PLAP 3140 Lecture Notes - Lecture 11: False Equivalence, Content Analysis, Media Research Center
1 Nov 2016
School
Department
Course
Professor
10.05.16
● Agenda
○ Odds and Ends
○ Making the News 1: Bias, Objectivity, and Newsroom Diversity
○ Making the News 2: Scandal Coverage
● Debate last night
○ Survey will be going out -- Debate on Sunday
● Online Quiz: Tuesday, Oct. 18, 7 AM to Wednesday Oct. 19, 3 PM
○ 1 hour, time limited, must take all at once : clock starts once you open the quiz
○ Available under tests and quizzes on Collab
○ Multiple Choice - including Jeopardy! and true-false questions
○ 32 hour window
○ No books, notes, or outside help -- fine to study/prepare together
○ Don’t discuss quiz with anyone until after window closes
○ Scores will be available by the end of the week
○ Covers material through bias and objectivity
■ Make a list of terms
■ Bullet points on authors - what main findings were
○ Practice mini-quiz now available (just format, no substance)
○ Collab Test-Taking Tips available under “Announcements”
● Bias in Media Coverage
○ Democrats more critical of media coverage of presidential candidates than in
previous years
○ Severe partisan gaps
■ 61% of Republicans think media isn’t hard enough on Hillary
■ Only 16% of Democrats think the same thing
● Lesson: Perceptions of bias are in part in the eye of the beholder
○ But what is bias? - A systematic deviation from the truth
○ Examples of alleged biases:
■ Liberal, conservative, partisan, capitalist, US-centric, Western-centric,
conflict-centric, drama-centric, weather-centric, balance-centric
● Are the media “biased”?
○ Claims based on inference (indirect)
■ Claims based on public opinion
● In the aggregate, the public is likely to see the media as biased
● Especially Republican/Repub leaning people -- most pronounced
among Tea-Partiers
■ Claims based on journalists’ attitudes, characteristics
● Goldberg’s observations of elitist East-Coast journalist
○ Claims based on observation (direct)
■ Journalists’ attitudes
● Pew Media Believability Study - differences between local and
national news
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Making the news 1: bias, objectivity, and newsroom diversity. Survey will be going out -- debate on sunday. Online quiz: tuesday, oct. 18, 7 am to wednesday oct. 19, 3 pm. 1 hour, time limited, must take all at once : clock starts once you open the quiz. Available under tests and quizzes on collab. Multiple choice - including jeopardy! and true-false questions. No books, notes, or outside help -- fine to study/prepare together. Don"t discuss quiz with anyone until after window closes. Scores will be available by the end of the week. Bullet points on authors - what main findings were. Practice mini-quiz now available (just format, no substance) Democrats more critical of media coverage of presidential candidates than in previous years. 61% of republicans think media isn"t hard enough on hillary. Only 16% of democrats think the same thing. Lesson: perceptions of bias are in part in the eye of the beholder.
