vocabulary
political participation
political activties included but not limited to volunteering for campaign or campaigning in protest, main purpuse is to influence government
Public financing
tax payers can choose to donate extra money each year to government funded campaigns (11% do that)
Sources of Media
Print media
Newspapers and magazines
Broadcast Media
Television and radio
Internet
Literally everything
Mass media
Referred to as the “4th branch of government”
Role is a watchdog; meaning watching over who is elected to oversee our national governments
Shows bias
watch what happens and report back in any topic
2 main political parties
democrat & republican
lobbying
organized interests look for passage of legislation by putting direct pressure on members from the legislation
Private donations ; individual donations ; pacs
Hard money/ soft money
Watchdog Function
Watches the government and makes sure that the government is serving the public’s interest and conveys their findings back to the people
Media events
staged events by political candidates with the main purpose of being covered. Normally scripted and limited in what's reported
democratic traits
Large government
Higher taxes
Individual rights
Gay rights
Gun control
Environmental issues
Pro-choice
public relations
attempts to make good relationships with public and influence political opinions
Political action committee
formed by business and corporations or labor unions to make donations
Politicians Influence the Media
Staging
Press Invited (press conference)
Allows the candidate to control what is said
Spinning
Granting interviews either “on-the-record” or “off-the-record”
Allows candidate to persuade the public to perceive the issue in a certain way which helps the candidate
Leaking
An unofficial release of confidential information to the media.
Sound bites
30 second clips used on tv to convey the main point of the speech
republican traits
Small government
Lower taxes
National security
Family values
Favor second amendment
Free market capitalism
Pro life
soft money
money donated by corporations and unions directly to political parties
whats a PAC
Hard money
Limits
Goes to candidate
Business run
Media Bias
bias that supports the political party they stand for
Horse-race coverage
focus on polling data and public perception rather than candidate policies
conservative traits
Nationalistic- America 1st
Moralistic- Laws ensure morals
Traditionalistic- Gay marriage/use of drugs
Military emphasis- protect us
Individual responsibility- help yourself
Limited Government- No handouts
Free market- hands off, what happens happen approach
Pure Capitalism- businesses do what they think is best
hard money
money that goes directly to a candidate,is limited and tracked
Creation of the FEC
Federal election commission- purpose is to oversee and enforce campaign finance regulations
Must disclose campaign finance information
Enforce laws and spending an collections
Oversee public funds given to presidential candidates
What do interest groups do?
Bring lawsuit against the government
Make donations to candidates
Influence lawmakers
Advertise issues on media/social media
Contribute to campaign ads (tv / radio)
Advertising
heavy reliance on media advertising in order to persuade the public for their vote. Very expensive.
liberal traits
International- global all together mentality
Individual Morals- police ourselves with morals
Change is Good- adapted as needed when needed
Domestic emphasis- people 1st
Brotherhood of man- community (takes a village)
Expansive government- do what's needed to help
Fair market- Help balance the market, keep it competitive
Just capitalism- set guidelines and standards for businesses to follow