Media Matters Essay Test from 3-30-07

Go to: http://mediamatters.org/items/200503220005

Read the article. Then write a response to the following prompt.

After examining the polling data, determine whether or not this is a valid poll. In your analysis, discuss how the media can impact public opinion, how polling techniques can influence poll results, and how bias plays a role in reporting information. Also consider the following questions: Why would CNN choose to display these results in the manner it did? What political interests are effected by this issue? What factors would make this poll more or less valid?

Public Opinion SQ3R

SQ3R Topic: ____Chp. 5: Public Opinion__________Pages: __132-166_____

Step1: Survey: Take a moment to scan over the assigned reading. Be certain to make note of anything that you notice on each page; drawings, photographs, charts, graphs, titles subtitles, any thing that might draw your attention or activate your prior knowledge.
Write down your observations on a separate sheet of paper.

Step 2: Question: Think about the questions listed below and write your own question about the material in any space provided.

On what 3 things does the accuracy of a public opinion poll’s population depend?
How does the majoritarian model differ from a pluralist model of democracy?
Look at the chart on page 141. Describe a skewed curve, bimodal curve, and a normal/bell curve.
What usually happens to people’s self-perception of ideological preferences over time?
Identify an issue where there has been dramatic change in public opinion over time.
What does the chart on page 1143 tell us about students’ ideological preference since 1970?
When are children most likely to adopt their parents’ party identification?
Identify one reason that only half of American voters identify with the political party of their parents.
What are the 2 most important things in a child’s political socialization?
In what democratic country have they needed to restrict freedoms because of historical factors?
What causes opinion schema to change?

Step 3: Read: As you formally read through the assignment, take note of any vocabulary listed below as well as any additionally word you have not encountered before. You may have more than ten. Use vocabulary in context clues to define those words. Use a dictionary only if you are unable to define the word in context. Write these definitions on a separate sheet of paper.
public opinion, 2. skewed distribution, 3. bimodal distribution, 4. normal distribution, 5. stable distribution, 6. political socialization, 7. socioeconomic status, 8. self-interest principle, 9. opinion schema, 10. issue framing

Step 4: Recite: Once you have read the material, use your separate sheet of paper to completely answer the questions from step 2.

Step 5: Review: After your answers have been checked, graded and returned, please review your answers to study for upcoming quizzes and exams.