AMERICAN GOVERNMENT Chapter 8 Vocabulary Public Opinion those

AMERICAN GOVERNMENT Chapter 8 Vocabulary

Public Opinion – those attitudes held by a significant number of people on matters of government and politics Mass Media – those means of communication that reach large, widely-dispersed audiences simultaneously Opinion Leader – a person who, for any reason, has an unusually strong influence on the views of others PUBLIC OPINION

Mandate – instructions or commands that a constituency gives to its elected officials Interest Groups – private organizations whose members share certain views and work to shape public policy Public Opinion Polls – devices that attempt to collect information by asking people questions

Straw Polls – polls that seek to read the public’s mind by simply asking the same question of a large number of people Sample – a representative slice of the total Random Sample – the pollster interviews a certain number of randomly selected people who live in a certain number of randomly selected areas

Medium – a means of communication; it transmits some kind of information Sound Bites – short reports that can be aired in 30 to 45 seconds or less Public Agenda – the societal problems that political leaders and citizens agree need government attention