COMM 3302 Chapter 9: 9
22 Apr 2016
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Parkin: taking late night comedy seriously: how candidate appearances on late night television can engage. Common practice: politicians going on talk shows because it makes them appear more ordinary, reach hard-to-reach voters, and humanize themselves. There is concern about the effect that these appearances have on viewers. Critics suggest that what this does is act as a substitute for more substantive exchanges and trivialize serious matters. Priming: research shows that media can prime voters to focus on certain considerations when evaluating political figures. By exposing them to specific information, the media activate related mental constructs that become more easily accessible so that they might be given increased emphasis in a subsequent judgement task. Learning: critics have suggested that viewers learn little about politics from watching late night interviews. What these talk shows do is engage viewers in listening to some discussions about issues. It stuck better than simply reading about it in a formal news report.
