1. Participation in Government How Media Reports

2. How does the media report on politics? “Speak softly and carry a big stick.” “We have nothing to fear but fear itself.” “I am not a crook.” “No new taxes.” “Building a bridge to the twenty-first century.” “Fuzzy Math” “I hear you, the world hears you, and the people who knocked down these buildings will hear you very soon!” “The Man,” T.R. Richard Nixon Franklin D. Roosevelt George HW Bush William Clinton George W. Bush

4. How does the media report on politics? Answer: The media takes long speeches and cuts them down into little snippets. Sound Bites: A small portion of a speech that is reported by the media

5. The average sound bite is 7 seconds followed by 30 seconds of commentary. What assumptions does the media make? The public isn’t informed and/or intelligent enough to understand. Public’s attention span is too short The pundits (people who report on politics) are smarter than the people.

8. What is the impact of sound bites? People don’t receive comprehensive information. It is easy to distort the actual meaning of what was said Media outlets are biased and put their own spin on information. Spin: biased interpretation of a situation

13. How do politicians work the media? “time to start kissing babies” 1) Photo-Op: A staged event that a politician can be seen at by voters in a particular way. Ex) A front page picture of George W. Bush reading Green Eggs & Ham to 1 st graders. How can this picture be used in both a positive and negative manor?

16. How do politicians work the media? 2) Free Media: Media coverage of a candidate/politician for which there is no cost. ex) Barack Obama appears on Larry King Live. ++: It’s Free!! ---: there is no control over length or angle http://youtu.be/RsWpvkLCvu4

20. How do politicians work the media? 3) Paid Media: Media coverage that is paid for by the candidate’s campaign or political party ex) Billboards, commercials, and print ads ++: total control over content ---: costs $$ and is biased. http://youtu.be/BkmJ4gIa8ek