SS.C.7.2.10

Examine the impact of media, individuals, and interest groups on monitoring and influencing government.

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The media has a major impact on influencing and monitoring the government. Many times, the media serves as a watchdog, keeping an eye on the government and reporting on what the government does.

 

Interest groups have a major impact on influencing the government as well. These groups form to support a specific issue and work in large numbers to get their issue recognized by the government.

 

A Political Action Committee (PAC) is one type of interest group that works to raise money for a particular candidate who supports their issues. Also, interest groups may hire lobbyists, who meet with lawmakers to try to get their support for a bill that would benefit the issue the PAC supports.

 

Individual citizens impact the government. Simply by carrying out one of their most important civic responsibilities – voting – individuals play a major role in changing the government. Whether it is voting a candidate in or out of office or voting in favor of or against an amendment to the Florida Constitution, citizens change the government during every election. Voting is one of the most important parts of a democracy.

 

Interest groups use their First Amendment rights to peaceable assembly, free speech and petition to monitor and influence the government. Interest groups are groups that form because of a common interest or goal and attempt to influence people by working together in support of that goal or cause. Political Action Committees, which are often connected to interest groups, can raise money and contribute to the campaigns of candidates that they support. Interest groups can work with members of Congress or with other elected legislators to get laws passed (this is usually referred to as lobbying) and can educate members of their interest group on key issues and causes that they wish those members to support. For example, interest groups will ask their members to vote and give campaign donations to candidates that the interest group supports.

 

The media uses their right to freedom of the press, granted to them by the First Amendment, to monitor and influence the government. The media, which consists of print (newspaper, magazine), broadcast (television, radio) and Internet (social media) sources can produce stories about public officials, distribute information online about the government, or broadcast information and news reports through the radio or television programs. The media is a major player in both monitoring and influencing the government.

 

The media has a major impact on influencing and monitoring the government. In most instances, the media serves in a watchdog role, keeping their eye on the government and reporting government happenings to the public.

 

Interest groups have a major impact on influencing the government as well. These groups form to support a specific cause or special interest and work in large numbers to get their cause recognized by the government. Political Action Committees (PACs) is one type of interest group that works to raise money for a particular candidate that supports an issue that they favor. Additionally, interest groups may hire lobbyists whose job it is to meet with lawmakers in hopes of gaining their support of a bill that would benefit the cause/issue they support.

 

Finally, individual citizens impact the government. Simply by performing one of their most important civic responsibilities, individuals play a major role and impact in changing the government. Voting is one of the most important ways that American citizens can impact the government. Whether it is voting a candidate in or out of office or voting in favor of or against an amendment to the Florida Constitution, citizens change the government during every election. Voting is one of the most important parts of a democracy.

 

There are several different methods that individuals, the media and interest groups use to influence and/or monitor the government. Individuals can use their right to vote to change the government, the media can act as a watchdog to investigate and report on happenings related to the government and interest groups can hold meetings and write petitions in an attempt to make changes or influence the government. All of these groups: individual citizens, the media and interest groups are important members of a democratic society and they work together to keep the American government accountable.

 

The effectiveness of each method is difficult to determine. This is because individuals, the media and interest groups affect each other in their efforts to monitor and influence the government. The media may focus their attention on a specific issue or campaign, which will attract public attention and may impact how individuals vote. Interest groups may spend money on an expensive public information campaign which also may influence how individuals vote and whether they will contribute money to the interest group. Still, government tends to pay more attention to groups with a higher rate of voting compared with groups that do not vote in large numbers. Interest groups that spend more money through their political action committees also tend to have a stronger influence on who gets elected as well.

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SS.7.C. 2.11

Analyze media and political communications (bias, symbolism, propaganda).

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This poster was created in 1917, during World War I.  This is an example of the government using symbolism and propaganda to influence citizens.  Pictured above one can see “Uncle Sam” selling “liberty bonds” – which is a war bond (money that the government borrows from the citizens to fund a war effort) that was used to fund and support the military during World War I.  Because the cartoonist used Uncle Sam (the first two letters in Uncle Sam are “U” and “S”; U.S. is also used to represent “United States”), the readers saw it as their “patriotic duty” to buy these bonds to support the war effort.  The symbolism (Uncle Sam) and propaganda (“Invest Your Money”) used in this cartoon is an effective way to persuade citizens into thinking or behaving in a certain way. 

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Bias, symbolism, and propaganda can influence public opinion – which is the way that citizens view or feel about candidates or issues.  The media plays a major role in influencing public opinion. Oftentimes, the information that the media provides to the public is not balanced, or biased.  

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Bias occurs when one side is favored over another in the presentation of information.  Media bias can occur when news stations or news outlets decide what to report on and how much information to reveal to the public.  This is a problem for the public because they are only getting the side of the story that the news media want them to hear.

 

Symbolism is the use of symbols to convey a message.  The media may use symbolism as a sort of “shortcut” or as a way to target a certain group of people.  This can be a problem because many symbols are associated with certain groups, or may even have a negative reputation attached to them.

 

Both bias and symbolism can be viewed as forms of propaganda, which is an attempt to sway the public, including voters, to think or believe something.  Propaganda could be the use of symbols, a poster, or a commercial – there is not one specific kind of propaganda that exists. Oftentimes, the behavior or thoughts of voters are changed and influenced when the media introduces propaganda.  Here are some famous examples of propaganda:

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Example #1:  Uncle Sam

This propaganda poster is one of the most famous pieces of propaganda in American history.

 

This poster was originally intended to appear on a magazine cover during World War I to encourage American citizens to be prepared for the beginning of war.  Because this poster was so popular, President Roosevelt decided to use the image of Uncle Sam again in this propaganda poster to encourage young men to join the U.S. Army in World War II. The patriotic colors and the slogan “We Want You!” is a great example of how the government used symbolism and propaganda to get the American public to feel a certain way.  It is no surprise that Uncle Sam encouraged hundreds of thousands of men to join the Army and do their “American duty” during World War II.

 

 

Example #2:  Rosie the Riveter

During World War II, women in the United States entered the workforce and took on jobs they had not previously needed to do.  This was in large part because hundreds of thousands of American men had joined the military to fight enemy forces.  “Rosie the Riveter” pictured above was the face of the propaganda campaign that was aimed at getting the help of female workers in the munitions industry (guns, ammunition, and weapons). “Rosie” became a symbol of women’s role in supporting the country during World War II and a historic women’s figure.

 

Each of the eight segments of the snake represents a region or colony. For example, “N.E.” stands for “New England” which represents four colonies while “P.” represents Pennsylvania, which included Delaware at the time (Georgia was not included). Together, the snake represents all 13 colonies. The phrase “Join, or Die” was intended to reflect the author’s point of view that colonial unity was important to the colonists’ survival. The colonies needed to come together (“join”) with Great Britain against the French and Indians during the French and Indian War or else they would not survive (“die”). The “Join, or Die” symbol was later used to encourage the colonists to seek their freedom during the American Revolutionary War.

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Bias, symbolism and propaganda can influence public opinion – which is the way that citizens view or feel about candidates or issues. The media plays a major role in influencing public opinion.

 

Oftentimes, the information that the media provides to the public is not balanced, or biased. Bias occurs when one side is favored over another in the presentation of information. Media bias can occur when news stations or news outlets decide what to report on and how much information to reveal to the public. This is a problem for the public because they are only getting the side of the story that the news media want them to hear.

 

Symbolism is the use of symbols to convey a message. The media may use symbolism as a sort of “shortcut” or as a way to target a certain group of people. This can be a problem because many symbols are associated with certain groups, or may even have a negative reputation attached to them.

 

Both bias and symbolism can be viewed as forms of propaganda, which is any attempt to sway the public, including voters, to think or believe something. Propaganda could be the use of symbols, a poster, or a commercial – there is not one specific kind of propaganda that exists. Oftentimes, the behavior or thoughts of voters are changed and influenced when the media introduces propaganda.

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