGE #’s)Televisions
In United States homes in 2010 1 in over over 99% 2 in over 75% 3 in over 50%
2,500 stations in 2000Radio
13,000 stations in 2000Newspapers
1,500 dailies in 2000
Organizational Structure of the News Media
Division into corporationMotive to make profits
Need for significant audience (Entertainment??) Need to secure advertisements
Increase in the number of mergers Total media outlets
Control of 50+% of outlets by 50 corporations (1981) Control of 50+% of outlets by 29 corporations (1987)
Merger mania Paramount Viacom Turner Broadcasting and ABC
Newspapers Lack of competition in 98% of US cities
ExamplesDecline from 14 papers in 1920 to 4 in 1996 in NYCOwnership of 82 individual papers by the Gannett Corporation
Broadcast Media TV Increase in the number of stations legally permitted to be owned
by a network 5 – pre 1980 12 – late 1980s 20 late 1990s
Potential allowable market-share increase from 25 to 35 % of the nations viewing audience
Increase in competition with growth of cable television World Wide Web
Over 1 billion documents Over 15 million domain namesMedia as a business is very competitive - but tough to make $$
Perspectives on the Role of the Print MediaPartisan Press
Reporting of news from a particular stance (Liberal/Conservative)
Critique Harsh treatment of certain issues or individuals (Hardball)
Benefit Airing of dissenting views
Public Press Cheap newspapers for the increasingly literate population
Mass circulation newspapers USA Today Examples NY Times
Joseph Pulitzer and Randolph Hearst News and entertainment Sensationalistic yellow journalism
Public Press cont’Opinion Magazines
McClure’s, Cosmopolitan, and Colliers Use of investigative reporting
Revelations on the underside of industrialization and society at the turn of the century (muckrakers)
Ida Tarbell – The History of the Standard Oil Company Lincoln Steffen – The Shame of Cities Frank Norris – “The Octopus” Upton Sinclair – The Jungle
Critique Watered down, often sensationalistic, content to appeal to a
variety of groups (USA Today, NY Times)
Can the Press be objective???Objective Press
“Cannons of Journalism” 1923 Principles of an objective press
Appearance of reporting all sides of all issues
Critique Impossibility of objectivity
Inclusion or exclusion of certain newsworthy items Emphasis or de-emphasis on certain aspects of a situation Positive or negative slant to coverage
Interpretive PressJob of reporter to interpret and analyze what is said and
doneCritique
Advocacy of certain policy positions of either the establishment or its opponents
Government Control of the MediaJudicial – The Courts
Support of 1st Amendment protections No prior restraint on publication of material, but
responsibility for publication Definition of limitations on obscenity and libel
Question of right of access to information Freedom of Information Act, 1966
Protection of citizen’s right to information Branzburg v. Hayes, 1972
No guarantee of special access for the press to information not available to the general public
Richmond Newspapers, Inc v. Virginia, 1980 Open access of press and public to criminal trials and the
government bureaucracy
Executive – The PresidentAppointment with Senate approval of members of
Federal Communications CommissionUse of White House Press Corps. to communicate
policies of the executive branch Reporters traveling with the President at taxpayer
expense
Legislative - CongressAppropriation of funding for Public Broadcasting SystemAllocation of scarce resources- broadcasting frequencies
Establishment of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) (1934) Origin In Radio Act (1927)
Assignment of frequencies by Federal Radio Commission
Membership Appointment by the President with Senate
approval Duties –How does the FCC operate?
Management of all electronic communications Regulation of broadcast content to protect the
public’s interest Equal time provision Requirement of time for all candidates, not selected
ones
Fairness Doctrine Provision of time for opposing views on controversial topics Red Lion Broadcasting Co. v. FCC, 1969
Upholding of doctrine for broadcasts Miami Herald Publishing Co v. Tornillo, 1974 Striking down of doctrine for newspapers Abolition by FCC in 1987Political – editorial rule Right of candidate to reply to a station’s editorial Personal Attack Rule
Right of individual or group to reply to negative statements
Abolition of required number of radio commercials Abolition of required public affairs programming
Regulation of Children’s programming with Children’s Television Act (1990)
Requirement for FCC license to serve educational
and informational needs of children Regulation of the use of Public Airwaves Definition of technical standards
Creation of licensing procedures
7-7-7 rule early 1950s
Licensing of 7 AM , 7 FM and 7 television stations to the same
source
Expansion to 12-12-12 rule in the 1980s
Development of a crisis situation in 1992 Support for increasing single ownership of radio stations
Compromise of 18 AM and 18 FM Only 2 AM and 2 FM in the same market
Control of broadcasting standards
Regulation of Ownership Prevention of multiple station ownership by a corporation or person in a single market Prevention of cross-ownership by a corporation or person in a single market Ownership of different types of media outlets Potential easing of restrictions with advent of cable industry Reduction of regulations on mergers in 1985 Fear by some of more domination by conservative owners
Regulation of cable television rates with Cable Television Consumer Competition Act (1992)
One billion dollar reduction 1993
Facilitation of development of alternative media technologies
(Gov’t approval needed to raise Rates)
State Governments Protection of sources
Use of shield laws in 25 states to protect reporters’ sources
Interaction of the Media and the PublicCriteria for decisions on the choice of news articles -What to
cover? High impact on the audience Natural or man made violence, conflict, disaster, or scandal Familiarity of the subject Novel and up to date stories Local events
Elasticity of definition of local with shrinking worldChanging concepts of news
Broadcast media Blur between news and entertainment Blurring of distinction between news and entertainment in
broadcast media “Infotainment” of morning news Cheaper production costs of late night news type shows
“48 Hours “Dateline”
Production of tabloid news programs “Hard Copy” “A Current Affair”Increasing premium on short stories with dynamic pictures
Print mediaFirst priority to news of public events
Greater depth and breadth of news coverageIncreasing presence of alternative sections –Entertainment!
Sports Comics Human Interest Features Entertainment/recreation Family/gender issues
Interaction of the Media & PoliticsCampaign Coverage – How to cover a
campaign?Types of campaign news (listed in order of declining
importance) Strategy planning
Discuss campaign strategies Horse racing image
Perception of the campaign as a competition Hoopla excitement
Coverage of exciting news Real Issues
Discussion of substantive campaign issues Candidate character
Revelations on the attributes and flaws of candidates Polling results
Reporting of poll results and analysis Common man interviews
Interviews with potential voters
Current Political events/actions Linking of candidates and campaigns to breaking events
White House Congress
Media usage Reporting on other media’s campaign coverage
Expert commentary Analysis by political experts
Pack Journalism – Use of Pools Homogenization of reports
Reporting of politicians’ statements Reporting of other reporters’ statements
New Initiatives during 1992 Campaign Dedicated effort by news reporters to avoid manipulation by
the candidates or parties Bypassing of network news political media
Use of MTV Use of interview shows - Oprah
Media BiasDifficulty of classification
Subjectivity of positive and negative decision Assumption of 50/50 treatment
Keys to the selection and reporting of news stories Access of information Succinctness Newsworthiness Sound bites
General government news reporting - How does media get its info on government?Major sources for political and economic news
National Government Official proceedings White House Papers Press conferences Interviews Staged events “Leaks”
Foreign governments Pollsters National Wire Service
Associated Press United Press International Reuters
Interest Groups
News Reporting and the national government Influences on and of the executive
Promotion of cause or agenda Focus on politics not policy Concentration on personality not issues Potential for promotion of disinformation
Intentional use of misinformation to influence future events Influences on and of Congress
Broadcasting of floor debate by C-Span network House of Representatives
Amendment of rules (1979) Coverage of Nixon impeachments hearings Open coverage of floor debate (1986)
Senate Open coverage of floor debate (1986)
Audience Potential of 150 million viewers Viewing by 21.6 million households four and one-half hours per month
Difficulty of coverage Slow and tedious pace of decisions Focus on leadership and committees
Influences on and of the Courts Minimal coverage
Inaccessibility of judges Importance
Investigation of crimes and trials
Views on the MediaImportance for the information of public opinion
Repetition of selected stories Selection of news stories and or candidates for coverage Allotment of time and space to story placement
Priority of the story Ability to withhold a story or manipulate the reporting
Attempts to control journalistic content of the news by “spin” efforts
Source for most information on candidates, convention, and campaigns
Source for most information on local, state, regional, national, or international events
Use of investigative reporting Broadening of the information base Enhancement of democratic control Deterrence on abusers by institutions and groups
Alteration of views not strongly heldImpact on the public agendaCreation of a view on a previously unknown
itemWithholding of information
Reasons for the potential decline in the impact of the media – is it losing its influence? Importance of beliefs of family, church, and community Viewing of news programs or reading of newspapers by a
relatively small number of people Selection by the public of news shows and columns in support
of pre-existing beliefs Difficulty in understanding the fragmented rapid fire television
news broadcasts Fear of the new technologies
Concern of government “eavesdropping on citizens Availability only to those with money Lack of instruction in how to use the technologies Worry over increasing government regulation
Reasons for the potential increase in the impact of the media – Will media impact increase? Decentralization of access to information and transmission
lines with new technologies Diversification in sources of information and in ways of
communicating More control by individuals
Ability to become a publisher Ability to communicate with people around the world
Development of new and revised codes of ethics and definitions of civic responsibility