1. THE NEWS MEDIA

2. Questions to consider…
1. Are the news media biased?
2. To what direction do they lean?
3. Give an example of a biased news source?

3. A Complex Relationship
Between the media and policymakers
TV quickened the pace of the news but it by no means determines American public policy.
Politicians actively court the media’s favor and ascribe to the media the power to make or break government policy.
The mass media have an effect both on public opinion and on the shape of policy-makers’ choices.

6. Technology and the Press
High-speed press
Mid-19th century
Mass printing and readership
Wire services (telegraph) made news travel fast
Broadcast journalism
News was sensationalized to keep people interested
Complex stories were oversimplified
Internet allows quick access

7. The Contemporary Media
A number of newspapers have a national audience and are considered quite influential:
The New York Times
The Wall Street Journal
USA Today
The Christian Science Monitor
The Washington Post
The Los Angeles Times
These newspapers have a huge effect on TV.

10. The Media and Politicians
The increasingly rapid pace of electronic news and T.V.’s global coverage shortens the time frame for policy responses.
Example: Berlin Wall
Roughly 2/3 of policy-makers reported that the media was their most rapid source of information.
Over 4/5s indicated that the media were an important source of information.

12. How Politicians Use the Media
Politicians and government officials often stage media events in order to gain free media coverage.
Candidates and politicians try to control or 'spin' media focus regarding campaign and policy issues.
Candidates and politicians may 'leak' a story to the press in order to get their story out without being the focus of that story.
Trial balloon

13. New York Times
“I’ve said many times that I never learned from a classified document anything I couldn’t get earlier or later from the New York Times.”
John Kenneth Galbraith

14. The Media and the Public
Knowledge is power.
98% of all American households own at least one television.
Over 1500 newspapers with daily circulations of 60 million.
There are 3 major weekly news magazines that claim nearly 10 million readers.
Mass media may not successfully tell people what to think, but they are successful in telling their audience what to think about. (greatest among those with no interest in politics)
The mass media perform a MEDIATING role – helping to shape political attitudes and choices but not DETERMINING them.

15. In pairs… Who influences whom more…the media or policymakers?
Provide at least 3 different examples of this influence.

16. The Inadvertent Audience
Television provides the mass of American people with an infusion of policy information that most neither like nor want.
There are three consequences of this forced media:
Television may explain the decline of confidence in the nation’s leadership.
Being uninterested, Americans are unlikely to have strong convictions about issues as do those who regularly follow political affairs.
Policy ideas must fit into “one-liners” that will fit into 30, 60, or 90 second slots on the evening news.

17. Imperviousness of Beliefs
Generally neither reading nor watching the news alters what people think.
Selective perception is a pervasive human tendency.
People search for “comfortable” information that “fits” with preexisting beliefs.
People screen out or reject information with which they disagree.
In short, we see what we want to see and hear what we want to hear.

18. Government Regulation of the Electronic Media
Print media are exempt from most governmental regulation.
Electronic media are not.
Airwaves are considered public property and are leased to networks and private broadcasters by the government.
Government also allocates the use of frequencies and channels so that radio and TV do not overlap and jam each others' signals.

19. Media Restrictions Formal Informal Libel/Slander laws
NYT v. Sullivan revealed how hard it is to prove libel against public officials
FCC regulations and licensing
Public service programming
Equal time and right of reply to candidates
Informal
Need for profit
Need for contacts (politicians may not share info to an unfavorable news source)

20. The Media’s Influence
Do the media have too much influence on policymaking? If so why?
If not, why do so many people think the media are so influential?
How should a citizen use the media?
Should we always believe the news media when they make claims?
How can we become better consumers of information?

21. Pair Share…
What is the actual job/goal of journalist in American society?
What are examples of media bias you can see in other areas beyond politics?

22. Read and think…don’t write SOME THINGS TO CONSIDER:
A former CBS correspondent, Bernard Goldberg has been a prominent critic of bias in the media.
He stated that news as reported by the mainstream media—especially network television—has a liberal slant.
He argues that this is not an intentional bias, but is the result of the liberal perspective shared by most reporters, anchors, and editors.

23. EXAMPLES:
Using political labels, e.g., a conservative politician is labeled as such (conservative Senator Sam Brownback) while a liberal politician is not (Oregon Senator Ron Wyden).
Using loaded language, e.g., a conservative proposal is labeled a scheme while a liberal proposal is labeled a plan.
Using attractive examples to generate sympathy for a liberal position, e.g., in a story on homelessness, using a clean, hardworking white family with children rather than a mentally ill drug user to illustrate the story.
Using exaggeration to generate sympathy for a liberal position, e.g., in a story on AIDS, focusing on heterosexual AIDS victims who do not inject drugs (a minority of AIDS victims) rather than homosexuals or IV drug users (the vast majority of AIDS victims).
Adhering to liberal standards of political correctness, e.g., in a story on an Alabama prison, using film of both white and black prisoners even though most prisoners

24. The central purpose of journalism is to provide citizens with accurate and reliable information they need to function in a free society.
1. Journalism’s first obligation is to the truth
Democracy depends on citizens having reliable, accurate facts put in a meaningful context. Journalists try to convey a fair and reliable account of the meaning of facts.
2. Its essence is a discipline of verification.
Seeking out multiple witnesses, disclosing as much as possible about sources, or asking various sides for comment all signal such standards.
3. It must serve as an independent monitor of power.
Journalism has an unusual capacity to serve as watchdog over those whose power and position most affect citizens.
4. It must provide a forum for public criticism and compromise.
The discussion of public issues serves society best when it is based on fact rather than prejudice and supposition. It should fairly represent the varied viewpoints and interests in society, placed in context not highlight only the conflicting debate.
5. It must keep the news comprehensive and proportional.
Inflating events for sensation, neglecting others, stereotyping or being disproportionately negative all make a less reliable map for citizens to navigate society.