Ch. 8 and Ch. 9 Test Review

Which of the following is true about public opinion?

• Public opinion includes attitudes about music and sports.

• Government in the U.S. is government by public opinion.

• Issues of public opinion are related to public affairs.

• Politicians are not that interested in public opinion.

Which of the following usually has the earliest influence on a person’s political opinions?

• gender and race

• family and school

• work and friends

• television and radio

How did the Watergate scandal affect public opinion?

• Fewer people were influenced by peer groups.

• Fewer people listened to the news media.

• Many people distrusted government.

• Many people distrusted opinion polls.

Why is it difficult to get a good idea of public opinion from interest groups?

• Very few people belong to interest groups.

• Interest groups are not very honest.

• Interest groups do not share their opinions.

• It is hard to tell how many people belong to an interest group.

What is the best way to get an accurate idea of public opinion?

• through letters to the editor in a newspaper

• through scientific opinion polls

• by watching television newscasts

• by following election results

When conducting a poll, interview results can be influenced by which of the following?

• random digit dialing

• the tone of voice of the interviewer's voice

• computers that analyze the data

• the size of the interview staff

When analyzing poll results, what is the strength of a person’s opinion called?

• relevance

• election fatigue

• criticism

• intensity

Which is a limit on the media’s influence on American politics?

• The media seldom cover political events.

• People are seldom influenced by media opinion.

• Few people closely follow political events.

• Members of the media are not allowed to express their opinions.

Read the excerpt. What does it say about the future of newspapers?

• Fewer people will get the news from newspapers.

• About the same number of people will get the news from newspapers.

• The number of newspapers is likely to grow.

• Though fewer people will read them, newspapers will be more influential.

According to the excerpt, more and more people are getting political news from which source?

• television

• radio

• magazines

• the Internet