Deck 8: The Media

Question 1

Which of the following best presents the central question that underlies changes in today's media?

A)How reliable and trustworthy are those who report the news?
B)Where does today's news originate and how is it reported?
C)How effective are the news media in shaping Americans political understandings?
D)How does the idea of biased news sources impact the reporting of today's news?

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Americans are increasingly getting their political information through the filter of

A)family, friends, and acquaintances who influence our lives.
B)all of the media outlets that inform us of political issues.
C)school and church sources that indoctrinate us on American values.
D)politicians and their personal campaign outreaches.

Answer 2

B

Question 3

In April 2005, Lieutenant General John R.Vines issued a policy that

A)opened the use of milblogs to all soldiers and their families.
B)allowed for free government-created and -monitored websites for soldiers and family.
C)required servicemen to register their web server/web page with unit commanders for monitoring.
D)required servicemen to remove their web server/web page in order to maintain order and security.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

A major limiting factor of early newspaper readership was the

A)overall lack of literacy.
B)public disinterest in political information.
C)cost of a yearly subscription.
D)intense amount of competing media.

Question 5

Ward Carrol, editor of military.com, saw the contribution of milbloggers as

A)exposing foreign operations abroad in a negative light.
B)providing essential information to soldiers on news from home.
C)essential reading for understanding the war.
D)contributing to the overall morale of soldiers abroad.

Question 6

Americans are simultaneously witnessing a major ______ in daily newspaper readership and a ______ in social media, political talk shows, and the use of "celebrity" news sources.

A)rise, decline
B)rise, rise
C)decline, decline
D)decline, rise

Question 7

The main consumers of early newspapers were the

A)uneducated masses.
B)middle class.
C)financial and political elite.
D)literate lower class.

Question 8

The connection between the nation's media and American politics has been shaped by which of the following?

A)tradition, politics, capitalism, and the need to preserve national security
B)technology, politics, the rights of a free press, and the need to preserve national security
C)politics, the rights of a free press, and the need to preserve national security
D)the rights of a free press, capitalism, and the tradition of printed media

Question 9

The first daily newspaper in the United States was the

A)Saturday Evening Post.
B)Philadelphia Evening Post and Daily Advisor.
C)Boston Globe.
D)New York Times.

Question 10

Which of the following best exemplifies a "milblog"?

A)A news agency is embedded in a military unit.
B)The nightly news places information about the military on its website.
C)A news reporter uploads his accounts of military action on the Internet.
D)A soldier creates a weblog through which he and his family/friends can stay in touch.

Question 11

While citizen journalists may operate in a variety of contexts, one of the most extreme is

A)foreign affairs and regime change.
B)combat and military operations abroad.
C)domestic protests and political activities.
D)local news events and information.

Question 12

Milblogs are impacted by the tension between

A)national security, military control, and executive actions.
B)free speech, soldier morale, and operational security.
C)free speech, executive actions and military control
D)military control, national security, and operational management.

Question 13

Nonprofessionals who cover events by filming them on cell phones or providing commentaries and analysis are called

A)web masters.
B)Internet journalists.
C)social media gurus.
D)citizen journalists.

Question 14

The military see the use of Internet and social media resources as a(n)

A)ongoing threat to national security.
B)personal safety threat to soldiers and family.
C)source of bias and untruth that distracts from mission readiness.
D)huge morale factor for both soldiers and their families.

Question 15

Which of the following are all valid themes of today's media?

A)technology, dramatic change, and partisan politics
B)communal ownership, biased stories, and a lack of objectivity
C)capitalistic ownership, freedom from bias, and objectivity
D)relative stability, partisan-free politics, and bias-free reporting

Question 16

By taking political positions and supporting candidates and parties, early newspapers were acting as a

A)political elite.
B)partisan press.
C)penny press.
D)mass media.

Question 17

The earliest printed news material in America was the

A)gazette.
B)newspaper.
C)pamphlet.
D)almanac.

Question 18

Forms of electronic communications that enable users to create and share content or to participate in social networking are called

A)weblogs.
B)social media.
C)milblogs.
D)Internet sites.

Question 19

A major problem with the rise in milblogs was an inability to

A)properly train soldiers on the effective use of Internet resources.
B)censor or control the online actions of military personnel that might place operations at risk.
C)keep families in the loop of important information impacting them.
D)maintain esprit de corps (morale)within and between the ranks of the armed forces.

Question 20

The collective group of news providers that people increasingly depend upon is called

A)mass media.
B)social media.
C)news media.
D)radical media.

Question 21

Outlets for news and other content that relies on mass-communications technology to bring stories directly into people's homes but are subject to stricter content regulations than cable television outlets and alternative sources of information are known as

A)mass media.
B)citizen media.
C)news media.
D)broadcast media.

Question 22

The news "bosses" of the penny press were the

A)industrialist publishers.
B)wealthy elite.
C)parties and candidates.
D)public.

Question 23

The Associated Press took advantage of telegraph technology to create the world's first

A)mass media.
B)partisan news service.
C)wire service.
D)consolidated media.

Question 24

In September 1960, candidates ______ and ______ participated in the first of a series of televised presidential debates in United States history.

A)Franklin D. Roosevelt and Alfred "Alf" Landen
B)Harry S. Truman and Thomas E. Dewey
C)Adlai Stevenson and Dwight D. Eisenhower
D)John F. Kennedy and Richard M. Nixon

Question 25

In order to speak directly to American citizens about the Great Depression and, later, World War II, President Franklin Roosevelt used which of the following?

A)radio advertising
B)public speeches
C)fireside chats
D)television commercials

Question 26

The use of sensational headlines, cartoons, graphics, and emotional language in order to influence public opinion is known as ______ journalism.

A)yellow
B)investigative
C)partisan
D)biased

Question 27

Technological advances during the 20th century brought news, political figures, and candidates into Americans' lives in a ______ way.

A)direct
B)indirect
C)partisan
D)nonpartisan

Question 28

Talk radio broadcasts have been criticized for their efforts to

A)disseminate propaganda.
B)provoke emotional responses.
C)generate revenue for their owners.
D)be as fair and impartial as possible.

Question 29

Today's radio talk shows are often but not solely used to distribute partisan messages for which of the following political parties?

A)Libertarian
B)Democratic
C)Green
D)Republican

Question 30

During the progressive era, many investigative journalists were nicknamed

A)partisans.
B)muckrakers.
C)politicos.
D)yellow journalists.

Question 31

On August 20, 1787, Charles Pinckney from South Carolina proposed the inclusion of which of the following guarantees to the Constitution?

A)Freedom of Assembly
B)Freedom of Religion
C)Freedom of Speech
D)Freedom of the Press

Question 32

As the Vietnam War progressed, American casualties mounted, and protests against American involvement spread and grew, trusted television journalist ______ questioned if the war had become unwinnable.

A)Edward R. Murrow
B)Rodger Mudd
C)Walter Cronkite
D)Frank Magee

Question 33

Sources of information that appeal to a wide audience, including newspapers, radio, television, and Internet outlets, are known as ______ media.

A)news
B)mass
C)broadcast
D)public

Question 34

The 1990s witnessed the rise of which new outlet for television and television news?

A)one-hour news magazines
B)24-hour cable news
C)local news stations
D)citizen reporting

Question 35

Which of the following technologies first allowed the instantaneous transmission of news over long distances in the mid to late 19th century?

A)the telegraph
B)the telephone
C)the Internet
D)the Pony Express

Question 36

A news reporter follows an important story from its origins to its ultimate end by digging into every possible corner of the story.This would be an example of ______ journalism

A)investigative
B)partisan
C)yellow
D)citizen

Question 37

The press played a pivotal role in the ratification debates of the United States Constitution through the publication of

A)The Federalist and Anti-Federalist Papers.
B)Common Sense.
C)The Bill of Rights.
D)The Declaration of Independence.

Question 38

In 1961, John F.Kennedy, having won the presidency, gave the first live televised

A)news conference.
B)press release.
C)public speech.
D)executive order.

Question 39

Early newspapers were nicknamed the

A)partisan press.
B)yellow press.
C)penny press.
D)people's press.

Question 40

William Randolph Hearst used yellow journalism in his publication, The New York Journal, to promote the

A)Korean War.
B)Mexican American War.
C)Spanish American War.
D)Vietnam War.

Question 41

Critics charge that allowing firms to charge for Internet service based on bandwidth use will lead to

A)price discrimination.
B)information bias.
C)data hording.
D)lower overall prices.

Question 42

A strategy used to create a greater presence of traditional network broadcast journalists in other venues has been to

A)emphasize traditional news broadcasting.
B)emphasize nontraditional news broadcasting.
C)blur the lines between traditional and nontraditional news broadcasting.
D)rebrand traditional news media services as nontraditional news outlets.

Question 43

For the most part, media outlets are largely organized to attract

A)viewers.
B)advertisers.
C)consumers.
D)broadcasters.

Question 44

Which of the following terms is used to refer to all of the various digital platforms through which individuals receive, share, and produce content?

A)niche journalism
B)new media
C)traditional media
D)citizen journalism

Question 45

In 1996, Australian media entrepreneur Rupert Murdoch launched which news channel?

A)CNN
B)Fox News
C)MSNBC
D)HLN

Question 46

Efforts to regulate the media have focused primarily on what two things?

A)celebrity and media ownership
B)media ownership and media content
C)reporter bias and media accountability
D)media content and celebrity

Question 47

What effect did deregulation have on the diversity of the nation's major news outlets?

A)expansion of news outlets
B)expansion of broadcast stations
C)increasing consolidation
D)increasing diversity

Question 48

Republican Senator Ted Cruz labeled net neutrality

A)unfair price discrimination.
B)unregulated data hording.
C)an important contributor to future innovation.
D)"Obamacare for the Internet."

Question 49

From the point of view of publishers and broadcasters, regulations were necessary to prevent

A)overlap.
B)bias.
C)over grazing.
D)consolidation.

Question 50

Nontraditional Internet news sources often get their stories from a process called ______

A)aggregating.
B)consolidation.
C)primacy.
D)conglomeration.

Question 51

A Federal Communications Commission (FCC)rule that requires Internet service providers to treat all data equally, without discriminating based upon content or bandwidth demands, is called

A)network implementation.
B)network consolidation.
C)net informality.
D)net neutrality.

Question 52

The Internet was first developed and deployed through a collaboration between ______ and ______.

A)the CIA, the military
B)DARPA, research universities
C)the NSA, the CIA
D)the FBI, the NSA

Question 53

The ______ established the Federal Radio Commission and required broadcasters to obtain a license to broadcast on specific frequencies.

A)Communications Act of 1934
B)Federal Communications Commission Act of 1980
C)Federal Radio Act (1927)
D)Telecommunications Act of 1996

Question 54

The 21st century has witnessed a marked decline in consumption of ______ media.

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

Question 55

While often criticized, cable news channels are

A)becoming more and more subjective and less like traditional news.
B)pandering to specific audiences and lacking hard news stories.
C)becoming more like what newspapers had been before-unapologetically partisan.
D)less partisan and more balanced in their delivery of news stories.

Question 56

One of the other calls for regulation dealt with the ______ of content of materials that went directly into American's homes.

A)bias
B)morality
C)reliability
D)accountability

Question 57

With technological revolutions in the 20th century, demands for regulation came from

A)citizens and broadcasters.
B)the federal government and elected representatives.
C)foreign nations and broadcasters.
D)elected representatives and citizens.

Question 58

Media that caters to fragmented and specialized audiences is called

A)niche journalism.
B)new media.
C)traditional media.
D)citizen journalism.

Question 59

Since they operate under looser regulatory constraints than the broadcast networks, television news has become more ______ and less ______.

A)partisan, objective
B)objective, reliable
C)subjective, partisan
D)reliable, subjective

Question 60

CNN gained prominence in 1986 with its coverage of what famous news event?

A)the assassination attempt on Ronald Reagan
B)the taking of American hostages in Iran
C)the resignation of Richard M. Nixon
D)the space shuttle Challenger disaster

Question 61

According to many reporters and industry insiders, the process of ______ was one of the contributing causes of the scandal that enveloped NBC News and Brian Williams.

A)aggregation
B)consolidation
C)conglomeration
D)degradation

Question 62

The current view of most scholars of media and American politics lies

A)more toward the limited effects model.
B)more toward the direct effects model.
C)somewhere in between the direct and limited effects models.
D)in an institutional effects model.

Question 63

One of the most important developments in the Internet age has been the rise of ______ media like Facebook.

A)broadband
B)social
C)self-published
D)citizen-created

Question 64

The political goal of a politician who wishes to control the media is to

A)get out as much information as possible about the campaign on a daily basis.
B)control the message by focusing on one message per news cycle day.
C)allow the public to set the media agenda for the campaign.
D)allow the candidate to create a media storm that distracts from negative messages.

Question 65

The study of the power of the news media in shaping individuals' political knowledge, preferences, and political behavior is called the

A)horse race phenomenon.
B)"feeding frenzy."
C)partisan bias.
D)media effect.

Question 66

According to the work of political scientist Markus Prior, the new technologies and media avenues of today may be dividing Americans, making them more partisan.We call this phenomenon a

A)digital divide.
B)electronic break.
C)Internet gateway.
D)voter chasm.

Question 67

The idea of net neutrality raises important issues such as

A)is granting open access to information an idea that is in line with a capitalist economic system?
B)how can American democracy balance the First Amendment against equal access to political information?
C)can unregulated access to information be guaranteed in an environment of competitive Internet providers?
D)will net neutrality be of greater advantage for Internet providers or Internet consumers?

Question 68

Whether true or not, scandals often crowd out discussions of policy.This is a pattern that political scientist Larry Sabato has called a

A)horse race phenomenon.
B)reporter bias.
C)"feeding frenzy."
D)commercial bias.

Question 69

Stories that focus on celebrity and personality rather than underlying issues are known as

A)soft news.
B)edutainment.
C)infotainment.
D)hard news.

Question 70

The ______ requires licensees to guarantee political candidates equal time to present their views and opinions.

A)equal time rule
B)equal access rule
C)fairness doctrine
D)broadcast equity doctrine

Question 71

Soft news can act to engage individuals with ______ issues.

A)domestic
B)foreign policy
C)defense
D)social welfare

Question 72

Watching political comedy shows such as The Daily Show may decrease individuals' support for and engagement with

A)foreign policy.
B)domestic policy.
C)political institutions.
D)bureaucratic agencies.

Question 73

A perennial critique of the American news media is that it demonstrates a ______ partisan bias.

A)negative
B)conservative
C)neutral
D)liberal

Question 74

The blurring of the lines between providing information and entertaining audiences when covering events is known as

A)soft news.
B)edutainment.
C)infotainment.
D)hard news.

Question 75

The weapon of choice when a public figure is disgraced tends to be

A)Facebook.
B)Snapchat.
C)Twitter.
D)Instagram.

Question 76

The shaping of content and focus of news based on the desire to capture the market of news consumers is called

A)partisan bias.
B)horse race phenomenon.
C)commercial bias.
D)reporter bias.

Question 77

The frenzy of media consolidation following the Telecommunications Act of 1996 placed many news organizations and their employees under

A)federal oversight.
B)public scrutiny.
C)regulatory review.
D)new ownership.

Question 78

The NBC correspondent who was suspended for six months for embellishing his experiences while embedded in Iraq was

A)Tom Brokaw.
B)Brian Williams.
C) Lester Holt.
D)Luke Russert.

Question 79

Coverage of political campaigns that focuses more on the drama of the campaign than on policy issues is known as the

A)horse race phenomenon.
B)reporter bias.
C)"feeding frenzy."
D)commercial bias.

Question 80

The federal rule that expanded regulations of American political news coverage beyond just the provision of time for candidates to the content of political news coverage itself is called the

A)equal time rule.
B)equal access rule.
C)fairness doctrine.
D)broadcast equity doctrine.