Transcript public opinion

AMERICAN
GOVERNMENT
Chapter 8: Mass Media & Public Opinion
Section 1: The Formation of Public Opinion
Objectives
1. Examine the term public opinion and
understand why it is so difficult to define.
2. Analyze how family and education help
shape public opinion.
3. Describe four other factors that shape
public opinion.
Introduction
• What is public opinion, and what factors
help to shape it?
– Public opinion consists of the attitudes held by
a significant number of people about public
affairs—matters of government and politics.
– It is shaped by a wide variety of factors, such
as family, school, race, occupation, gender,
mass media, peer groups, opinion leaders,
and historic events.
Different Publics
• Public opinion in the United States is typically divided.
• Any given public issue is likely to have separate groups
with their own points of view.
• In addition, people disagree about which public issues
are important.
• Few issues capture the attention of all Americans.
• Most issues are of little interest to the majority.
Public Affairs
– Public affairs include events and issues involving
politics, public issues, and the making of public
policies.
– Examples include political parties, candidates, taxes,
unemployment, national defense, foreign policy, and
so forth.
– Technically, public opinion includes only those views
that relate to public affairs.
Public Opinion
• Public opinion consists
of those attitudes
publicly expressed by a
large number of people
about matters of
government and
politics.
Political Socialization
• Public opinion is shaped by many different
factors throughout our lives.
• The process by which a person gains his or her
political views is called political socialization.
• This process begins in early childhood and
involves the influence of many experiences and
relationships. Two of these are family and
school.
Family Influences
• Parents have a strong influence on the basic
beliefs that will shape the political views of their
children.
• Children tend to favor
the political parties
supported in the
households in
which they
were raised.
School Influence
• Schools try to prepare students to become good
citizens by educating them about our political
system.
• Schools also give
students an informal
education
about
decisionmaking,
influence, and
compromise.
Other Factors
• In general, occupation and racial background
are usually more significant than factors such
as gender or place of residence.
• However, the nature of the issue can change
what factors influence people’s views on it.
• Four other key factors that influence public
opinion are the mass media, peer groups,
opinion leaders, and historic events.
Mass Media
• The mass media
includes radio,
television, magazines,
and newspapers.
• More than 98 percent
of the 115 million U.S.
households have a
television, and most
are turned on for eight
or more hours a day.
Peer Groups
• Checkpoint: How does one’s peer group
shape his or her attitudes?
– Belonging to a peer group tends to reinforce
what a person has already come to believe.
– This happens in part because peer group
members share many socializing experiences
and tend to be reluctant to disagree openly
with others in their peer group.
Opinion Leader
• Some people listen to
and draw ideas from
opinion leaders.
• Many opinion leaders
hold public office, while
others are journalists or
prominent members of
society.
– What is the cartoonist
implying about the
media?
The Great Depression
• Historic events can shape
public opinion and policy.
• In the 1930s, the Great
Depression wrecked the
U.S. economy, shifting
popular support to
Democrats and
persuading many
Americans to support an
increased role for the
national government in
U.S. economic and
social life.
The 1960s and 1970s
• In the 1960s, the nation was shaken and divided
by the civil rights movement, the Vietnam War,
and the assassinations of President Kennedy
and Martin Luther King, Jr.
• The 1970s saw the Watergate scandal and the
resignation of President Nixon.
• The events of these two decades caused many
American to lose respect and trust of their
government.