This book explores the extent and circumstances under which the media affects public policy; and whether the political impact of the media is confined to the public representation of politics or whether their influence goes further to also affect the substance of political decisions.

The mass media are playing an increasingly central role in modern political life that expands beyond their traditional function as mediators between the world of politics and the citizens. This volume explores the extent and circumstances under which the media affects public policy; whether the political impact of the media is confined to the public representation of politics or whether their influence goes further to also affect the substance of political decisions. It provides an in-depth understanding of the conditions under which the media might, or might not, play a role in the policy process and what the nature of their influence is. Bringing together conceptual and methodological approaches from both political science and communications studies, this book presents an interdisciplinary perspective. It presents empirical evidence of the processes involved in the interaction between mass communication and policy and features case studies from Western Europe and the US and across different policy fields. The book will be of interest to students of public policy, political communication and comparative politics.

This text explores the extent and circumstances under which the media affect public policy and whether the political impact of the media is confined to the public representation of politics or whether their influence goes further to also affect the substance of political decisions.

Setting the Agenda describes the mass media’s significant and sometimes controversial role in determining which topics are at the centre of public attention and action. Although Walter Lippman captured the essence of the media’s powerful influence early in the last century with his phrase, “the world outside and the pictures in our heads,” a detailed, empirical elaboration of this agenda-setting role of the mass media did not begin until the final quarter of the 20th century. In this comprehensive book, Maxwell McCombs, one of the founding fathers of agenda-setting tradition of research, synthesizes the hundreds of scientific studies carried out on this central role of the mass media in the shaping of public opinion. Across the world, the mass media strongly influences what the pictures of public affairs "in our heads" are about. The mass media also influences the very details of those pictures. In addition to describing this media influence on what we think about and how we think about it, Setting the Agenda also discusses the sources of these media agendas, the psychological explanation for their impact on the public agenda, and the subsequent consequences for attitudes, opinions and behaviour.

In this latest edition of a highly praised book, Graber covers a broad range of subjects with three focal points: the mass media and their place in the public and private sectors; the media and their impact on individuals' attitudes and perceptions; and media coverage of governmental institutions and political situations.Cyberspace and other technological developments are bringing the worlds of mass media and government closer together. Understanding how mass media and American government impact each other requires an understanding of their functions and structures.

A large-scale empirical investigation into the frequency and accuracy of media coverage of public policy.

Public policy thinking and implementation is both a process of intellectual thought and rationale for governing. This book examines public policy and the influence news media organizations have in the production and implementation of public policy. Part I assesses the impact of political philosophy on public policy thinking and further discusses the meaning of public policy in social democratic systems. It uses the riots that occurred across England in the summer of 2011 as a case-study to focus on how the idea of the ‘Big Society’ was regenerated by government and used as a basis for public policy thinking. Finally, it investigates how media organizations form news representations of public policy issues that seek to contextualize and reshape policy manufactured for public consumption. Part II provides a psychological exploration of the processes which explain the connection between the media, the public and policy-makers. Does the ‘common good’ really drive public policy-making, or can group processes better explain what policy-makers decide? This second part of the book explores how media workers’ professional identities and practices shape their decisions about how to represent policy news. It also shows how the public identities and corporate interests of media organizations shape their role as referees of public policy-making and how all this culminates in faulty decision-making about how to represent policy news, polarization in public opinion about particular policies, and shifts in policy-makers’ decisions.

This comprehensive, trusted core text on media's impact on attitudes, behavior, elections, politics, and policymaking is known for its readable introduction to the literature and theory of the field. Mass Media and American Politics, Tenth Edition is thoroughly updated to reflect major structural changes that have shaken the world of political news, including the impact of the changing media landscape. It includes timely examples of the significance of these changes pulled from the 2016 election cycle. Written by Doris A. Graber—a scholar who has played an enormous role in establishing and shaping the field of mass media and American politics—and Johanna Dunaway, this book sets the standard.

Looks at the transformation of government policy since 1980 that has lead to changes in electronic media. The author argues that Washington policymakers must scrap the old regulatory system and write a new policy script designed to guarantee a broadcast service that is free, and dedicated to serving Americans as citizens, not just as consumers.

This book explores the role of the news media in promoting equitable economic development, and considers the obstacles it faces as a catalyst for change and growth. It examines the capacity of investigative journalism to scrutinise public policy and the activities of the corporate sector, to facilitate public access to information, expose corruption and weak governance and thus promote greater transparency and accountable government. It contains contributions from journalists, television and newspaper editors, economists and academics, as well as the winner of the Nobel Prize for Economics Joseph Stiglitz, and for Literature, Gabriel Garcia Marquez. A number of case studies examine the work of the media and the challenges they face in various countries including Thailand, Bangladesh, Egypt, Zimbabwe and the former Soviet Union.