All AP US Government Resources
Example Questions
Example Question #1 : Media Influence
Which headline is the the most consistent with the "yellow journalism" approach to reporting?
President Grant Exposed as Ringleader of Whiskey Ring!
Frederick Douglass Loses at Supreme Court!
United States Blocks Spanish out of Cuba!
Pearl Harbor Slowly Rebuilds from the Ashes!
Referendum 9 Passes!
President Grant Exposed as Ringleader of Whiskey Ring!
Yellow journalism focused on sensationalism- violence, romance, patriotism, and exposes of government, politics, business, and society. The four incorrect answers deal with everyday news events, despite the exclamation points at the end. "Yellow journalism" would encourage reporters to investigate any scandals regardless of their validity, and if higher officials could be connected with outrageous headlines would be all the more sensational.
Example Question #1 : Influence On Public Opinion
Yellow Journalism is a term used to refer to journalism that
Plays on the racial prejudices of its readership to steer debate
Offers equal coverage of each side of an issue
Seeks to create a public forum for discussion of political issues
Presents a sensationalized view of events in order to sell more newspapers
Presents only objective facts about events
Presents a sensationalized view of events in order to sell more newspapers
The term "Yellow Journalism" refers to a type of reporting that presents sensationalized (and often inaccurate) accounts of events in order to attract readers and sell more papers. The sensationalized and potentially inaccurate accounts of the sinking of the U.S.S. Maine in newspapers published by William Randolph Hearst and Joseph Pulitzer helped to lead to the Spanish-American War at the end of the 19th Century.
Example Question #2 : Media Influence
The terms "common-carrier role" and "watchdog role" are used to refer to __________.
the tradition that demands the Speaker of the House stay removed from all House debates
the link that the media provides between the people and the government
None of these answers is correct.
the role of the Supreme Court to regulate constitutionality in American law
the service that partisan media renders to its party and support base
the link that the media provides between the people and the government
"Common-carrier role" refers to the idea that the media acts as a vehicle through which political leaders can communicate with the general public. The "watchdog role" refers to the idea that the media acts as a servant of the people by keeping an eye on politicians, making sure they are not corrupt or negligible in office. Both of these terms relate to the role that the media plays in connecting the government to the people.
Example Question #2 : Influence On Public Opinion
What is the name given to the "leak" of a proposed government policy to the media in order that politicians might observe the public reaction?
A rat leak.
A trial balloon
A soundbite
Narrowcasting
A red herring.
A trial balloon
A "trial balloon" is information released to the media and framed as if it were an unintentional leak from an unnamed political source; however, the intention is for politicians who are debating a change in policy to observe how the public might react to such a change.
Example Question #1 : Influence On Public Opinion
The practice of reporting shocking or abhorrent news stories for the sake of expanding readership is called __________.
black journalism
white journalism
partisan journalism
yellow journalism
red journalism
yellow journalism
"Yellow journalism" is the name given to the practice of reporting shocking or abhorrent news stories for the sake of attracting new readers and selling more newspapers. Yellow journalism is generally considered manipulative and bad journalistic practice, but that has not stopped various forms of media throughout American history from participating in it. Yellow journalism is most closely associated with the newspapers of William Randolph Hearst who (some argue) single-handedly dragged the United States into war with Spain by reporting on various news stories inaccurately to characterize the Spanish as violent and barbaric. Partisan journalism is the name given to a media source that serves the interests of a political party above the interests of the general public.
Example Question #3 : Media Influence
Which of these do Americans choose most often as a source of news?
Political mailings
Television
The internet
Radio
Television
Since its invention, the television has become the easiest and most widely available means of acquiring political news and commentary.
Example Question #2 : Influence On Public Opinion
When the media engage in agenda setting, they are telling us __________.
follow popular opinion
what position to take
what to think about
how to think
who to support
what to think about
News outlets often choose which stories get the headline or 1st position as well as, how much time is devoted to a subject. This is agenda setting and is the media's most used tool to influence viewers.
Example Question #1 : Influence On Public Opinion
The overall business of the media, in whatever form, is to __________.
gather mass audiences to sell to advertisers
provide jobs for the intellectual elite
convince viewers to vote for certain candidates
educate students
inform the public
gather mass audiences to sell to advertisers
News corporations, like any business, want to make profit. The best way to do that is to ensure you have a large viewing audience that attracts advertisers to sell on their network.
Example Question #401 : Ap Us Government
A(n) ___________ is a widely-known (generally) individual who has the ability to effect public opinion on a particular matter.
opinion leader
teacher
opinion seeker
community leader
opinion leader
The correct answer is “opinion leader.” Classic examples would be Piers Morgan, Sean Hannity, or anyone similar. Both of these men are widely known individuals who have quite a large effect on public opinion on political matters. Although teacher or community leader may have been tempting, those are technically examples of (possible) opinion leaders—but are not individually the definition.
Example Question #1 : Influence On Public Opinion
What was not a reason for the formation of national magazines founded in the mid- to late-1800s, such as the Nation, the Atlantic Monthly, and Harper's?
To promote the platforms of their respective political parties
To purify municipal politics
To develop a national constituency for certain issues
To provide solid investigative reporting
To encourage reform of the civil service system
To promote the platforms of their respective political parties
In the middle and late 1800s, the middle class was fed up with "yellow journalism" and started buying into the social reform goals of the Progressive era. This gave rise to a market for magazines that would devote their time to issues of public policy with solid, fact-based reporting.