The History of Media in the US

Journalism in American History

Party Press (newspapers printed by parties)
Goal: to sway people Newspapers run by politicians and parties Circulated among elites who could afford them (costs were high) Often subsidized by the government. Rare to find both sides of an argument.

Journalism in American History

Popular Press
Printing press (more widely distributed = cheaper) News wires (Associated press) and technological innovation (ie: the telegraph) There was some presence of bias but it was a function of the editor's desires (We aren't in the days of party printed papers any more.). Yellow journalism and sensationalism
Goal: Sell newspapers

Journalism in American History

Magazines and Opinion
Countered Yellow Journalism
Readers grew tired of the sensationalism

And helped nationalize the media

Journalism in American History

Electronic Journalism
Radio (1920s), TV (1940s), Internet (1990s) Direct communication for politicians (messaging no longer was filtered in the way it once was.) Cost of newspaper is less though Introduces novel, staged events for coverage
Mission Accomplished for example

The shrinking sound bite Growth of Cable/entertainment news (a return to yellow journalism?)

Journalism in American History

Internet
Immediate publication of information More democratic but less reliable Advantage for blogs and other mediums? Think Kerry and Swift Boat Veterans Or Bush and his military service Obama and "bitter" comments Wikileaks Romney and the 47% Pushback: Consolidation of blogs

TV vs. Newspaper
Cost (TV market and congressional district overlap): Different for different people. Detail (sound bites vs. in depth) Competition (lots of TV but usually only one newspaper per area now) Fame/Prestige (higher for TV, but lower for newspapers)

Roles for National Media

Gatekeeper
Decides what becomes news Set the agenda

Scorekeeper
Follow the national reputations of candidates Declares winners/losers at different points (horse race)

Watch Dog
Scrutinizes public figures and policies Watergate, Clinton, etc.

Rules Governing the Media

Broadcast requires license Print media faces fewer restrictions Libel requires clear evidence that paper knew it was false Confidentiality of Sources: can be violated in support of a criminal trial (ie: Scooter Libby)

Rules continued
Fairness Rules (mostly broadcast due to restrictions):
Equal time rule: opportunities to advertise Right of Reply: attacks on a broadcast get a reply Political Editorializing: can reply to on-air endorsements Fairness Doctrine (not law, no FCC enforcement) Opportunities to respond on controversial issues Usually followed through FCC recently officially dropped it from their books

Media Market Alignment

TV broadcast areas do not overlap with political boundaries necessarily This makes TV ads an inefficient enterprise for some offices. Rise of microtargeting