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We the People Book Cover
We the People: A Concise Introduction to American Politics, 4/e
Thomas E. Patterson, Harvard University

The News Media

Multiple Choice Quiz

Choose the best answer



1

The early press in the United States was most closely associated with:
A)weather and planting forecasts.
B)political partisanship.
C)advertising.
D)gossip.
2

The headline "Death of a Monster" exemplifies:
A)objective reporting.
B)partisan reporting.
C)sensationalist reporting.
D)muckraking journalism.
3

Objective reporting is based on the idea that a reporter's job is to:
A)report the facts in order to cover both sides of partisan debates.
B)report what political leaders want them to report.
C)discover what other reporters are saying and provide a uniform interpretation of events.
D)scrutinize partisan debates and tell the news audience which party has the better argument.
4

The lack of diversity in modern newspaper reporting compared with reporting in earlier historical eras is influenced by all except which one of the following:
A)federal regulatory policies.
B)a widespread move toward adoption of objective journalism.
C)national and international news services.
D)decreases in newspaper competition.
5

"On-the-scene" coverage of a natural disaster is an example of the press exercising which role:
A)watchdog.
B)public representative.
C)common-carrier.
D)signaler.
6

As part of its signaler role, the media also performs the function of:
A)protecting the public interest.
B)setting the public agenda.
C)investigating elected officials for wrongdoing.
D)influencing the behavior of politicians.
7

"Horse race journalism" refers primarily to media coverage of:
A)the stock market.
B)the sports world.
C)election campaigns.
D)legislative debates.
8

The first "national" news medium was:
A)large-circulation newspaper chains.
B)radio networks.
C)television networks.
D)cable television stations.
9

An example of the press exercising its role as watchdog is coverage of the:
A)O.J. Simpson trial.
B)U.S. military assistance to Bosnia.
C)U.S. involvement in the Persian Gulf War.
D)Watergate scandal.
10

Under FCC regulations, during campaigns broadcasters are required to:
A)give each candidate an equal amount of coverage.
B)charge candidates a market variable rate for air time.
C)not permit biased coverage especially during campaigns.
D)offer candidates the lowest rate for air time charged to commercial advertisers.
11

Public officials are not able to collect libel damages from negative news coverage if:
A)they can convincingly demonstrate that the news organization was false in its accusations.
B)they can show that the news media was careless in its search for truthful information.
C)the media can provide supporting evidence about an allegation made about an individual.
D)the news organization reported false material maliciously.
12

The media has made inroads into which role of political parties:
A)advocating the public interest.
B)nominating officials for public office.
C)fundraising for campaigns.
D)censoring behavior of public officials.
13

The style of reporting called "yellow journalism":
A)stressed factual coverage of events.
B)emphasized sensationalism to attract readers.
C)was subsidized by the major political parties.
D)was favored by government critics.
14

Application of First Amendment protections to the U.S. press has:
A)kept the press from reporting any "officials secrets."
B)barred the press from publishing any unsupported allegations about public officials.
C)discouraged news attacks on public officials.
D)enabled the government to block any news if it could convincingly demonstrate in court that publication of it would jeopardize national security.
15

The establishment of a cooperative relationship between a reporter and a public official can promote which role of the media?
A)signaler
B)public protector
C)common carrier
D)watchdog