Also, Bardes explains on page 194, "friends at school, teachers" and those whose opinions we hold "in high regard" influence us.
Does advertising influence public opinion? Why? Media advertising is very effective because today's technology can help his or her present the best case; to wit, a candidate can reach exactly the demographics he or she wants through "microtargeting," Bardes explains. Microtargeting allows the advertiser (or candidate) to "obtain an extensive amount of information -- much more than was possible before high-speed computers" and databases about potential, specific voter groups. Instead of just running the same political ad in every city in a particular state, microtargeting can "target" certain demographics (pro-choice women in San Francisco, for example, see one specific ad, and men concerned about immigration in San Diego get another ad with a specific theme to appeal to them). This is called demographic segmentation, and it's very important to advertisers. What is public opinion polling? The Gallup organization is among the most respected polling groups. The Roper Poll is also a respected polling...
As to the most recent Roper poll, the company called 1,001 adults nationwide on the question, "Generally speaking, would you say things in this country are heading in the right direction or in the wrong direction?" Between January 5 and 10, 37% of those polled said "right direction"; 57% said "wrong direction"; and 7% were "unsure" (Roper). Research companies, including Gallop, Pew Research, Roper, Bloomberg, among others, track public opinion. The data reported by these polling companies are used by the news media, by politicians, and by special interest groups that wish to make a point in promoting their cause.
Works Cited
Bardes, Barbara a., Shelley, Mack C., and Schmidt, Steffen W. American Government and Politics Today 2008: The Essentials. Florence, KY: Cengage Learning: 2008.
Druckman, James N., Kukliniski, James H., and Sigelman, Lee. "The Unmet Potential of Interdisciplinary Research: Political Psychological Approaches to Voting and Public
Opinion. Political Behavior, Vol. 31 (2009): 485-510.
PollingReport.com. "Direction of the…
