Post on 10-Feb-2017
FINAL PRESENTATION
By: Arlynnell Dickson
Representing the Poor: Poverty, Geography, and the U.S. House
Motivating Questions: - Does Congress as a whole represent the interests of poor Americans? - Do representatives respond to the interests of their poor constituents? - Do they sponsor more poverty legislation? - Do they vote to support policies designed to help the poor?
Current stageExamine the Congressional Record’s frequency of key socioeconomic terms
Compare the results of last semester’s media coverage with the Congressional Record
Last Semester: Track Socio-
Economic Terms in the Media
Poverty
The Poor Middle Class
Wealthy
Inequality
Congress &
The Media
Mission:
• Track the number of results for the phrase “Congress and X”
• Record Congressional sessions from 1969 – 2014
• Transfer results into bar graphs
69-70 71-72 73-74 75-76 77-78 79-80 81-82 83-84 85-86 87-88 89-90 91-92 93-94 95-96 97-98 99-00 01-02 03-04 05-06 07-08 09-10 11-12 13-140
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1400
Comparison of Poor, Middle Class, & WealthySource: The New York Times
The Poor Middle Class Wealthy
Welfare Reform
The Poor Middle Class
Wealthy
Occupy Wall Street
This Semester: Track Socio-
Economic Terms in the Congressional
Record
“For every day Congress is in session, Capitol Words visualizes the most frequently used words in the Congressional Record, giving you an at-a-glance view of which issues lawmakers address on a daily, weekly, monthly and yearly basis. Capitol Words lets you see what are the most popular words spoken by lawmakers on the House and Senate floor.”
Poverty
The Poor Middle Class
Wealthy
Inequality
The Rich
Capitol Words
Mission:
• Track the frequency of socio-economic terms
• Copy data from Capitol Words
• Compare with media graphs from last semester
The Poor Occurrence Over Time Occurrence By Party
The Poor
Wealthy
The Rich
The Poor v. Middle Class
95-96 97-98 99-00 01-02 03-04 05-06 07-08 09-10 11-12 13-140
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
The Poor Middle ClassThe Poor v. Middle Class
Media:New York Times
Congressional Record: Capitol
Words
Ambiguous terms like "the poor,"
"wealthy," and "the
rich" showed mixed results
Search results
show only the MOST RECENT
results for the terms
If you dig through
the other years more
relevant contexts appear
Most relevant: middle class,
inequality, poverty
Issues
Low IncomeLow Income Housing
Other Projects:Welfare Reform
Case Studies
Welfare Reform Case Studies
Collect roll-call votes for 16
different poverty-related bills
Download information
including: vote, gender, party,
religion, race, job type
Dr. Miler will use this data for her book as specific
case studies
Minimal Political
Representation of the
Poor
Individual Legislators
Congressional Bills
Media Coverage
Congressional Record
Conclusion:
- Poverty does not affect individual legislator’s actions
- Congress devotes minimal attention to the poor
• Hearings, debates, bill sponsorship, bills passed
⁻ Media coverage doesn’t focus on the poor
• Sources, time frames, terms