Role of Info and News Media in Politics

519 Words3 Pages
What is the role of the information and news media in the shaping of political opinions ? The role of the media shapes the public opinion on political views. Most people believe everything they see on the news, and most likely it will become thier opinion. The government calls the media the "Fourth Branch of Government". Just as the three branches have a system of checks and balances that keeps one branch from wielding too much power, the media are the watchdog of all three branches, and they keep the public informed of the government’s activities, both good and bad.Without the media most people would know little about what our elected officials are doing. The media helps influence what issues voters should care about in elections and what criteria they should use to evaluate candidates. it has a greater influence in communicating to voters what issues are important and less of an influence in convincing them what to think about those issues. The media works more effectively by placing a spotlight on certain issues they feel the public should be concerned with. Just as the government influences the media, the media can help set the political agenda by focusing on specific issues and influencing what issues the public and government should be concerned with. The media can greatly influence the public by limiting coverage of certain candidates. The media has the discretion to cover only the candidates it feels are legitimate candidates and have a viable chance of winning the election. In this way, the media acts as a filter, by narrowing down candidates and sifting out lesser-known candidates and giving more coverage to the better-known. Although the public should ultimately decide on its own who they feel is a viable candidate. Even after the election, the media still plays a large roll in influencing the government's agenda through spotlighting issues and
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