The Oxford Handbook of American Public Opinion and the Media (Oxford Handbooks)

Public opinion and the media form the foundation of the United States' representative democracy. They are the subject of enormous scrutiny by scholars, pundits, and ordinary citizens. This Oxford Handbook takes on the 'big questions' about public opinion and the media-both empirical and normative-focusing on current debates and social scientific research. Bringing together the thinking of a team of leading academic experts, its chapters provide a cutting assessment of contemporary research on public opinion, the media, and their interconnections. Emphasizing changes in the mass media and communications technology-the vast number of cable channels, websites and blogs, and the new social media, which are changing how news about political life is collected and conveyed-they describe the evolving information interdependence of the media and public opinion. In addition, the volume reviews the wide range of influences on public opinion, including the processes by which information communicated through the media can affect the public. It describes what has been learned from the latest research in psychology, genetics, and studies of the impact of gender, race and ethnicity, economic status, education and sophistication, religion, and generational change on a wide range of political attitudes and perceptions. The Handbook includes extensive discussion of how public opinion and mass media coverage are studied through survey research and increasingly through experiments using the latest technological advances. The Oxford Handbooks of American Politics are a set of reference books offering authoritative and engaging critical overviews of the state of scholarship on American politics. Each volume focuses on a particular aspect of the field. The project is under the General Editorship of George C. Edwards Iii, and distinguished specialists in their respective fields edit each volume. The Handbooks aim not just to report on the discipline, but also to sh

Health, Fitness & Dieting

Jacobs, Lawrence R.

Shapiro, Robert Y.

Psychology & Counseling

Oxford University Press

Politicians Don't Pander: Political Manipulation and the Loss of Democratic Responsiveness (Studies in Communication, Media, and Public Opinion)

Public opinion polls are everywhere. Journalists report their results without hesitation, and political activists of all kinds spend millions of dollars on them, fueling the widespread assumption that elected officials "pander" to public opinion—that they tailor their policy decisions to the results of polls. In this provocative and engagingly written book, the authors argue that the reality is quite the opposite. In fact, when not facing election, contemporary presidents and members of Congress routinely ignore the public's policy preferences and follow their own political philosophies, as well as those of their party's activists, their contributors, and their interest group allies. Politicians devote substantial time, effort, and money to tracking public opinion, not for the purposes of policymaking, but to change public opinion—to determine how to craft their public statements and actions to win support for the policies they and their supporters want. Taking two recent, dramatic episodes—President Clinton's failed health care reform campaign, and Newt Gingrich's "Contract with America"—as examples, the authors show how both used public opinion research and the media to change the public's mind. Such orchestrated displays help explain the media's preoccupation with political conflict and strategy and, the authors argue, have propelled levels of public distrust and fear of government to record highs. Revisiting the fundamental premises of representative democracy, this accessible book asks us to reexamine whether our government really responds to the broad public or to the narrower interests and values of certain groups. And with the 2000 campaign season heating up, Politicians Don't Pander could not be more timely. "'Polling has turned leaders into followers,' laments columnist Marueen Dowd of The New York Times. Well, that's news definitely not fit to print say two academics who have examined the polls and the legislative records of recent presidents to see just how responsive chief executives are to the polls. Their conclusion: not much. . . . In fact, their review and analyses found that public opinion polls on policy appear to have increasingly less, not more, influence on government policies."—Richard Morin, The Washington Post

Politics & Social Sciences

Politics & Government

University of Chicago Press

Public opinion polls are everywhere. Journalists report their results without hesitation, and political activists of all kinds spend millions of dollars on them, fueling the widespread assumption that elected officials "pander" to public opinion—that they tailor their policy decisions to the results of polls. In this provocative and engagingly written book, the authors argue that the reality is quite the opposite. In fact, when not facing election, contemporary presidents and members of Congress routinely ignore the public's policy preferences and follow their own political philosophies, as well as those of their party's activists, their contributors, and their interest group allies. Politicians devote substantial time, effort, and money to tracking public opinion, not for the purposes of policymaking, but to change public opinion—to determine how to craft their public statements and actions to win support for the policies they and their supporters want. Taking two recent, dramatic episodes—President Clinton's failed health care reform campaign, and Newt Gingrich's "Contract with America"—as examples, the authors show how both used public opinion research and the media to change the public's mind. Such orchestrated displays help explain the media's preoccupation with political conflict and strategy and, the authors argue, have propelled levels of public distrust and fear of government to record highs. Revisiting the fundamental premises of representative democracy, this accessible book asks us to reexamine whether our government really responds to the broad public or to the narrower interests and values of certain groups. And with the 2000 campaign season heating up, Politicians Don't Pander could not be more timely. "'Polling has turned leaders into followers,' laments columnist Marueen Dowd of The New York Times. Well, that's news definitely not fit to print say two academics who have examined the polls and the legislative records of recent presidents to see just how responsive chief executives are to the polls. Their conclusion: not much. . . . In fact, their review and analyses found that public opinion polls on policy appear to have increasingly less, not more, influence on government policies."—Richard Morin, The Washington Post

Social Sciences

While we’ve long known that the strategies of terrorism rely heavily on media coverage of attacks, Selling Fear is the first detailed look at the role played by media in counterterrorism—and the ways that, in the wake of 9/11, the Bush administration manipulated coverage to maintain a climate of fear.            Drawing on in-depth analysis of counterterrorism in the years after 9/11—including the issuance of terror alerts and the decision to invade Iraq—the authors present a compelling case that the Bush administration hyped fear, while obscuring civil liberties abuses and concrete issues of preparedness. The media, meanwhile, largely abdicated its watchdog role, choosing to amplify the administration’s message while downplaying issues that might have called the administration’s statements and strategies into question. The book extends through Hurricane Katrina, and the more skeptical coverage that followed, then the first year of the Obama administration, when an increasingly partisan political environment presented the media, and the public, with new problems of reporting and interpretation.            Selling Fear is a hard-hitting analysis of the intertwined failures of government and media—and their costs to our nation.

Selling Fear: Counterterrorism, the Media, and Public Opinion (Chicago Studies in American Politics)

Nacos, Brigitte L.

Bloch-Elkon, Yaeli

While we’ve long known that the strategies of terrorism rely heavily on media coverage of attacks, Selling Fear is the first detailed look at the role played by media in counterterrorism—and the ways that, in the wake of 9/11, the Bush administration manipulated coverage to maintain a climate of fear. Drawing on in-depth analysis of counterterrorism in the years after 9/11—including the issuance of terror alerts and the decision to invade Iraq—the authors present a compelling case that the Bush administration hyped fear, while obscuring civil liberties abuses and concrete issues of preparedness. The media, meanwhile, largely abdicated its watchdog role, choosing to amplify the administration’s message while downplaying issues that might have called the administration’s statements and strategies into question. The book extends through Hurricane Katrina, and the more skeptical coverage that followed, then the first year of the Obama administration, when an increasingly partisan political environment presented the media, and the public, with new problems of reporting and interpretation. Selling Fear is a hard-hitting analysis of the intertwined failures of government and media—and their costs to our nation.

History

Americas

This monumental study is a comprehensive critical survey ofthe policy preferences of the American public, and will bethe definitive work on American public opinion for some timeto come. Drawing on an enormous body of public opinion data,Benjamin I. Page and Robert Y. Shapiro provide the richestavailable portrait of the political views of Americans, fromthe 1930's to 1990. They not only cover all types ofdomestic and foreign policy issues, but also consider howopinions vary by age, gender, race, region, and the like.The authors unequivocally demonstrate that, notwithstanding fluctuations in the opinions of individuals,collective public opinion is remarkably coherent: itreflects a stable system of values shared by the majority ofAmericans and it responds sensitively to new events,arguments, and information reported in the mass media. Whiledocumenting some alarming case of manipulation, Page andShapiro solidly establish the soundness and value ofcollective political opinion. The Rational Publicprovides a wealth of information about what we as a nationhave wanted from government, how we have changed our mindsover the years, and why.For anyone interested in the short- and long-term trendsin Americans' policy preferences, or eager to learn whatAmericans have thought about issues ranging from racialequality to the MX missile, welfare to abortion, this bookoffers by far the most sophisticated and detailed treatmentavailable.

The Rational Public: Fifty Years of Trends in Americans' Policy Preferences (American Politics and Political Economy Series)

Page, Benjamin I.

This monumental study is a comprehensive critical survey of the policy preferences of the American public, and will be the definitive work on American public opinion for some time to come. Drawing on an enormous body of public opinion data, Benjamin I. Page and Robert Y. Shapiro provide the richest available portrait of the political views of Americans, from the 1930's to 1990. They not only cover all types of domestic and foreign policy issues, but also consider how opinions vary by age, gender, race, region, and the like. The authors unequivocally demonstrate that, notwithstanding fluctuations in the opinions of individuals, collective public opinion is remarkably coherent: it reflects a stable system of values shared by the majority of Americans and it responds sensitively to new events, arguments, and information reported in the mass media. While documenting some alarming case of manipulation, Page and Shapiro solidly establish the soundness and value of collective political opinion. The Rational Public provides a wealth of information about what we as a nation have wanted from government, how we have changed our minds over the years, and why. For anyone interested in the short- and long-term trends in Americans' policy preferences, or eager to learn what Americans have thought about issues ranging from racial equality to the MX missile, welfare to abortion, this book offers by far the most sophisticated and detailed treatment available.

Public Opinion

Public Opinion is a comprehensive and interdisciplinary examination of public opinion formation and change. Here, the authors explore the nature of political and social attitudes in the United States and how these attitudes are shaped by various institutions, with an emphasis on mass media. The book draws on the wide range of scholarship in Political Science, Psychology, Sociology, and Communications in order to help undergraduates understand public opinion in America.The book surveys the public opinion field, but it also serves as a provocative starting point for the discussion of citizen moods, political participation, and voting behavior. The authors present data about public attitudes on important social issues, but also explore the intellectual and social history of public opinion. Multiple sidebars, illustrations, tables, and figures enable students to explore all aspects of the elusive phenomenon we call public opinion.

Herbst, Susan

Williams, Bruce A.

Glynn, Carroll J.

O'keefe, Garrett

O'Keefe, Garret

O′Keefe, Garrett J.

Westview Press

Public Opinion is a comprehensive and interdisciplinary examination of public opinion formation and change, The authors explore the nature of political and social attitudes in the United States and how these attitudes are shaped by various institutions, with an emphasis on mass media. The book draws on the wide range of scholarship in political science, psychology, sociology, and communications to help undergraduates understand public opinion in America. The book surveys the public opinion field, but it also serves as a provocative starting point for the discussion of citizen moods, political participation, and voting behavior, Multiple sidebars, illustrations, tables, and figures enable students to explore all aspects of the elusive phenomenon we call public opinion. Thoroughly updated, this edition includes new data and discussions throughout, including a chapter on economic and rational choice approaches to understanding public opinion. The chapters are carefully constructed to introduce terms and concepts to both advanced students and those unfamiliar with the field.

Lindeman, Mark

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Shapiro, Robert Y.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Shapiro, Robert Y.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Shapiro, Robert Y.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

The Oxford Handbook of American Public Opinion and the Media (Oxford Handbooks)

Politicians Don't Pander: Political Manipulation and the Loss of Democratic Responsiveness (Studies in Communication, Media, and Public Opinion)

Politicians Don't Pander: Political Manipulation and the Loss of Democratic Responsiveness (Studies in Communication, Media, and Public Opinion)

Selling Fear: Counterterrorism, the Media, and Public Opinion (Chicago Studies in American Politics)

Selling Fear: Counterterrorism, the Media, and Public Opinion (Chicago Studies in American Politics)

The Rational Public: Fifty Years of Trends in Americans' Policy Preferences (American Politics and Political Economy Series)

The Rational Public: Fifty Years of Trends in Americans' Policy Preferences (American Politics and Political Economy Series)

Public Opinion

Public Opinion