The+Rights+of+Speech,+Press,+Assembly+and+Petition

- Public Opinion, the Media, and Interest Groups
 * The Rights of Speech, Press, Assembly and Petition**

This week's readings are intended to dig into three of the political factors that have emerged as a consequence of the political freedoms established in the Constitution: public opinion, the media and interest groups.

Public opinion exists as a viable independent force in politics as a direct consequence of the freedom of speech. As was discussed earlier in this class, in a democratic government public policy is supposed to follow public opinion. Elections are the principle mechanisms for ensuring that this will in fact occur, since leaders that do not follow the preferences of their constituents risk being removed from power. But in order to determine whether in fact they are following the preferences of the population, elected representatives have to have some mechanism for determining where public opinion lies. They need to know what isues are salient to their constituents and what positions they take on them. They are also interested in what it takes to manipulate opinion in order to ensure they have their constituent's support. These questions are also of interest to any group that wishes to demonstrate support for an issue important to them. Without the support of public opinion, policies are generally unstable and subject to change.

An independent press is essential to the development of public opinion and the viability of democracy. Without a press that was able to distribute news about the abuses of Britain and the organized efforts of some colonists to challenge Britain and declare independence, the movement would have gone nowhere. The importance of the press was enshrined in the constitutional limitation on the ability of the national government to pass laws limiting the freedom of the press. An evolving press was also central to the development of democracy. Newspapers were important components of early party organizations. As media technology has grown more sophisticated -- from radio to television to the internet -- its impact on politics and government has increased, even to the point of affecting the relationship between the branches of government. Radio and television, for example, increased the strength of the President over Congress by allowing the President to go over the heads of Congress and take messages directly to the people. But the press, or the media, can be controversial because it can have an influence on the political process itself. This raises a question. Should the press be neutral conveyers of information about politics and government, or should it take a stand?

We introduced the concept of an interest group at the beginning of this semester when we covered factions in our discussion of Federalist #10. Recall that factions, especially permanent majority factions, created problems for popular governments since they allowed the majority to persecute the minority. Also recall that the ironic solution to the problem of majority factions was the creation of a constitutional system that increased the number of factions in society. The more interests in society the more factions, and the more factions the less likely that a permanent faction would evolve. The Constitution was therefore written with the expressed intent of encouraging the development of multiple interests in society. The First Amendment's limitation on Congress' ability to restrict the freedom to peacefully assemble and petition government for a redress of grievances embodies this intention. That being the case, the effort was successful. Multiple interests in society not only exist, but have in many, many cases formed professional organizations -- interest groups -- to advocate for the group. These include labor unions, professional organizations, social, business and religious groups, pubilc interest organizations and many others. There are so many groups that some wonder if they are still healthy for democracy.

Summer 2009**
 * Quiz Questions for Online Students

1. One of the key principles underlying the freedom of speech, is the idea that the free exchange of ideas creates a [|marketplace of ideas] where various solutions to public problems can be debated, and that the best solution to the problem can be selected among them. We haven't always agreed. The entire concept of [|sedition] is based on the notion that certain things cannot be said, and cannot enter the marketplace of ideas. [|Oliver Wendel Holmes] argued against this idea in his dissenting opinion in [|Abrams v. the United States]. I want you to summarize Holmes' argument and critically evaluate it. 2. One of the best ways that public opinion is established is with public opinion polls. The best known and oldest poll is the Gallup Poll which was formed by George Gallup in the 1930s. It's website is a great source of information about topical issues. Currently they are collecting a variety of polls on attitudes about health care. I want you to [|review these polls]and discuss the range of opinions about health care contained in the polls. 3. This question should be fun. People on the left and right are convinced that the mass media is biased against them. [|Media Matters] argues that the media is dominated by conservative voices while [|Accuracy in Media] argues that its dominated by liberals. Read through both sides and compare the arguments they make. 4. Since health care is being debated in Congress, interest groups representing different sides of the issue are busy trying to influence members of Congress. Use your internet surfing skills to find articles about these groups and describe who they are, who they represent, and the strategies they are using to influence the final shape of the legislation.

150 words each, at least. Email your answers to me by midnight August 9.


 * Outline

Public Opinion - Freedom of Speech**

Public Opinion in a Democracy - The Marketplace of Ideas

Constitutional Limits on Speech - Freedom of Conscience - Sedition - Clear and Present Danger - Political Speech - Obscenity - Campaign Finance

Basic American Beliefs - Political Equality - Individual Freedom - Self Government - Abstract v. Concrete Beliefs - Is speech truly free? Does being American carry with it a belief system?

Sources of Opinion: Agents of Socialization - The Family - School - Peer Groups - The Media

Turning experience into opinion - Schema Theory

Measuring Opinion: Public Opinion Polls - Methodology - Problems

The Nature of Public Opinion in the U.S., Texas and the Greater Houston Area.


 * The Media - Freedom of Press**

The Role of the Press in a Democracy

Constitutional Limitations on the Press - Sedition - Libel - Prior Restraint - The Fairness Doctrine

The Role of the Press in the Founding of the Country - The British Whig Press - John Peter Zenger - Benjamin Franklin - The Declaration of Independence - The Federalist Papers.

The Evolving Press - The Partisan Press - The Yellow Press - The Objective Press - The Adversarial Press

Technology - The Printing Press - Radio - Television - The WWW

Government's Influence on the Press - The FCC - The Press Conference - Media Relations - Public Relations - The Revolving Door

The Press' Influence on Government and Society


 * Interest Groups - Freedom to Peacefully Assemble and Petition Government for a Redress of Grievances**

Factions - Remember Federalist #10?

What exactly is an interest group and what to they do? - the institutionalized embodiment of an interest held by a group of people. - Influence Legislation - Influence the Implementation of Legislation by the Executive - Influence Public Attitudes

The Role of Interests in a Democratic Republic

The Problem of Interest Group Formation - Are all interests equally likely to form into groups? - The Free Rider Problem - The Selective Incentives to form Groups

The Strongest Interest Groups

The Weakest Interest Groups

How Interest Groups Influence Elected Representatives - Lobbying - Electionering

How Interest Groups Influence Executive Agencies - Agency Capture - Monitoring Public Register - Corridoring

The Iron Triangle - Is this what government is really all about?