Mass Media and Interest Groups

Which of the following is the earliest and one of the most significant agents in the political Socialization process?

• Family

• Place of Residence

• Group Affiliation

• Gender

Polls are taken to

• Guarantee the constitutional rights of all people

• Determine people's attitudes and viewpoints

• Further the political socialization of individuals

• Provide a system of checks and balances

The impact of the mass media on the public agenda can best be described as its ability to

• Tell people whom to vote for

• Focus the public's attention on specific issues

• Tell people what opinions to have about those issues

• Focus the public's attention on how to vote

Attitudes held by a significant number of people concerning governmental and political questions are known as

• The mass media

• Public opinion

• Interest groups

• Public policies

"Universe" is a term used to describe

• A politician's constituency

• The entire group of persons sampled in a given poll

• The entire group of persons whose opinions a poll seeks to measure

• the group that supports the activities of an interest group

Public opinion is made known through all of the following EXCEPT

• interest groups

• personal contacts

• the media

• peer groups

All of the following have a major influence on the opinion-making process EXCEPT

• religious leaders

• peer groups

• historic events

• interest groups

The most reliable measure of public opinion is

• straw votes

• quota samples

• scientific polls

• pressure groups

Which form of mass media is now the principle source of political information for about 80 percent of the population of the United States?

• Radio

• TV

• Newspapers

• Magazines

Which of the following statements does NOT describe political socialization?

• The family plays a leading role

• Influential factors include peer groups, opinion leaders, and education

• It ends when a person's formal education ends

• It is the process by which a person acquires political opinions