Formation of Opinion
The complex collection of the opinions of many different people, the sum of all their views
What is public opinion?
True or False: Newspapers are an example of mass media
True
True or False: CNN is an example of a weblog (blog)
False
True or False: Democrats winning the presidency, senate, and the house would be a good indication of a mandate
True.
Those means of communication that reach large audiences, especially television, radio, printed publications, and the Internet
What is mass media?
Web site postings usually devoted to a specific subject, often allowing visitors to post comments
What is a weblog (blog)?
Private organizations whose members share certain views and work to shape public policy
What is an interest group?
The instructions or commands a constituency gives to its elected officials
What is a mandate?
People with whom one regularly associates, including friends, classmates, neighbors, and co-workers
What is a peer group?
Short, sharply focused report that can be aired in 30 or 45 seconds
What is a sound bite?
A certain number of randomly selected people who live in a certain number of randomly selected places
What is a random sample?
A representative slice of the public
What is a sample?
Any person who, for any reason, has an unusually strong influence on the views of others
What is an opinion leader?
A means of communication; something that transmits information
What is a medium?
Device that attempt to collect information by asking people questions
What is a public opinion poll?
A term that means the whole population that the poll aims to measure
What is an universe?
Those events and issues that concern the people at large, such as politics, public issues, and the making of public policies
What are public affairs?
The public issues on which the people’s attention is focused
What is a public agenda?
A sample deliberately constructed to reflect several of the major characters of a given population
What is a quota sample?
Poll that seeks to read the public's mind by asking the same question of a large number of people
What is a straw vote?