The Republican Party is at risk of losing their legitimacy with the general public. The biggest issue for the party is not only its uncompromising partisan values, but the negative campaigning, platforms and public ideations. Granted, the name Conservative was given to the party for a reason; however, the Republican Party’s alienation of moderates and independents, as well as modern societal values, will not further them in the polls or in “conserving” their principles. What the Grand Old Party (GOP) needs is a broader political perspective and a more positive platform presence.
As the people’s faith in the media has decreased over time, so has their faith in Congress. Ansolabehere and Iyengar’s Going Negative suggests that this lack of trust is affected by the “tabloidization” of media, including the “superficial” appearance of political campaigns and ads (Going Negative 37-38). Going Negative also states that political television/media ads focus competitively on the personal lives of the opposing candidates, rather than informing the people on matters of public policy (Going Negative 37-38). This limited informational perspective, and reliance on demeaning the public image of the opposing candidate has worked in the past; but how well does it work beyond the partisan voter?
With the use of one-advertisement studies, Ansolabehere and Iyengar found political campaign ads to strengthen the loyalties of partisans. Additionally, they found party candidates to be more successful in supporting the topics of their own party platform. (Going Negative 64) Experimental results showed the authors that Republican viewers considered negative ads more helpful and effectively persuasive than positive commercials. Independents shared a similar...
... middle of paper ...
...ters." Politico.Com. Politico, n.d. Web. 5 Dec. 2013.
Logiurato, Brett. "Obama's Approval Rating Has Plunged to an 'All-Time Low,' and the GOP's Has Tanked Even More." BusinessInsider.Com. Business Insider, n.d. Web. 5 Dec. 2013.
Murray, Mark. "NBC/WSJ Poll: Obama Approval Sinks to New Low." NBCNews.Com. NBCNews.Com, n.d. Web. 5 Dec. 2013.
Newport, Frank. "Congressional Approval Sinks to Record Low." Gallup.Com. Gallup, n.d. Web. 5 Dec.2013.
Newport, Frank, and Joy Wilke. "Hispanics of All Ages Tilt Democrat." Gallup.Com. Gallup, n.d. Web. 6 Dec. 2013.
"October 2013 Post-ABC Poll - Obama, Republicans and Shutdown Fallout." WashingtonPost.Com. Washington Post, n.d. Web. 5 Dec. 2013.
Woodward, Calvin, and Jennifer Agiesta. "AP-GfK Poll: Republicans Get Most Blame for Shutdown, Tea Party Is Potent and Divisive Factor." Ap-GfkPoll.Com. GFK.Com, n.d. Web. 5 Dec. 2013.
In this article Mary Kate Cary opens up with the supreme court decision to not restrict the use of corporate funds in political advertising so that she can make her point that big money ads are not the most effective way for candidates to reach American constituents. She argues that social media is a new way for politicians to connect with citizens. Her five claim are that Americans can now, choose the media they wish to consume, share the media they choose the share, like posts they agree with and dislike posts they do not agree with, connect with others on social media, and donate to candidate campaigns online. With these claims she comes to the conclusion that politicians want to go around mainstream media so that they can connect directly with the voters.
In closing, this book informs us on how the Republicans went crazy and Democrats became useless, and how it’s become a problem. The books unfolds the faults of the Republicans and Democrats “behind the scenes”, and made me more aware of the parties today.
President Obama was no different. Five weeks after the election, President Obama met with his economic and political advisors that presented him with their reports of the rapidly deteriorating economic conditions and their plan to hinder the economy from collapsing. President Obama delegated the legislative work to party members and committees because, as a former legislator, he believed that giving Congress discretion in writing the bill would contribute to its enactment (Wayne, 2013). “In general, crises, when they first occur, enhance opportunities for presidential leadership” Stephen J. Wayne stated in Rivals of Power: Presidential-Congressional Relations. “Members of Congress, much like the general public, look to the president and rally behind him” (Wayne, 2013). At first, president Obama hit the ground running after he won the election, and immediately started to figure out with his advisors on how to get the United States back on its feet again. And Congress members look up to the president just as much as American citizens do when the United States faces a crisis. Which in turn can boost the president’s and Congress’ relationship to American citizens. However, Obama’s operating style spawned criticism from both the Democrats and Republicans. The Democrats companied that he did not give much support for their
...the president's approval ratings go down because that is the first place an ignorant population looks to blame. When actually, the fact is that Barack Obama's voting history actually shows him to be one of the NRA's best friends when it comes to gun legislation. Rest assured people, our Second Amendment isn't going anywhere. Look it up folks!
“Republican Party Platforms, Then and Now.” The New York Times. The New York Times Company, 28 Aug. 2012. Web. 18 Mar. 2014.
Popular culture also plays a role in why Americans do not trust politicians. Late-night television shows use politicians in their comedy skits, where their mistakes are punch lines for comedians. A study produced by Jody Baumgartner and Jonathan Morris found that people who view late-night television shows have a more negative view of candidates, (Medvic p. 5). In particular, people who view The Daily Show have drastically less faith in the electoral process, (Medvic p. 5). Russell Peterson argues that these jokes as “implicitly anti-democratic” because they declare the entire system as fraudulent, (Medvic p. 5).
Beck, Paul Allen and Hershey, Marjorie Randon. Party Politics in America. 9th Ed. Longman, New York, NY. 2001.
... Trent, J. D., Mongeau, P. A., & Short-Thompson, C. (1997). The Ideal Candidate Revisited: A Study of the Desired Attributes of the Public and the Media Across Three Presidential Campaigns. American Behavioural Scientist, 40, 8, 1001-1019.
Preston, B. (2012, October 2). A Guide to the Obama Administration’s Five Major Scandals for Mainstream Media Dummies. The PJ Tatler RSS. Retrieved April 25, 2014, from http://pjmedia.com/tatler/2012/10/02/a-guide-to-the-obama-administrations-five-major-scandals-for-mainstream-media-dummies/2/
Television has affected every aspect of life in society, radically changing the way individuals live and interact with the world. However, change is not always for the better, especially the influence of television on political campaigns towards presidency. Since the 1960s, presidential elections in the United States were greatly impacted by television, yet the impact has not been positive. Television allowed the public to have more access to information and gained reassurance to which candidate they chose to vote for. However, the media failed to recognize the importance of elections. Candidates became image based rather than issue based using a “celebrity system” to concern the public with subjects regarding debates (Hart and Trice). Due to “hyperfamiliarity” television turned numerous people away from being interested in debates between candidates (Hart and Trice). Although television had the ability to reach a greater number of people than it did before the Nixon/Kennedy debate, it shortened the attention span of the public, which made the overall process of elections unfair, due to the emphasis on image rather than issue.
"CNN Poll: Americans Don’t like Health Care Bill – CNN Political Ticker - CNN.com Blogs." CNN Political Ticker - CNN.com Blogs. Web. 20 Mar. 2011. .
Lott Jr., John R.. At the Brink: Will Obama Push Us Over The Edge?. Washington DC: Regnery
Zorn, Eric. “One thing polls show accurately: Changed minds." Chicago Tribune Nov 9, 2004: 1.
In the US, mass media plays a significant role in politics. One of the key roles mass media plays in politics includes the airing of the platforms of various politicians. The media influences the view of people on politics and politicians. As the opinion of individuals is affected, the results of the votes are consequently changed (Holden, 2016).
Prior, Markus. "News vs. Entertainment: How Increasing Media Choice Widens Gaps in Political Knowledge and Turnout." American Journal of Political Science. 49.3 (2005): 577-592. Web. 3 Feb. 2014.