Transcript Rational – Democratic Model

POLICY PARADOX – FACTS
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JESSICA ELIAZAR
JESSICA ELLIOTT
ASHLEY ECKES
JASON DRENNING
“Everyone is entitled to their
own opinions, but not their own
facts.”
- Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan (Dem – NY)
Lecture Outline
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Two Faces of Persuasion
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Rational – Democratic Model
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Totalitarian Model
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Polis Model
Rational Ideal – Face 1
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Persuasion
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Coordinates/Controls Human Behavior
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Rational Decisions
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Frowns Upon Raw Emotion/Passion
“SQUISH” MCCAIN ??
"I DON'T KNOW WHICH PART OF THE PARTY IS GOING TO BE MORE
INFLUENTIAL OR NOT," MCCAIN SAID. "I'VE TRIED ALWAYS IN MY
POLITICAL CAREER TO HAVE A BIG TENT PARTY WHERE A LOT OF
PEOPLE ARE WELCOME WITH DIFFERING VIEWS."
Government + The Rational Ideal
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Reason as Basis for Government
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Education Creates Equality
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Conflict Resolution
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Policy Ideas
Persuasion or Propaganda?
"WE SEE AL QAEDA GAINING STRENGTH,"
"WE SEE AFGHANISTAN SLIDING BACK INTO CHAOS."
Propaganda – Face 2
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Intentionally Manipulative
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Robs People from Independent Thinking
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Where Should the Line be Drawn?
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When Does Information Cross the Line?
Rational – Democratic Model
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Persuasion evokes images of reasoned and
informed decision (the rational ideal)
Individuals formulate goals, gather information,
and evaluate alternatives before making a choice
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Emphasis is placed on argument by fact and logic, as
well as the use of the scientific method of discovery
Rational – Democratic Model
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Reason is the basis for personal and government
decisions.
Democracy is government by discussion.
This form of persuasion is related to voluntarism.
 “The facts will speak for themselves.”
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Rational – Democratic Model
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Under this model, facts, data, and information
are neutral, and can settle conflicts.
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“The pen is mightier than the sword.”
Conflict derives from ignorance, not from
differences in interest or character
Rational – Democratic Model
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The government uses information and
education to bring individual actions into
harmony with the public interest.
The rational ideal has brought about several
policy ideas based on behavior change and
persuasion.
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Educational campaigns for littering, smoking, safe
driving, energy conservation, forest fires, recycling,
etc
Rational – Democratic Model
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The rational model represents a society where:
Conflict is unnecessary and only temporary
 Force is replaced by discussion
 Persuasion and logic are used to bring individual
actions into harmony
 The capacity to deliberate is very important
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Totalitarian Model
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People accept government propaganda instead
of making decisions on their own
Information is limited, highly controlled, and
slanted
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It is mainly used for social control
The government indoctrinates its citizens by
controlling a central communications apparatus
Polis Model
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Two idealized versions
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Facts are the product of social processes
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Neither can exist in pure form
How they meet in the middle
Direct observation vs. social knowledge
Naming
Interpretive
Facts are always under dispute
Information is created from a point of view
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Loyalties, cultural, and social backgrounds
Used to manipulate and influence
Fact?
“We're now in the 41st month of uninterrupted job growth, in a
recovery that has created 7.2 million new jobs -- so far.”
- President Bush (2007 State of the Union)
The figure is correct. However, as in the past, Bush concentrated
only on the period since August 2003, which was the low point
of the prolonged job slump that plagued the first 2-1/2 years of
his presidency. Since 2.7 million jobs were lost that time, the net
gain from the time he took office has been 4.6 million jobs, a
respectable number but still not so large as the one Bush
highlighted.
Indoctrination – Polis Model
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Totalitarianism not a necessary condition
Happens in three ways:
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Indoctrination outside the framework of a
centralized bureaucracy
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Dominant groups instill values and attitudes that preserve
their position without centralized control
Indoctrination through normal government – citizen
interaction
Media Communications
 Street-level bureaucrats
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Indoctrination – Polis Model
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Indoctrination through the withholding of
information
Fundamental part of strategy for government and
markets
 Occurs without formal censorship or classification
 Blocks the formation of truly rational decisions
 The more resources the more dominant the group to
influence others
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The Concept of Unilateralness
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Assumes that indoctrination requires the efforts
of a single central government authority
Some believe the concept of unilateralness
protects people from indoctrination
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If manipulative messages are given to a population
by two or more competing interests the effect is
neutralized
Conclusion
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The shaping of information is an inevitable part of
communication and is integral to strategic behavior
The rational idea is false in its assumption that
information is neutral and that people are rational and
independent
The totalitarian model is false in its assumption that
indoctrination only occurs when there is a single
governmental authority dispensing propaganda
Indoctrination occurs everyday between citizens and
between citizens of the state.