Deck 7: The Media

Question 1

The regulations on broadcast media by the Federal Communications Commission reflect the assumption that the airways are public property.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Research has shown that if journalists explained the process of government more often, their ratings would increase.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

The vast amount of information on the Internet is of questionable reliability.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

The invention of cheaper and faster printing presses in the 1830s led to the onset of ________.

A) the penny press
C) muckraking
B) wire services
D) objective news reporting

Question 5

In colonial America, newspapers had low circulation because they were costly and only available in major cities.

Question 6

Most Americans believe that the media is biased against the candidates and policies they prefer.

Question 7

American politicians have always complained throughout history about the mass media.

Question 8

Which one of the following statements is accurate?

A) Media reporting only became controversial in the twentieth century.
B) Since the founding of the republic, politicians have understood that Americans learn about politics mostly from the media.
C) Politicians were not critical of the media in the nineteenth century.
D) Allegations of bias in the media began when television was created.

Question 9

The media and politicians are always adversaries.

Question 10

Political candidates running for federal office tend to spend at least 80 percent of their budget on advertising alone.

Question 11

The Internet has helped to make Americans better informed about politics.

Question 12

What was the effect of the Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798?

A) They required the news media to provide fair coverage of multiple political points of view.
B) They established the freedom of the press.
C) They outlawed publishing stories that might threaten national security.
D) They made it a crime to criticize the president or Congress.

Question 13

Most Americans acquire political information accidentally.

Question 14

The media's focus on horse race stories reflects journalists' lack of interest in helping people make good decisions.

Question 15

Which newspaper has the motto, "All the News That's Fit to Print?"

A) New York Journal
C) New York Times
B) Washington Post
D) Boston Globe

Question 16

The term yellow journalism refers to

A) the use of sensational headlines and illustrations to sell newspapers.
B) press stories that are highly critical of government.
C) fair and balanced coverage of politics.
D) investigative stories that call for reforms of government.

Question 17

The Internet has limited the amount of information available about politics.

Question 18

Media conglomerates have been created due to regulatory changes that accelerated concentration and cross-ownership.

Question 19

Most political scientists have concluded that journalists tend to have a definitive ideological bias in the presentation of their news.

Question 20

The equal time provision requires broadcasters to grant the same amount of on-air time on any non-news programming to every candidate running for office.

Question 21

The equal time provision requires

A) the media to offer equal airtime to opposing candidates on any non-news program.
B) that candidates advertise equal amounts on television and radio.
C) broadcast media to present several points of view to ensure balanced coverage.
D) giving all companies a reasonable chance of owning multiple media outlets.

Question 22

The mass media is ________.

A) biased
B) a watchdog
C) not regulated by the government
D) prone to yellow journalism

Question 23

The American media

A) were first regulated by the government in the 1830s.
B) were first regulated by the government after the Civil War.
C) were first regulated by the government during the Progressive Era.
D) have always been regulated by the government.

Question 24

Prior to the Civil War, ________ revolutionized journalism.

A) the radio
C) the telephone
B) the telegraph
D) the electric typewriter

Question 25

The trend toward single-company ownership of several kinds of media outlets is known as ________.

A) cross-ownership
C) networks
B) concentration
D) corporations

Question 26

Which one of the following is a trend experienced by many newspapers in recent years?

A) increasing number of independent newspapers
B) decreasing circulation
C) increase in the number of reporters
D) decrease in online readers

Question 27

Yellow journalism began after the ________.

A) Revolutionary War
C) Spanish-American War
B) Civil War
D) Vietnam War

Question 28

Which one of the following is accurate regarding by-product theory?

A) Most people acquire political information accidentally.
B) Most people acquire political information intentionally.
C) Most people are likely to consume their news mostly by reading newspapers.
D) Most people find politics to be interesting.

Question 29

The news media in America

A) are owned by the government.
B) are mostly profit-seeking businesses.
C) are considered impartial by the general public.
D) are regulated by the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Question 30

The government's willingness to regulate broadcast media more heavily than print media reflects

A) public demand for a better political balance on television.
B) the history of partisan ownership of newspapers.
C) the fact that the framers did not anticipate broadcasting and therefore could not protect it in the Constitution.
D) the belief that the airways are public property.

Question 31

NewsCorp owns Fox, Fox News, the film studio 21ˢᵗ Century Fox, the Wall Street Journal, and the New York Post, among many other media holdings. NewsCorp is an example of ________.

A) a wire service
C) the fairness doctrine
B) a blog service
D) a media conglomerate

Question 32

What is the most significant reason why most people do not know much about politics?

A) the inept mass media
B) not enough availability of information
C) people are not that interested in politics
D) there is too much corruption in the political world

Question 33

Concerns about media concentration and cross-ownership are based on

A) interpretations of freedom of the press.
B) public standards about what constitutes quality news programming.
C) the expansion of the Internet and other media technologies.
D) beliefs that it is better for democracy if the press espouses many different views.

Question 34

Which one of the following statements is accurate?

A) The creation of the Internet has dramatically increased the amount of information about politics in the United States.
B) Americans know much more about politics today than prior to the creation of the Internet.
C) Americans tend to find politics interesting and are likely to consume stories about politics accordingly.
D) Most Americans are highly knowledgeable about American politics and public affairs.

Question 35

Deregulation has led to the advent of ________.

A) horse race journalism
C) shielding
B) media conglomerates
D) smaller media companies

Question 36

Radio began in America in the ________.

A) 1890s
C) 1920s
B) 1910s
D) 1930s

Question 37

The major nationwide talk radio shows generally offer

A) a politically liberal point of view.
B) a politically conservative point of view.
C) extensive news coverage throughout the day.
D) a diversity of viewpoints.

Question 38

The ________ regulates broadcast media.

A) Federal Communications Commission
B) Secretary of Commerce
C) Corporation for Public Broadcasting
D) Attorney General

Question 39

Which one of the following would typically be consumed by a liberal?

A) Fox News
C) National Public Radio
B) Talk radio
D) Facebook

Question 40

Cross-ownership

A) is illegal in the United States.
B) cannot occur in the same community.
C) is becoming more prevalent in America today.
D) was more common in the nineteenth century than in the twenty-first century.

Question 41

When Edward Snowden released information about programs being conducted by the NSA, it was an example of ________.

A) a leak
C) invasion of privacy
B) cyberterrorism
D) citizen journalism

Question 42

The Internet has ________ the barriers of publication, while leading to an increase in ________ reliable sources.

A) lowered; more
C) raised; less
B) lowered; less
D) not affected; more

Question 43

Which one of the following is an example of how leaks within government help provide the basis for news reports?

A) the delayed rollout of healthcare.gov
B) President Barack Obama's meeting with House Republicans
C) the nomination of Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court
D) Edward Snowden and the NSA

Question 44

Many Americans learn about politics while engaged in other non-news activities, such as reading the sports page or watching NASCAR. This process is known as ________.

A) concentration
C) shield laws
B) by-product theory
D) filtering

Question 45

The Center for Responsive Politics and Pollster.com are examples of websites that

A) provide search engines for citizens.
B) have many videos of campaign events.
C) provide blogs written by top journalists.
D) collect links to political information.

Question 46

According to research, well-informed people are unlikely to change their minds when they learn something new from the news media because

A) they do not trust the news media.
B) they believe that media sources contain political bias.
C) they have already decided what they think.
D) they cannot remember all of the information they read or hear.

Question 47

If a federal official sues to stop the publication of a top-secret memo about an ongoing military conflict, and a judge agrees and prohibits publication, this is an example of ________.

A) politics
C) a shield law
B) a leak
D) prior restraint

Question 48

Although newspapers are limited in the ________ of their coverage, the ________ of their coverage means that they can provide more detailed knowledge to their readers.

A) depth; timeliness
C) timeliness; breadth
B) breadth; timeliness
D) timeliness; depth

Question 49

The "47 percent" incident during the 2012 presidential campaign demonstrates that

A) the Internet allows anyone to influence the news.
B) campaigns continue to rely on public opinion polling.
C) media conglomerates shape the news through filtering.
D) horse race coverage is declining over time.

Question 50

Which one of the following statements is accurate?

A) The media and politicians are always adversaries.
B) The media and politicians each have something to offer the other.
C) The media and politicians typically have a very positive relationship.
D) The media and politicians typically fail to compromise when it comes to crafting the news.

Question 51

Which one of the following statements is accurate?

A) Liberal groups prompted media coverage of Hillary Clinton's e-mails when she was secretary of state.
B) The FBI director brought charges against Hillary Clinton due to her practice of using a private e-mail server when she was secretary of state.
C) All news outlets engaged in framing, filtering, and priming in the exact same manner.
D) The FBI director criticized Hillary Clinton for her e-mail practices but did not charge her with violating the law.

Question 52

Typically, candidates for federal office spend about ________ percent of their budget on advertising.

A) 10-20
C) 60-70
B) 30-40
D) 80-90

Question 53

Media effects

A) explore whether exposure to media coverage of politics changes what people think or do.
B) explore the extent to which media coverage has a conservative bias.
C) explore the extent to which media coverage has a liberal bias.
D) explore the extent to which media coverage has a structural bias.

Question 54

Which one of the following characteristics reduces the effectiveness of the Internet in creating informed citizens?

A) higher barriers to publication on the Internet
B) availability of search engines for finding sites
C) availability of videos of important political events
D) unreliability of many Internet sources

Question 55

What is happening at the present time with newspaper circulations and major TV news networks?

A) They are both increasing subscribers.
B) Newspapers are increasing subscribers, and television is decreasing subscribers.
C) Newspapers are decreasing subscribers, and television is increasing subscribers.
D) They are both decreasing subscribers.

Question 56

If politicians talk to journalists on background,

A) it means they are speaking off the record.
B) it means they are trying to enhance their name recognition.
C) it means they are trying to get media attention for their campaigns.
D) it means they are seeking to get personal credit for a policy or program success.

Question 57

Which one of the following statements about murder over the last 30 years in the United States is accurate?

A) The murder rate in the United States has never been higher than it is right now.
B) The murder rate in the United States has never been lower than it is right now.
C) Drawing conclusions about the murder rate in a diverse country is a complicated task.
D) The media's coverage of violent crime is always balanced.

Question 58

Which one of the following statements is accurate?

A) Journalists cover the issue of gun control more after a mass shooting.
B) Journalists consistently cover gun control on an even basis due to their liberal bias.
C) Journalists consistently oppose gun control on an even basis due to their conservative bias.
D) Journalists rarely ever cover gun control in the course of their reporting.

Question 59

The quality and types of news sources vary most in which media format?

A) Internet
C) newspapers
B) radio
D) television

Question 60

The idea of prior restraint refers to

A) the willingness of the press to refrain from publishing sensitive information.
B) the FCC shutting down a station for violating standards of decency.
C) a judicial order allowing government to stop the press from publishing something.
D) the ability of the press to stop the government from taking an unconstitutional action.

Question 61

The Internet

A) may exacerbate the knowledge gap between and among citizens.
B) reduces the knowledge gap between and among citizens.
C) has increased the political knowledge of the American citizenry.
D) has decreased the political knowledge of the American citizenry.

Question 62

Bias in the media

A) is easy to identify.
B) is very hard to find.
C) is obviously in favor of Republican candidates.
D) is obviously in favor of Democratic candidates.

Question 63

Which one of the following statements is accurate?

A) Most American media outlets are for-profit companies.
B) Most American media outlets are nonprofit companies.
C) Most journalists and producers of the news make it a point to include in-depth coverage of politics.
D) Most journalists and producers of the news are not attentive to public opinion.

Question 64

Political conservatives generally favor ________.

A) National Public Radio
C) Fox News
B) PBS
D) CNN

Question 65

Media coverage of politics

A) emphasizes hard news.
B) emphasizes soft news.
C) emphasizes the details of public policy debates.
D) emphasizes the importance of politics in the daily lives of most citizens.

Question 66

Public opinion polls taken early during a political campaign ________.

A) are very important
B) are almost irrelevant
C) almost always predict the winner
D) typically favor the Democratic candidate

Question 67

Which one of the following is an illustration of a hostile media effect?

A) Liberals tend to believe that the media is biased in favor of liberal candidates.
B) Conservatives tend to believe that the media is biased in favor of conservative candidates.
C) Journalists tend to accentuate negativity and conflict.
D) Democrats generally believe the media favors the Republicans.

Question 68

Media conglomerates

A) are not very efficient.
B) provide more alternative points of view.
C) provide less alternative points of view.
D) are an artifact of the past.

Question 69

What do surveys reveal about the public's perception of media bias?

A) The public believes the media are biased in a conservative direction.
B) The public believes the media are biased in a liberal direction.
C) The public believes the media to be impartial.
D) Democrats believe the media are biased toward conservatives; Republicans believe the media are biased toward liberals.

Question 70

When journalists focus on the relative standing of candidates rather than their policy proposals, they are engaged in ________.

A) horse race coverage
C) hard news
B) attack journalism
D) filtering

Question 71

Attack journalism

A) no longer exists.
C) is increasing.
B) is decreasing.
D) has not changed in 25 years.

Question 72

Which one of the following is not a key characteristic of most modern American media?

A) attack journalism
C) horse race coverage
B) hard news
D) soft news

Question 73

Which one of the following statements is accurate about the media?

A) The media give Americans the coverage they want.
B) The media try to manipulate citizens into caring more about foreign policy issues.
C) The media outlets avoid competing between and among each other.
D) The media will likely stop focusing on scandal and negativity in the near future.

Question 74

What is the equal time provision and why is it important in political campaigns?

Question 75

The increase in coverage of scandals and controversies is all part of the rise of ________.

A) media conglomerates
C) horse race coverage
B) wire services
D) attack journalism

Question 76

What are media conglomerates and why are they potentially problematic?

Question 77

Horse race journalism

A) emphasizes substantive public policy issues.
B) emphasizes philosophical differences between and among the candidates.
C) emphasizes the actual competition between and among politicians.
D) emphasizes the background and history between and among the candidates.

Question 78

How do most people learn about politics?

Question 79

What is the Federal Communications Commission and why is it important?

Question 80

Why do politicians or other government leaders provide information on background or off the record?