Information provided by the news media plays a key role in the construction of people’s perceptions about reality (McCombs & Shaw, 1972)◦ Why do we care about our perceptions about
reality? To understand this influence, we must
understand at least two processes: ◦ The social processes through which news content
is created.◦ The psychological processes through which this
content is digested.
Two useful theoretical frameworks help us to understand how news media influence our perceived social reality◦ Agenda-setting theory◦ Schema theory
Events: discrete occurrencese.g. Taiwan’s president proposes to join UN.
Issues: ongoing news coverage of a series of events that fit together in a broad categorye.g. China / US Relations
Gatekeepers: people that decide which events / issues to report◦ Newsworthiness: determined by the traditions, practices
and values of media professionals
Media
Agenda
Public
Agenda
Policy
Agenda
Three Components of Agenda Setting
Content Analysis (1968 presidential campaign coverage)◦ local and national newspapers and TV◦ identified prominent news stories
◦ based on position and length Survey
◦ asked local Chapel Hill voters:◦ “What are the key campaign issues?”
Results:◦ Strong Correlation between Media Agenda and Public Agenda
Media
Agenda
Public
Agenda
Policy
Agenda
Correlation does not mean causation
Later studies measured opinions over time
Some evidence shows that media sets the agenda for the public
(e.g., Iyengar & Kinder experiments)
but . . .
Individual Differences◦ some people have a higher need for orientation
Multiple Agenda Setters◦ the media ‘gatekeepers’◦ politicians◦ public relations professionals◦ Interest groups
Framing◦ context◦ mood◦ selectivity◦ the media doesn’t report the news, they report
news stories
Priming◦ a news story on a given issue sparks (or primes)
an individual’s memory of related issues◦ opinions are a result of both
the news story cues the primed memories
◦ e.g. Middle East & unstable political situation
Media
Agenda
Public
Agenda
Policy
Agenda
Other Factors
(e.g. Ind. Diff.)
Recall from an earlier lecture:◦ We have a mental map of the world. ◦ There are two separate approaches to mental
representation. Schematic representation (schema) Associationistic representation
Ideas and concepts are organized in a logical and hierarchical (schematic) fashion. ◦ Schemata are “cognitive structures of organized prior
knowledge, abstracted from experience with specific instances; schemata guide the processing of new information and the retrieving of stored information” (Fiske & Linville, 1980, p. 543).
There are four types of schemata, including: ◦ (a) person schemata (i.e., interpretations of individuals’
psychology), ◦ (b) self-schemata (i.e., information about one’s psychology), ◦ (c) role schemata (i.e., perceptions about inter-group
relations and broad social categories). e.g., what is a “chief executive”? e.g., What does a “chief executive” do? e.g., what is Taiwan? A country? A province?
◦ (d) event schemata (i.e., information about sequences of events in social situations) e.g., what should a government do when attacked by
terrorists? e.g., how is the chief executive of HKSAR elected?
Media can create new schemata◦ e.g., American’s perception of the world after
9/11.◦ e.g., Hong Kong’s government structure after
handover Media can strengthen existing schemata
◦ e.g., social stereotypes about mainlanders◦ e.g., political beliefs
political socialization – a developmental process by which young people acquire cognitions, attitudes and behaviors relating to their political environment.
adolescence is a time of particular importance for this process because it is a time of great change, including many developmental advances
Most people form a stable political view during adolescences and usually NEVER change.
During adolescence◦ critical thought is characterized by an increased
capacity and speed of processing as compared to younger children
◦ There is an increase in knowledge and an ability to integrate these knowledge.
◦ In addition, there is a greater ability in adolescence, as compared to young children, for self-regulation and monitoring as more strict standards are applied by the adolescent.
However, as this cognitive pattern is not yet
consolidated, adolescents often also engage in hasty generalization and rush to premature judgments based on segmented pieces of information.
These skills, abilities, and tendencies may be especially relevant as adolescents consider political issues, situations, and decisions and as they integrate political knowledge gathered from various sources.
Sources of political knowledge◦ Parents◦ School◦ Peers◦ MEDIA
Media exposure has been identified as an important influence with regard to political socialization.
the media, and television in particular, play a significant role in the creation and reinforcement of political attitudes.
Empirical evidence suggests that exposure to television are related to ◦ political orientation ◦ attitudes about political parties◦ The electoral process, ◦ issues of military conflict ◦ gun control policies◦ Capital punishment◦ Abortion
etc.
In recent years, media researchers have begun to recognize the importance of cognition in the realm of political socialization.◦ We all have schemas about what politic is and
how we should participate.◦ One important source from which we can learn
these social scripts about political matters is the media.
However, ◦ such scripts will be different based on the content
to which the adolescents are exposed. ◦ Heavy news exposure is likely to result in different
schemata
War Political party Economy Political involvement
Some questions to thinking about◦ Who’s watching?◦ Who’s watching what?◦ Who participates actively in politics? Elders?
Youth? The rich? The poor? ◦ Do political attitude translate to political action?
Agenda-setting◦ Old media
agenda set by the industry based on professional training, political needs, and audience feedback
Slow/delayed feedback Limited content Delayed content
◦ New media Agenda may be set by the user, or other users. (e.g., Blogs,
citizen journalism) Instant /real-time feedback User generated (unlimited content) Real-time update
Schema formation ◦ New media Selective exposure strengthen existing
schemata
Does new media really increase more political participation?◦ Apparently not!◦ Individual differences becomes more important
Political views become more extreme It is more difficult to present objective/unbiased
information Allows apathetic individuals to completely avoid
politics
More sophisticated knowledge structure Encouraging fact checking
◦ Hyperlinks◦ Verification by multiple sources
More difficult for politicians and mass media to skew the issue◦ Diverse group of content providers
Encouraging civic participation◦ Easier to mobilize citizens (e.g., organizing a
protest)◦ Stay focused on issues of interest