Professor Wood

POLS 319, The American Presidency

Example Question and Answer Outline

In grading the examination, three criteria will be used.

1) Each answer will be examined for how well it conforms to a model answer. A model answer has been formulated for each question based on the lectures and readings.  An example is given below for a question concerning the media and the president. Note that this is only an outline of the model answer. So this would need to be expounded.

2) Each answer will be evaluated for the degree to which it is evident that the conceptual materials from lecture and readings are understood and applied. Accurate reference to some recognizable component of lectures and the two books provides prima facie evidence on this element of the grade.

3) Each answer will be evaluated for the extent to which it demonstrates critical thought about the course materials. Critical thought means to evaluate the rectitude of the materials, or to move beyond the materials to important questions of law, political science, or democratic theory. Challenging the viewpoints expressed in the readings, or that of the professor is GOOD in this element of the evaluation.  Note that statements of political ideology on your part do NOT demonstrate critical thought, and should be avoided at all costs.  Your demeanor should be as “scientists” studying a political phenomenon from an objective point of view.

 

  1. The president is dependent on the media for various things; the media is also dependent on the president. We could liken the relationship between the media and president as a negotiation game between two strategic actors each behaving in a self-interested fashion. Concerning this relationship, discuss the following.
    1. What does the president want from the media?
      1. Favorable approval ratings.
      2. Favorable treatment of the president’s policy agenda.
      3. Favorable historical legacy.
    2. What does the media want from the president?
      1. Access and information.
      2. Favorable ratings from the public.
      3. The norm of accuracy means they prefer to publish the truth.
      4. Note that there may be a tradeoff between ii and iii.
    3. How does the president go about getting what he wants?
      1. The White House press operation is extensive, with about 1/3 of the high-level staff devoted to media relations.
      2. The White House Press Secretary is responsible for managing relations with the press.
      3. S/he does this by coordinating the news and publicity releases, as well as advising the president and his staff on media relations.
      4. The White House Press Secretary also interacts with media representatives in a relationship of trust, but controlled openness.
      5. Specific media related functions include: press conferences, briefings, backgrounders, interviews, and various favors such as cultivation of relations with elite reporters, providing transcripts, photo-ops, and trip related services.
      6. The White House also attempts to shape what the media reports through timing, content, and quantity of these activities.
    4. How does the media go about getting what it wants?
      1. The White House press corps is omnipresent in and around the White House.
      2. The continually seek the "big story", but most often get only what the White House provides. There is an air of superficiality to most of the news obtained by the White House press corps.
      3. Nevertheless, they are sometimes able to ferret out things beyond the standard news through leaks and cultivating relationships with White House personnel.
      4. Leaks are often intentional and may sometimes serve specific administration purposes.
    5. Is the president successful? Is the media successful?
      1. As a general rule, the president is successful in controlling the flow of news to the media. However, he is not successful in controlling ALL information or the content of the news. The president is but one actor competing with others for scarce space on the media’s agenda.  Also, the rise of investigative reporting means that the media will often prefer to report what the president does not want.  For example, the Watergate scandal was directly attributable to a continuous stream of leaks from the White House on the cover-up. Likewise, the impact of the Lewinsky scandal on the Clinton administration was exacerbated by the inability of the administration to control the flow of information. Success is relative, and no administration is ever successful in completely controlling the news.
      2. The media is relatively successful in obtaining information from the White House. However, as noted above, most of the news obtained in this fashion has an air of superficiality.
      3. Reporting on the White House does not appear to have any appearance of bias against particular political parties or individuals. There are also occasions when there are distortions in the news, such as the media’s focus on George Bush’s elite background, Gerald Ford’s clumsiness, or Bill Clinton’s propensity for expensive haircuts. Also, there is a trend toward negativity in reporting. According to Cook and Ragsdale, the incidence of negative news has increased over the years so that president’s Bush and Clinton received less favorable coverage than their predecessors.  Reporters are always looking for conflicts of interest and exposure.
    6. From the standpoint of democratic theory and public policy-making, is the relationship between the media and the president a healthy one? Why/why not?
      1. The news media could serve an important function in providing the public with news on the presidency, both good and bad. Such information is important to a rational public and effective democracy. Without such information, citizens cannot make informed decisions regarding the job the president and incumbent party are doing.
      2. Superficiality in reporting the White House leads to trivializing the important functions of the presidency. The public tends to be poorly informed on policy, and administration efforts generally. This aspect of media relations is generally destructive of democracy, and makes the task of the presidency and public more difficult.
      3. Some would also argue that excessive media negativity and distortions make it more difficult for the president to be successful. Virtually every elected president since Lyndon Johnson has left office under a cloud of media enhanced negative images (Johnson and Vietnam; Nixon and Watergate; Carter and the Iran Hostage crisis; Reagan and Iran-Contra; Bush and "no new taxes", and Clinton and MonicaGate.) Certainly the media should report on problems when they exist, but it should not distort the facts in the interest of publication and ratings. Nor should it focus continually on a story simply for the purpose of increased ratings.  Such negativity makes it more difficult to recruit quality candidates into public service, and diminishes democratic leadership. It may also doom the presidency to perceptions of failure for the foreseeable future.