Mass Media, Public Opinion &Politics

• Bias• Print Media• Radio• T.V.• Political Cartoons• Internet• Public Opinion Polling

Unit Topics

Today’s Objectives

• You will know all of the vocabulary.Backward. Forward. Upside down.You’re going to be an expert.

• You will analyze the role the mediaplays in your own life. I’m going to do ittoo, it’ll be fun.

Types of Mass Media

• Make a list. You’ve got 2 minutes.Write down every type of media you canthink of.

• Mass Media= ways of transmittinginformation to many people at the sametime

• Public Opinion: attitudes held by asignificant number of people in mattersof government and politics.

• Public agenda– What sorts of things are on the United State’s

public agenda?• Immigration, health care, war(s), gun control, gay

marriage, economy, marijuana, alternative fuel sources,global warming

– Does that reflect what is important to you?

– How does an issue get on the public agenda?• People start talking about it

• Bias: being partial to oneside of an argument– Are TV news stations

biased?– How can you tell if

something is biased?• Only tell one side of story• Only focusing on the good

or bad aspects of a certainstory

• What they deem asnewsworthy

– What biases do certainnews stations have?

• Fox?• MSNBC?• CNN?

What role does media play inyour life?

• List the mass media on the board inorder of least important to mostimportant in your own life.

• Pretend it is 1960, what would your listlook like then?

• What about in 1860?

Next Time…

• Bias!

Wrapping Things Up…

• Take out your vocabulary/guided notes sheet• Here’s what you’re going to do:• Using the three words on your sheet and

three of the types of mass media, write acouple sentences using them together on theback of your notes.

• Don’t give me definitions, just use them insuch a way that shows you know what theymean.

• Hand it to me on your way out or finish it forhomework.