Description
Book SynopsisIn modern American presidential campaigning, scholars and citizens have bemoaned the effects of electronic media on voters. Much has been written about the effects of television ads, media management, perceived bias, and other issues, yet one element of today's media environment that most Americans would recognize has not been identified in the public mind: expectation setting. Journalists regularly tell audiences what actions candidates should take on the campaign trail, based solely on whether they're leading or trailing in public opinion polls. Polls, Expectations, and Elections: TV News Making in U.S. Presidential Campaigns follows the rise and proliferation of this phenomenon through a comprehensive content analysis of transcripts of CBS Evening News broadcasts during presidential election campaigns from 19682012. Richard Craig uses numerous examples from these transcripts to illustrate how television news has gone from simply reporting poll data to portraying it as nearly the onl
Trade ReviewWhile focused on one television network, Richard Craig shows how journalists and commentators in many media use polling data to turn presidential politics into a cage match. Survey results become a narrative device in these 'unreality' shows, activating a cast of characters whose seeming ups and downs distort political reality and all too often drown out other forms of campaign coverage. -- Mark Stencel, former managing editor for digital news, National Public Radio
Table of ContentsIntroduction: The Democratic Process, Television, and Polls Chapter 1: Presidential Campaigning and the Rise of Mass Media Chapter 2: Campaigning In the Image-Making Age Chapter 3: Polling as a Political (and Media) Necessity Chapter 4: Lesser Expectations: Early TV Network Poll Usage Chapter 5: Soaring Expectations: You Poll, I Jump Chapter 6: Splintering Expectations: Poll Overkill and New Media Chapter 7: Conclusions and Implications for Future Research
