Chapter 12: The Media
AP Classes, Nov. 28, 2016
Wonky things you may see in a paper/
website today and didn’t know it:
o Gatekeeping
o Scorekeeping
o Watchdog-ing
o Guv’ment regulation
o A healthy dose of bias
o Maybe some leaking
o And good ol’ fashioned linking
The media are a LINKAGE INSTITUTION!
And what’s a linkage institution again?
o Something that links people to policy.
How are the media a linkage institution ?
o Media link —
o people outside the gov’t to gov’t officials by interviewing
citizens, presenting poll results, covering protests, publishing
letters to the editor, etc.
o government officials to people outside the gov’t by reporting
on the government’s activities.
o In short, the media reflect as well as influence public opinion. By
affecting what we think is important, they affect what makes it on the
policy agenda.
Some textbook shtuff: Definition of “mass
media”
o It Includes all forms of communication to
the general public.
o Sometimes considered the “fourth branch”
of government given the importance and
influence on the electorate, policy-making,
politics, and the government.
•
(And sometimes called the “fourth estate” –
the first three being the “estates of the
Realm”: the clergy, the nobility, and the
commoners.)
More textbook shtuff: Journalism in
Political History
I’ve posted to your Chapter 12 materials a grid that summarizes
this material.
•
•
It is, in my opinion, only moderately interesting until you get to
modern times.
But take a look at the grid so that you’ll at least be familiar with
the terms.
Declining Competition
o The number of papers is
declining (see chart at
right; a loss of close to
400 papers since 1985)…
…while readership is declining as well.
Should we care? Any potential problems with these
trends?
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Internet Impact on Politics
It’s a game-changer. Its low marginal costs allow for…
o “Narrowcasting” by politicians, interest groups (see article
posted to your webpage).
o Fund-raising from small contributors (ex: Bernie Sanders talked
about an average contribution of $27).
o Easier organizing of activists, voters, supporters, opponents, etc.
o Instant (albeit not terribly reliable) temperature-taking.
o And a forum for analysis, some useful, much just garbage.
Internet impact on politics (cont.)
o In addition to the preceding effects, media may be changing the
nature of campaigns:
“If traditional print and broadcast media required candidates to
be nouns—stable, coherent figures—social media pushes them
to be verbs, engines of activity.” (To read more, go to http://
tinyurl.com/ovf2wja.)
o Trump obviously used Twitter extensively.
o Media also can hurt a campaign (see John Dean’s “I Have a Scream”
speech: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5FzCeV0ZFc)
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Internet impact (cont.): Fake news
o Ugh. Check out list of fake news sources on class site.
o See also recent Reddit disclosure.
o Underscores need for you to be informed consumers.
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Despite general decline, some national
papers continue to have clout
o They have broad circulations (albeit
declining; NYT is doing well).
o The political elites start their day
with NYT, WaPo, WSJ, + maybe a
few more.
o TV and radio often take their cues
from them.
Media’s relationship with the fed’l gov’t:
gatekeeper, scorekeeper, and watchdog
o Gatekeeper: Can shape which issues are prominent. Without
media attention, an issue is likely to get less attention in gov’t.
May skew perceptions.
•
Ex: Is crime really going up or is it just being covered more?
Relationship with the fed’l gov’t (cont.)
o Scorekeeper. Of lots of things, like –
•
•
•
•
•
Who’s up/down in the polls.
Who’s a likely contender in the next presidential race.
Whether the Republicans or Democrats are “winning” on an
issue.
WaPo’s “Worst Week in Washington”
Another example: “horse-race journalism.” (See next slide)
“Horse-race journalism”
o Reporting on who’s winning,
who’s losing an election.
o Success begets success – win
Iowa and New Hampshire (for
instance) and you’re legit;
otherwise, not so much.
o Typical headline from CNN:
“CNN/ORC Poll: Donald Trump,
Ted Cruz on the rise in Iowa” (http://
www.cnn.com/2015/12/07/politics/donald-trump-ted-cruz-iowapoll/)
These guys weren’t even subtle about it:
Relationship with the fed’l gov’t (cont.)
o Watchdog: Important but arguably diminishing role. (but see
http://www.thenation.com/article/were-living-golden-ageinvestigative-journalism/). Takes time, money, talent.
•
Ex: Woodward & Bernstein/Watergate; Gary Hart and “The
Monkey Business”
Rules governing the media
Prior restraint:
o It’s prohibiting the publication of something (a/k/a
censorship).
o Not permitted except in narrow circumstances (see ch. 5
for more details):
•
Obscenity
•
Inciting violence
•
School speech
•
Threats to national security
Government regulation of the media:
“The Shield Law”
“Shield laws” allow a reporter to keep identity of sources
confidential
•
•
The fed’l gov’t does not have a shield law but some states do.
A balancing test: do the needs of a “journalist” to protect sources
outweigh the interest of the gov’t in gathering info for a criminal
prosecution?
Gov’t regulation (cont.):
Regulating broadcasting
o Done through the Federal Communications
Commission (FCC).
o The Federal Communications Act of 1934 established the
FCC as an independent regulatory agency with jx over
interstate communications.
Gov’t regulation — FCC (cont.):
FCC regulates in 3 basic areas:
o Technical
• Licensing, signal strength, digital conversion
o Structural
• Organization and ownership of broadcast media outlets
o Content
• Limitations on what you can broadcast
Technical Regulation
o “We the people” own the airwaves.
o Anything transmitted over the airwaves is subject
to regulation.
o Radio and television broadcasters must obtain a
license renewable every 5 years (TV) or 7 years
(radio).
• Subject to hearing if a group objects/complains
• May ask how the applicant plans to serve “community
needs”
Structural Regulation: Media
consolidation
Before 1990s, media monopolies were prohibited
Telecommunications Act of 1996: “Deregulated” (i.e., removed lots of
restrictions) the industry. Led to lots of consolidation, but there are still limits.
Ex:
o Can’t own a local newspaper and broadcast station in same market
o No single person/group can own broadcasters that reach more 39% of all
households.
o Fox, ABC, CBS, and NBC cannot merge.
o One person/group can’t own more than (roughly) 1/3 of all local radio
stations.
One consequence of consolidation: less local news coverage.
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Content regulation
Fairness doctrine v. equal time rule v. right of reply rule
Fairness doctrine: Air
one side of a story?
Give time to opposing
points of view.
o No longer applies
(as of 1987), since
there are so many
media outlets.
o N.B. This made
partisan “news”
shows possible.
Equal time rule:
Networks must provide
equal access to
politicians – treat all
candidates the same.
o Still applies. Basically
means charge
candidates the same
rate for ad time. But
see http://
tinyurl.com/q9uuckq.
o Exceptions for news
shows, interviews,
documentaries, cable.
Right of reply rule:
If a person is
attacked on a
broadcast other
than the news, then
that person has a
right to reply via the
same station.
Content regulation (cont.)
o Public Decency
FCC imposes fines and may revoke licenses in violation of decency
standards set by law
• Obscenity prohibited at all times (we’ll look at definition of
“obscenity” in Civil Liberties chapter next spring).
• Profanity prohibited between 6AM and 10PM.
• Only enforced on over-the-air broadcasts; cable not covered.
•
Bias
Are the media biased?
o The book’s answer:
• Study showing 91% of “media members” voted D in 1992,
compared to 43% of gen’l population.
• More secular, too.
https://
www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2014/05/06/1climate-report-and-30-different-headlines-written-on-it/
o Examples of bias showing in reporting:
o The media exist in LARGE part to sell ads. They will use
whatever tools they have to do so, including bias.
Detecting bias
o Less visible in routine stories
• Stories regularly covered by all.
• Jones beat Smith in local race.
o More so in feature stories
• Reporter seeks out the story about a public event.
• Jones beat Smith, and Jones’s husband helped her win the election with
his hilarious Kardashian impersonations.
o Also more visible with insider stories
• A story about something that otherwise wouldn’t become public, maybe
something leaked.
• Jones beat Smith, and Jones’s husband turns out to be a Kardashian.
Detecting bias
o What stories are covered? What do the omissions tell you?
o Where is the story printed? Page 1? Above the fold?
o Who are the sources? How are they credited? If anonymous
“source,” watch out.
o Even if description is used (“high ranking official in the White
House”), watch out: they probably have some purpose in giving you
the information. Could be –
• Trial balloon
• Death by premature leak
• Credit by claiming it first
o Nice summary: http://www.studentnewsdaily.com/types-of-media-
bias/
Maybe b/c of bias, we don’t trust
media with which we disagree. Sigh….
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So how influential are the media?
o We have “selective attention”, which diminishes the media’s influence.
o Many of us live in an echo chamber where we hear only those
things with which we agree.
o So Fox News or MSNBC may be very influential for conservatives
or liberals (respectively) but largely ignored by others.
o Influence also depends in part on the issue. Things we know about
(e.g., that I am unemployed or that I pay high prices) we don’t need
the media to tell us about.
Lord knows we consume a lot of it.
Headline from a WaPo story, 11/3/15:
“Teens spend nearly nine hours every
day consuming media”
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Influence of the media (cont.)
o Clearly, media can matter. Can highlight certain issues (see, e.g.,
global warming) and disconnects between what the gov’t is saying and
reality (see, e.g., Katrina).
o If people do not have preconceived opinions, media can shape them.
See experiment with Washington Post and Washington Times
discussed in your book.
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How is the gov’t reported?
o The President receives the most attention by the
media. Easier to cover one person than 535.
• He (actually, his office) will stage media events.
• He has a Press Secretary who cultivates relationships
with the media.
• Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. See, e.g.,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdzW9c_0DKM
Media and Congress
o Limited coverage
relative to that given
to President.
o Coverage of
confirmation hearings,
oversight
investigations, scandals.
o C-SPAN the uber
network for Congress.
Sources of information from gov’t
The media get their news from the gov’t in
several ways:
• Press releases
• News conferences (the politician)
• News briefings (the politician’s staff)
• Leaks
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Leaks
Why so many leaks?
o The book blames the Constitution and its separation of
powers
•
Branches compete, use the media to advance an agenda (and
defeat the opponent’s).
o Also blames the “adversarial press”
•
•
Politicians and press don’t trust each other; press always looking
for someone to leak the “real” story
This can lead to …
Leaks (cont.)
o … “gotcha” journalism and a reversion to a sensationalist
press.
o A related point: it’s easier (and more lucrative for the media)
to cover a sex scandal than it is to cover a hearing on
amendments to the tax code.
o Lots of leaks are “trial balloons.”
Gov’t Constraints on Journalists
o Book: Journalists can’t be too ideological or they will lose lots of sources.
o That’s true if the journalist is trying to be neutral. However, some
journalists have ideological outlets now, so having mainly D or R
sources isn’t fatal.
o People who speak with the media often try to control the final story.
They do this by controlling terms of interview:
On the record – quote freely, name the source.
• Off the record – don’t use; informational only. Must develop some other
source for information if you want to write about it.
• On background – use, but don’t name the source. “A high ranking official
said….”
• On “deep background” – use information but don’t attribute to anyone.
•
Gov’t constraints (cont.)
o Ultimate presidential stick: access.
o If a reporter can get an “exclusive” interview, that’s cool.
o Reporter may be willing to tailor questions to get one.
The media: Cartoons
o Cartoons frequently are used to editorialize. See, e.g.,
http://www.cagle.com/politicalcartoons/
o See also Tom Toles http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/
tom-toles-gallery-for-november/
2012/11/02/18543e98-2540-11e2-ac85e669876c6a24_gallery.html#photo=1