1. Roles of the News Media in Democracy  Watchdog Over Government  Providing Policy Information 6.1 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

2. Watchdog Over Government  Main role of a free press Can’t hold officials accountable without knowledge  First Amendment prohibits censorship Contrast with authoritarian regimes Even other democratic regimes exercise more control  Biggest threat to public information 6.1 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

3. Clarifying Electoral Choices and Providing Policy Information  Providing electoral information What parties stand for Candidates’ character, knowledge, experience, issue positions  Facts and ideas about policy Emerging problems How well policies are working Pros and cons of policies 6.1 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

4. Darned reporters 6.1 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

5. Alternatives to the Mainstream  The Internet Instant access to information Political uses Political party and government websites Fact-checking Reading political blogs & expressing political views Visiting political and traditional news websites  Decline in newspapers 6.2 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

6. FIGURE 6.1: Timeline: The Internet 6.2 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

7. FIGURE 6.2: Where people get their news 6.2 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

8. Continuing Importance of the Mainstream  Still play central role Wire services Syndication services Setting political agenda  Why mainstream news is still important Audience is broader Stories originate with traditional reporting Quality and quantity have not increased 6.2 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

9. WikiLeaks founder in trouble 6.2 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

10. How the Mainstream News Media Work  Organization of the News Media  Political Newsmaking  Is the News Biased?  Prevailing Themes in Political News 6.3 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

11. Organization of the News Media  Corporate ownership Dominated by a few conglomerates Is media monopoly a problem? 6.3 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

12. Political Newsmaking  Limited geography of political news DC and NYC  Dependence on official sources Beats and news-gathering routines Press conferences and press releases Leaks  Government news management Spin 6.3 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

13. Political Newsmaking  Newsworthiness What makes a story newsworthy?  Templates  Episodic foreign coverage  Interpreting Objective journalism Interpretation by pundits, not journalists 6.3 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

14. Is the News Biased?  Liberal reporters More liberal than population Personal values do not affect reporting Commitment to objectivity  Not-so-liberal owners and corporations Owners conservative and Republican Cannot offend advertisers  Biases that matter Profit motive biggest bias Official sources 6.3 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

15. Stunned by Katrina 6.3 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

16. Prevailing Themes in Political News  Nationalism Pro-American point of view American interests and concerns Harmonizes with official foreign policy  Approval of the American economic system  Negativity and scandal Sex & financial scandal coverage nonpartisan 6.3 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

17. Prevailing Themes in Political News  Infotainment Biggest sin is to be boring Sensation over substance  Limited, fragmented, and incoherent political information Prevailing technology Organization of news gathering Corporate ownership Profit-making 6.3 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

18. Effects of the News Media on Politics  Agenda Setting  Framing and Effects on Policy Preferences  Fueling Cynicism 6.4 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

19. Agenda Setting  News coverage affects what issues Americans think are important Policy preferences affected  The CNN effect Politicians compelled to act Works both ways Media report issues of concern to those in power 6.4 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

20. Framing and Effects on Policy Preferences  Issue framing Affects how public thinks about problems Affects how public assigns blame 6.4 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

21. The televised war 6.4 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

22. Fueling Cynicism  Adversarial journalism Failures, not triumphs, are newsworthy  How does new coverage shape Americans’ views of government? 6.4 © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.