Media Influence On Elections

There are three widely accepted options for influence and power to surge from in the election process, as stated above. First and foremost, the media is widely perceived as the top dog in the election process; society as a whole holds the assumption that media sets the agenda and controls the political process. This idea is embellished by the cynics of the world and there have been a number of studies with findings disputing these perceptions. Dalton’s paper tracked over 6000 newspapers articles, during the 1992 presidential election, from a stratified sample of counties across the nation and their research points to a much weaker position being held by the media as a whole, in respect to its influence over elections within the United States (466). The research focused of the viewpoint and time given to either candidate during the election season. Overall the findings showed little to no bias, outside of the editorial section, with in the overall information of each candidate. The argument is summed up in the article stating, “Certainly, some newspapers and journalists have distinct views, but such individual biases appear small and tend to cancel out when aggregated. Moreover, a newspaper’s presidential endorsement had little impact on its news coverage of the issue themes of the campaign” (Dalton, 476). The media seems to play a part in

Over the course of our nation’s existence, one can see the changes and innovative ways our nation has improved as a whole. Our nation has developed and matured into what one would call home today. The United States has been shaped and molded to fit the personal needs of society today, at an economic and social level. One of the elements that has changed is how we use our first amendment. The first amendment presents itself as a practice of “freedom of speech [and] freedom of the press” (The U.S. Constitution). Changed presumed from only speeches, to ads and propaganda, to radio, to television, to social media. Over time people have found new ways to present information to a public audience. Candidates for our nation’s presidency are one of the major focuses in the current news. During the elections, the media plays a big role. Due to the changes and innovations that have occurred in advertising and the media, presidential candidates have presented their information in new ways. This then engrosses the public knowledge among their policies and ideals. By looking at the changes over the years within the media, one will be able to see the best strategy when presenting information during a presidential campaign and election within today’s society.

I take on the position that television has had a highly negative effect on presidential elections in this decade since the 1960’s Today, television is not just a means to end, but an important factor in determining whether a candidate for president wins or either loses the election.Television exerts a dominant role even while being 100,000 or so miles away in the shaping for presidential campaign appearance plays a role by reflecting on the audience,highlighting looks over politics and public opinions.

Media plays a big role in presidential elections. One of the biggest incidences occurred in the election of 1960 with President Kennedy and Richard Nixon. President Kennedy won the heart of TV audiences with his youth, good looks, charm. VP Richard Nixon on the other hand was said to look uncomfortable and not confident. ews reporting, however, has become less objective; whole networks are dedicated to more conservative or more liberal parties. Newspapers and magazines support a particular candidate, and their reporting often favor that particular candidate. The pictures used, the questions asked, and the stories chosen for reporting all play a role in affecting the way

“Communication is the essence of a political campaign.” Proper communication allows a presidential candidate to get his or her message across. This translates to a lot of votes. To acquire the support needed to win the election, candidates must master the latest media methods that provide effective and efficient mass-communication. The new technological mediums of each era, such as the radio in the 1920s, television in the 1950s, and today’s Internet and social media platforms, give the candidates the opportunity to control their campaign and the potential to reach a larger audience than ever before. By eliminating the middle man role of the traditional news media, presidential candidates can now capitalize on the latest advances in technology

Media has changed throughout the years presenting itself in an appealing way to all generation. The media and newspapers, television, radio, and internet sources-strongly influence public opinion (Bardes, B., Shelley, M., & Schmidt, S, 2014). Which, are sources used to notify and update public on a candidate’s campaign. Giving all information needed to understand the candidate and their intentions if elected. Often bias toward candidate that receives there support and in some cases attack their opponent with information from their past and or anything that may deter the voters support. However, media in all forms raises awareness to determine if a candidate best suit personal and political beliefs. Answering the questions, “who to vote for

American political campaigns have gone through significant transformations over the years (Lazuk, 2015). Starting from the past years when politicians were getting out and about, meeting their audience face to face; it was the invention of mass media which changed the way politicians could reach their potential voters (Suggett, 2016). However, nowadays “the crux of the fifth era” (Lazuk, 2015: 1) which is the Internet has taken political campaigns into a different electronic level. The aim of this essay is to discuss how campaign advertising has become more important in US historically, focusing with depth in the 2016 the US elections.

The media, one of the lead influencers in political election history has taken today’s active social media users by storm. With the spark of social media, it is increasing citizens political awareness at the cost of factual - bipartisan review of the content. The media is still a heavy influence, the platforms are just changing. I believe that it’s okay to have partisan media, however, they shouldn’t be labeled factual nor should they be non-transparent about their information.

With significant technological advances over the past decade, the way people consume media has changed drastically, especially in the realm of politics. As communications professor Jeffery Jones stated in his text Entertaining Politics: New Political Television and Civic Culture, “media are our primary points of access to politics—‘the space in which politics now chiefly happens for most people,’ and

The first and most used way of campaigning is through air wars. “Air Wars is the term that political scientist Darrell West applies to candidates’ use of televised ads” (Patterson, 2015 pg.261). These candidates will spend a great deal of money on televised political advertising, allowing them to directly communicate with voters. However, in other countries like France and Great Britain, these actions are prohibited. Candidates in America will use strategies such as rapid response in their air wars, which permits very much subsidized candidates to get current ads on the air in order to counter attacks and make the most of fast breaking developments all within a few hours. Debates are another form of media campaign which can usually benefit the candidate who needs a boost in the polls or it can hurt either depending on their performance. The

Throughout history and to this present day, we can see how media has made an impact on politics. For example, “[i]n 1993, the Health Insurance Association of America aired television ads opposing President Bill Clinton’s health plan… In 2009, Sarah Palin posted a Facebook entry attacking President Barack Obama’s health care plan…” (Morone and Kersh 227). We can relate to how the most recent presidential candidates, Hilary Clinton and Donald Trump, used media to promote themselves. Also, we can clearly remember how media portrayed certain aspects of each candidate. For example, media seemed to focus on Secretary Clinton’s emails and her role on the Benghazi attack and as well as, Trump being accused of sexually

When political candidates are campaigning these days they are using the media as a way to get votes to get elected. The influence of mass media, American politics have been quite a spectacle about it, and the way that politics are run using the media. The idea of mass media mass media is supposed to make it easier for people to participate in political decisions, understand how everything works in politics, and hold government officials accountable. But during this generation the media is often used to manipulate and obscure the true form of political issues. The diversion of attention is one strategy

The gradual expansion since the early nineteenth century of voting rights to wider and wider sections of the population, paired with the emanation of media of mass communication, had fundamentally transformed the nature of the political process in the United States. The voting rights were no longer associated with ethnicity, wealth and education and exclusive to white men. Henceforward, the masses would decide, through their exercise of the vote; the political actors and shape public opinion. The significance of public opinion reshaped the political arena as it became the quest of politicians. It also contributed to the rise of a “new professional class of publicists ”, standing between political organizations and media institutions. In the twenty-first century, these trends have evolved and intensified. Nowadays almost all forms of political activity are played out before a mass, or even a global audience, through an expanded network of print, broadcast and online media. The art of political communication is now an industry of political public relations and a growing field of study.

In sharp contrast to past elections when candidates campaigned in-person, the 2016 election has been significantly mediated through mass media. With such a large influence on voters, the media not only determines which issues and events are salient in voters’ minds, but also how voters evaluate candidates. Moreover, media coverage, depending on its content, can influence whether voters think about candidates in terms of campaign issues or candidate attributes.

Thanks to technology, the world is more interconnected than ever before. Even before the modern era of technological advances, newspapers and fliers have been used to make the world as interconnected as possible. Then, radios, tvs and ultimately computers and smartphones emerged. Anyone who wants to find an information like where a polling place is or the names of the candidates as well as their speeches and believes on the issues could find it in the palm of their hands. Tv shows like the Rachel Maddow show, which airs weekdays on MSNBC and the O’really Factor with Bill O’really airs on Fox News. The two anchors and democratic and republican leaning respectively so is their respective networks. People tend to watch them for information and that affects the decision making process for voters.