Transcript Unit 11 – The US Political System

Unit 5: Global Politics
Global Studies
Propaganda
• information spread by a government or
group to promote or discourage a
policy or cause
• designed to influence people
(elections, war, TV ads, etc.)
• facts presented in a slanted or
misleading way
Propaganda cont.
• deliberately spread with the purpose of
injuring a cause or a group
• opinions presented as facts
• designed to persuade people to change
their view
• plays on emotions (patriotism, fear)
Propaganda cont.
• stems from biased information
• can take many form…posters, slogans,
government directives
• is like advertising…but it promotes a
political agenda rather than a
commercial product
Bias
• Def. - preference for one thing over
another
• can lead to poor judgments about
historical significance
• only gives one side of the story
• favors one side over the other
How to detect bias and
propaganda…
Ask yourself the following questions…
• Who is the author/creator of the
information, and what is his or her
background?
• Does the source contain opinions?
(can’t be proven)
• Does the source contain only one
point of view, or facts from one side of
an argument?
Primary vs. Secondary Sources
• Primary Sources – records from the
past (letters, speeches, photographs,
cartoons, journals, essays)
– Come from the original author,
speaker, creator
– Important because they offer us a
glimpse of the era through the eyes
of people who lived it
Primary vs. Secondary Sources
• Secondary Sources – restatements of
events written by a second-party author
– textbook, biography, books about
historic events, newspaper articles
– usually use primary sources for
research
Primary vs. Secondary Sources
• Tertiary Sources – third-hand sources
that consist of information which is a
collection of primary and secondary
sources
– Examples: Encyclopedias,
almanacs, fact books
Propaganda Techniques
• Bandwagon effect
– everyone supports this and so should
you
– “ Everybody’s Voting for Amanda
Jones, and so should you!”
Propaganda Techniques
• Testimonial
– famous person endorses a candidate,
position, or product
– “Basketball star Rocky Robinson is
voting for Amanda Jones – shouldn’t
you?”
Propaganda Techniques
• Stereotyping
– oversimplified and unfair images to
make a point that isn’t necessarily true
– “You know that young people are only
interested in watching TV and listening
to loud music. They shouldn’t be given
the right to vote, because they will never
use that right with any intelligence”
Propaganda Techniques
• Glittering Generalities
– saying clever, patriotic, or
memorable words that have little
meaning
– “If I am elected, I promise a new
dawn of prosperity for the US”
Propaganda Techniques
• Scare Tactics
– try to make you act out of fear
– “If you vote for my opponent, we
will end up with a toxic waste dump
in our town”
Propaganda Techniques
• Plain Folks
– candidate or cause is identified with
common people from all walks of
life
– “Vote for candidate Smith, who
understands the problems of our
town”
Propaganda Techniques
• Name-Calling
– unpleasant label or description to
harm a person, group, or product
– “Candidate Smith is corrupt and
caters to special interest!”
Propaganda Techniques
• Card Stacking
– Presents only one side of a story and
omits the opposite viewpoint
– Politicians may mention groups
supporting their programs, but not
those opposed to them.
Interest Groups
• organizations dedicated to pressuring
government to pass laws
• organizations whose members share
similar views on issues and attempt to
influence public policy
political action committees
(PACs)
• created by interest groups to persuade
govt officials and politicians – separate
from interest groups, but work toward
the same goal
political action committees
(PACs)
• interest groups have to form these
because federal election laws do not
allow them to contribute funds
• can contribute larger sums of money
to campaigns
– soft money – money kept separate
from the “official” campaign fund
Lobbyist
• individuals who represent interest groups –
employed by interest groups
• job is to persuade govt officials to vote for
or against a particular law, regulation, or
policy
• called lobbyist because they used to hang
out in the lobbies of legislature chambers
• work for organizations, labor unions, large
corporations, or interest groups
Main ways to influence public opinions
• ** most important influence on govt policy
– VOTING
– join political groups (party, union,
special int. group)
– protest (petitions, mass-assemblies,
boycotts)
– contact public officials (writing,
phoning)
– attend public functions (see official in
person)
Interest Groups / Public Action
groups
• many form from minority cultures –
fair / equal rights
NAACP
• National Association for the Advancement
of Colored People (1909)
• BT Washington – helped create with white
liberals
– Wanted to work to gain whites respect
• power in Civil Rights movement - helped
with the Brown decision
• challenge unfair laws and rally support for
candidates
NOW
• National Organization for Women
(1966)
• Goal: women equal in all aspects
• today – want equal pay and ERA
(Equal Rights Amendment)
AIM
• American Indian Movement (1968)
• has a role in creating federal Indian
policy
• wants to improve image of Native
Americans
• fight for NA rights
• educate people on NA culture
UFW
• United Farm Workers (1962)
• Cesar Chavez – Hispanic Americans
• Organized to unionize grape pickers
– Low wages / harsh conditions
– non-violent boycott of grapes
– 1970 – union accepted
Influences on Public Policy
• political parties – get members elected
• interest groups – pressure legislators to pass
laws
• lobbyists – pressure and inform members of
Congress and other elected officials
• media – provide info and watch over govt
• public opinion -- ** influence elected
leaders
Development of American
Public Policy and the
Influences used
Extension of Suffrage
• Obtain women’s voting rights – 19th
Amendment
• Equal Pay Act (1963)
• Susan B. Anthony
• Formed special interest groups – NWSA
(National Women’s Suffrage Association),
NOW
• Used media – publish own newspaper
Labor Legislation
• Joined political parties
• Labor unions: Knights of Labor
– Protect workers rights
– Allow them to bargain with
employees
– Organized strikes
Civil Rights Legislation
• Rights of African Americans – MLK
– Staged peaceful sit-ins
• NAACP, CORE (Congress of Racial
Equality) – special interest groups
• Used media (TV) showed treatment
• Civil Disobedience
• Pressured political parties
Military Policy
• Use of military overseas and methods to
obtain troops
• Media – TV (antiwar protests)
• Lobbyist in Congress
• Interest groups – VVAW (Vietnam Veterans
Against the War)
• Helped…end the draft (Vietnam),
withdrawal of troops
Environmental Legislation
• Protect the nation’s natural resources
• Special interest groups – Sierra Club /
Silent Spring / Greenpeace
• Lead to Earth Day, Clean Air Act,
EPA
Business Regulation
• Govt intervention in Big Business
• Passed laws with farmer against
railroads (SIG)
• Antitrust and consumer protection laws
Education Policy
• How to fund and set policy for schools
• Special Interest Groups – NEA
(National Education Association), AFT
(American Federation of Teachers)
• Media – newspapers and TV reports
• “No Child Left Behind”
Influence of Citizen Action on
Public Policy or methods of
effecting governmental
change
Political Action
• Working within the governmental
system
• nonviolent and socially acceptable
Social Protest
• demands by groups for change

can be violent or nonviolent

US – people can assemble
peacefully, circulate ideas, and
petition the govt
• Civil Disobedience – willful, active
refusal to obey a law that dissenters
believe to be immoral
Revolution
• violence to overthrow a govt after
all other attempts at change has
failed
•
** most extreme
Dissent and Civil Disobedience
• when political action does not achieve
the desired results
Dissent

intense disagreement with authority
(govt) that involves some kind of protest
action or organized movement
• marches, staged protest events with
speakers, publications, picketing,
boycotts, and public awareness
campaigns
• Examples: Women’s Suffrage, Civil
Rights, Anti-Vietnam War Movement
Civil Disobedience
 refusal to follow laws that they believe
are immoral
 usually planned in advance
 getting arrested is sometime the goal
nonviolent examples…blockade or
illegally occupying facilities
Examples: Women’s Suffrage, Civil
Rights, Anti-Vietnam War Movement
Case Studies on the
Effectiveness of Social Protest
and Revolution
Movement to Abolish
Slavery and the Slave Trade
• Movement to Abolish Slavery and
the Slave Trade
• Anti-Slavery Society (1787) –
efforts led to the end of slave trade
in British colonies and US by 1807
Independence movement in
India
 Gandhi – civil disobedience to protest
British rule
 Theory – go to jail rather than follow
British law
 “Noncooperation with evil is a sacred
duty.”
 Nonviolently disobeyed British law to gain
sympathy and support for his movement
• Led to independence in 1947
Fall of Communism in Eastern
Europe
 armed uprisings in 1956 and 968
and formation of an independent
Poland (1980s) led to the fall
• staged massive demonstrations
demanding free elections
End of Apartheid
Apartheid – separation of races in
South Africa
• African National Congress
(violence and protest) influenced
SA to abandon apartheid
French Revolution (1789-1799)
• France was ruled by a king and
divided into social classes
• The people were upset that the
king did not approve changes to
give them more of a say in govt.
• The people stormed the Bastille
(king’s prison)
• The king gave in to the people and
was executed
Russian Revolution (1917)
•
•
•
•
•
WWI – RR lines cut by Germans
Russian Economy collapsed
People staged demonstrations
Tsar ordered army to fire on strikers
Army joined strikers and Tsar stepped
down
• New govt formed but overthrew by Lenin
(Communists)