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60 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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mass media
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means of conveying information to large public audiences cheaply and efficiently
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infotainment
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news entertains us, not "hard news"
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selective perception
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the phenomenon of filtering information through personal values and interests
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minimal effects thesis
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theory that media has no effect on public opinion
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agenda setting
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by covering a story on the TV news, the media sends out a signal that this is an important issue. in this way, they can affect what is important and what people pay attention to. but, it doesn't always work.
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priming
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when media ffect standards people use to evaluate political figures or the severity of a problem. a lot of stories about an issue make us think it's important ( like shark attacks) but the problem may actually be decreasing. still allows you to make your own judgment on the issue
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framing
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shen media induce people to think about an issue from oen stand point rather than from another . example = government is oversteppint its bounds on abortion laws or abortion is murder and government needs to regulate it. they've already made the judgment for you.
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the cnn effect
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media select certain stories that they air, can lead to becoming viewed as important, related to agenda setting
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commercial bias
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driven by "bottom line" = provits, companies are worried about making profits, worried about other shows, 24 hour coverage = they will put something on the news because it will bring in viewers, sensationalism
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idological bias
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conservative/liberal bias. company owners are conservative; journalists are very liberal. Tv is more liberal than Radio - rush limbaugh and g. gordon liddy. newspapers are more conservative and pick conservative candidates much more frequently. you can choose which medium to watch. most people choose something with the same ideology as their own.
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selection bias
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media focuses on what's senational, negative, new, and exciting. focus on president more than on congress. horse race coverage more than policy issues. focus on stupid things people do.
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professional bias
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applies more to local news - reporters don't have substantial knowledge about what they're reporting on. with no expertise, it's hard to grasp a story.
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gatekeeping
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controlling which stories are covered and which are not.
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horserace coverage
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focus on opinion polls = who's ahead and who's behind rather than paying attention to policy differences
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pack journalism/feeding frenzy
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it's easier for everyone to cover the same thing
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Fairness Doctrine
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Part of the FCC bill of 1934 required that stations give free airtime to issues that concerned the public adn to opposing sides when controversial issues were covered... this just led to broadcasting stations avoiding controversial issues.
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Equal Time Rule
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Part of the FCC bill of 1934. means that if a station allows a candidate for office to buy or use airtime outside of regular news broadcasts, it must allow all candidates that opportunity. what is has actually done is to lead companies to offer the opportunity to all, because they don't want to have to give it to every candidate.
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Civic Journalism
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a movement among journalists to be responsive to citizen input in determining what news stories to cover
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Incumbency
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means that a person who is running for office already holds that position. sets them at an advantage.
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Incumbency advantage
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refers to the edge in visibility, experience, organization, and fundraising ability possessed by the incumbents, the people who already hold the job. it can make them hard to defeat.
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constituency
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the people that a member of congress represents- both the people that voted for them and the people that did not.
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casework
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takind care of the individual problems of constituents, especially problems that involve the federal bureaucracy
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pork barrel projects
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paid for by all the taxpayers but enjoyed by just a few... highway construction or the establishment of a research institution
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constituency service
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the same as casework
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substantive/policy representation
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congressional work for laws that advance the economic and social interese of the constituency
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symbolic representation
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represents may of the positive values Americans associate with public life and government. thus members are glad to serve as commencement speakers in graduations or attend town meetings, etc.
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reapportionment
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the 435 house seats are reallocated amont the states after each ten-year census. states whose population has grown gets more and shrinking states lose seats
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redistricting
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redrawing of district lines in states with more than one reprsentatie. it can become political...gerrymandering
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gerrymandering
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process of drawing district lines to benefit one group or another, it can result in some extremely strante shapes by the time the state politicians are through. usually one of three kinds:
1. pro-incumbency 2. partisan 3. racial |
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majority-minority districts
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this happens from racial gerry mandering. it means that minorities, such as african americans or hispanics constitute majorities in their congressional districts. this means that minorities can elect people of "their own", while at the same time taking democratic voters out of republican districts, making it easier for republicans to win seats.
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delegate
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this means that a representative votes exactly how their constituency wants them to
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trustee
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this means that the represnetative makes their own decisions on what is right.
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filibuster
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a practice of unlimited debate in the senate used to prevent or delay a vote on a bill
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cloture
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a vote taken in the senate to end a filibuster. must have 3/5 support, or sixty votes.
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standing committee
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permanent committees, created by statute, that carry over from one session of Congress to the next. they review most pieces of legislation that are introduced to congress. so powerful are the standing committees that they scrutinize, hold hearings on, and frequently, kill legislation before the full Congress ever gets the chance to discuss it. they deal with issues in specific policy areas sucha s agriculture, foreign relations, or justice. the committees have many subcommittees.
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select committees
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a select committee is made when a problem is presented that does not fall under one of the standing committees. they are usually temporary and do not always recommend legislation. they are used to gather information on specific issues like 9/11, whitewater
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conference committees
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are temporary committees made up of members of both houses. they are supposed to resolve the differences between teh bill that the senate passed and the bill that the house passed before it is voted on again.
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roll call vote
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congressional voting. all votes are available to the public. means that you can keep track of how your representatives vote.
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seniority system
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vests great power in committee chairs instead of the speaker. power followed seniority, or length of service on a committee, so that once a person assumed the chairmanship of a committee, business was run very much at the pleasure of the chair.
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speaker of the house
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is elected by the majority party and, as the person who presides over floor deliberations, is the most powerful House member.
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president pro tempore
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the leader of the senate that is actually a member (not the vice president) has much less power than the speaker of the house. When the president pro tem is not there, the president pro tem du jour resides over the senate. this is usually a junior senator that needs to learn the rules of the senate.
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commander in chief
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this means that the president is at the head of the command structure for the entire military establishment.
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head of government
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the president is supposed to run the government and function as leader of his political party
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head of state
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a role above politics in which he serves as a unifying sumbol of al that is good and noble about america...greeting other heads of state...attending funerals...Easter egg hunt. Hankinson says that the head of state is more that they receive ambassadors, and the popular leader is the symbolic figure ( although the president has a lot of power)
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chief administrator/executive
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the person who is held responsible for agencies of the national government and the implementation of national policy
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chief foreign policy maker/diplomat
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the president's executive role as a primary shaper of relations with other nations. this means that the president negotiates treaties (formal internaional agreements with other nations) with the approval of two thirds of teh senate. the president also appoints ambassadors and receives ambassadors from other nations, a power that essentially amounts to determining what nations the us will recognize
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executive agreements
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this is an agreement that a president can make without having to deal with the senate. basically it's a deal with the heads of state of other nations. the executive agreement alows the president the flexibility ofnegotiating, often in secret, to set important international policy without creating controversy or stirring up opposition. it is used frequently and much more than treaties.
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executive orders
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these are clarifications of how laws are supposed to be implemented. many are very powerful, like Roosevelt's order to put Japanese Americans in internment camps.
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veto
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if the president objects to a bill passed by the house and the senate, he can veto it. the only way that the bill can pass then is if 2/3 of both the house and the senate override the veto. this hardly ever happens. this is a way for the president to check the powers of congress.
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pocket veto
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this is when a bill is put on the president's desk within 10 days of the end of the term and he/she does not sign it. the bill dies.
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veto override
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if the president vetoes a bill, it can still pass if 2/3 of the house and 2/3 of the senate override the veto. this is very hard and hardly happens = presidential veto is strong, but not the absolute word.
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the cabinet
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the cabinet consists of the heads of the departments. they are appointed by the president. they advise him on policy issues. Bush is very reliant on his cabinet to counsel him.
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divided government
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when the president is of a different party than the majority in one or both houses. this makes it difficult for the president to get his agenda passed.
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executive privilege
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the right of the president to keep confidential certain sensitive information or his conversations with close advisors, so that he can trust them to give him "truthful" advice. while not in the constitution, many presidents have claimed this privilege to protect them from revealing their sources or certain information.
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impeachment
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this is charging an official with "treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors" the house impeaches with a majority vote, but the official is not removed from office unless they are convicted by the senate with a 2/3 vote
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treaties
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formal international agreements with other nations. they are presented by the president and must be passed by 2/3 of the senate.
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going public
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this is a technique used by presidents to pursuade people in washington to go along with their agenda. the way tha tthey do this is to reach out and appeal to the public for support. they hope that the public will put pressure on politicians.
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chief legislator
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Through the state of the union address, the President can suggest his or her policy agenda to the congress. The congress does not always go along with this agenda, but is more likely to if the majority party is the same as the President. One way that the President pushes for legislation is "going public"
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head of party
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As a person is nominated for president, teh party rewrites the platform around the preferences of the candidate. The President is supposed to unify the party and tries to impose party position within the congress and with governors, etc.
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popular leader
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This is an informal role of the president. The President of the US is recognizable and usually has widespread support because they were popularly elected. The President is supposed to unite the country in terms of crisis...
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