POSC 100 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: The Big Questions, Media Conglomerate, Peer Group
Document Summary
Interest groups + political parties + public opinion + media messages = The casual connection between public opinion and the media. The traditional idea of popular sovereignty posited that the people"s will expressed itself independently of the mechanism or medium in which it was transmitted, whether by media, interest groups, parties, or elections. Today the traditional idea for popular sovereignty has changed to one that sees a more complicated set of relationships. It is difficult to accurately assess media"s influence on public opinion. Perhaps the most crucial factor is the way in which we are programmed from birth to process media messages - how we are socialized. Sense of you and your community (do you fit in, or are you an outsider?) Ideology is an individual"s belief system about government"s proper role: Typically, individuals are measured along a left to right continuum of ideology that may match opinions. Analyze the media"s influence on public opinion for: