1. Dr. Marquita L. Byrd marquita.byrd@sjsu.edu
Communication Studies
Multicultural Communication
San Jose State University
Dr. Marquita L. Byrd

2. Spiral of Silence Theory
Chapter Overview
SST at a Glance
Introduction
The Court of Public Opinion
Assumptions of SST
The Media’s Influence
The Train Test
The Hard Core
Integration and Critique

3. Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann
German political scientist contributed the famous model called “Spiral of Silence”. Through this Spiral of Silence theory Neumann indirectly explains the Jews status during World War II under Nazi’s control. Jews were a minority and silenced through extermination. While Adolf Hitler dominated the whole society there were many Germans who did not support his regime, but became vocally silent for fear for their lives and the lives of their children.
However many resisted though other means

4. Introduction People with a minority viewpoint remain in the background
Communication will be constrained
People with a majority viewpoint become more encouraged to speak

5. The Court of Public Opinion
Noelle-Neumann founded and directed Allensbach Institute
The Spiral of Silence: Public Opinion-Our Social Skin, separates public opinion into
Public
Opinion
Public opinion is the attitudes and behaviors expressed in public in order to avoid isolation

6. SST at a Glance Media have profound effects on public opinion
Mass media work with majority opinion to silence minority beliefs
Fear of isolation prompts those with minority views to examine beliefs of others

7. Assumptions of SST
The fear of isolation causes individuals to try to assess the climate of opinions at all times. The fear of retribution, the fear of physical harm, the fear of punishment, the fear of annihilation.
Individuals receive information about public opinion from
Personal observation
The media

8. Example of The Spiral of Silence

9. The Media’s Influence The media are
Ubiquitous (everywhere)
Cumulative (add up)
Consonant (match each other)
People experience the climate of public opinion through the mass media
Movies, TV programs, news, entertainment programs, books, social media, magazines

10. The Train Test An assessment of the extent people will speak out
The question: At the beginning of a 5-hour train ride, a person sits next to you and starts discussing the problems of food safety. Would you talk or not talk about the topic to the person?

11. Results of The Train Test
Findings
Supporters of the dominant opinion are more willing to speak out
Men from large cities, aged are more willing to speak out
Various ways of speaking out exist
People share their opinions more with those who agree

12. The Train Test Findings, continued
People will voice an opinion if it aligns with current trends
People draw the strength of their convictions from a variety of sources
People engage in “last-minute swings”

13. Emperor’s New Clothes by Hans Christian Anderson 1837.
A vain Emperor who cares for nothing except wearing and displaying clothes hires two swindlers who promise him the finest, best suit of clothes from a fabric invisible to anyone who is unfit for his position or "hopelessly stupid". Finally the swindlers report that the suit is finished, and they mime dressing him. The Emperor's ministers cannot see the clothing themselves, but pretend that they can for fear of appearing unfit for their positions. The Emperor marches in procession before his subjects. The townsfolk play along with the pretense not wanting to appear unfit for their positions or stupid. Then a child in the crowd, too young to understand the desirability of keeping up the pretense, blurts out that the Emperor is wearing nothing at all and the cry is taken up by others. The Emperor cringes, suspecting the assertion is true, but continues the procession.
The one who speaks out, the lone voice or committed few can change public opinion across time.

14. They are The Hard Core
Usually small groups of people who commit themselves to sustained, focused resistance again some type of oppression. (Could even be one person)
The hard core moved public opinion on AIDS, gay marriage, use of marijuana, civil rights, women’s rights, and rights of the disabled.

15. The Hard Core
If the minority opinion becomes loud enough and institutions of power bask them then the majority voice becomes less powerful
The hard core (minority voices) moved public opinion on AIDS, on segregation, gay marriage and rights of the disabled.

16. Example of The Spiral of Silence

17. The world has changed since Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann’s time due to
New media
cyber space, computers, cell phones,
social media, desktop publishing, self-
publishing,
Public access channels (radio and
television)
Minority newspapers
Minority TV stations and channels
Counter culture news such as Al Jazeera

18. Critical Weaknesses and Strengths of SST
Problems with the theory
Does not address resistance
Greatly understates the consequences of speaking out (isolation is the least painful)
Dated due to new media
Strengths of SST
Provides lens for looking at the relationship among majority
and minority opinions and the media
Employed in studies on many topics