Shaping Public Opinion Research Articles

The making of ‘public opinion’: Media and open diplomacy in China’s strategy at Versailles and the May Fourth Movement

AbstractThis article makes an intervention in the study of the May Fourth Movement by examining the role the mass media played in the diplomatic and domestic mobilization processes set in motion by China’s experience at the Paris Peace Conference. In contrast with the mainstream narrative that constructs the May Fourth Movement as a spontaneous response to the loss of Shandong at Versailles, this article shows that it was preceded by a proactive diplomatic strategy to mobilize ‘public opinion’ over the Shandong question. The Chinese delegation’s decision to launch a media campaign in support of their diplomatic agendas at Versailles inadvertently turned domestic media into a platform for political debate. As a result of competition between the political elites who dominated the mediascape, discussions over the Shandong question shifted from focusing on international diplomacy to domestic politics in the spring of 1919. An examination of the ‘media war’ during the May Fourth Movement further demonstrates that the political elites’ variable ability to adopt media strategies to shape and channel public opinion resulted in changing the political landscape of the post-May Fourth era. By focusing on the role of the mass media in the diplomatic and domestic mobilization in China’s strategy at Versailles and during the May Fourth Movement, this article forges new connections between the international and the domestic. It also invites further reflections on the nature of the May Fourth Movement by showing that the media was a tool of political mobilization that connected the political elite to the masses.

Constructing the abortion debate: a comparative news values analysis of print media discourses in Ireland and Argentina

ABSTRACT Socio-political transitions prompt shifts in public sphere discourses on key issues (Krzyżanowski, Michał, Anna Triandafyllidou, and Ruth Wodak. 2009. ‘Introduction’ in the European Public Sphere and the Media: 1–14. London: Palgrave Macmillan.). Opportunities to change abortion legislation constitute examples of this in stimulating renewed debates around gender and human rights. Media discourses on abortion are worthy of study for their ideological role in transmitting messages and shaping public opinion. This comparative study investigates mainstream media discourses on the Irish referendum for the legalisation of abortion (May 2018) and a similar vote in the Argentine Senate (December 2020). Using the methodological approach of Discursive News Values Analysis (DNVA) (Bednarek, Monika, and Helen Caple. 2017. The Discourse of News Values: How News Organizations Create Newsworthiness. New York: Oxford University Press.), this article explores news values in media coverage leading up to and directly after the vote in the two countries. Both corpora demonstrated a shift in news values before and after the key events although this was more pronounced in the Irish context. Mainstream media news values in Ireland promoted legislative change overall while Argentine newspapers differed in their construction of news values reflecting their opposing positions on the proposed legislation.

Интернет как особая сфера бытования современного исполнителя классической музыки

The article is devoted to the influence of the technical revolution on the development and functioning of classical music. The professional activity of modern classical music performers is strongly dependent on technical devices that became widespread in the twentieth century, when audio and video recordings became an integral part of society. The audience of the XXI century was replenished with generations of millennials and centinials who grew up surrounded by digital technologies, for whom the digitization of culture is a natural phenomenon, and acquaintance with samples of musical art on electronic platforms is comfortable. The principles of replication and transformation of unique works of art into mass production, the technical simplicity of creating and distributing amateur works on the Internet, have formed a special alternative virtual music environment. It operates according to its own rules, laws, algorithms and business models. The audience's interest in performers is measured by new categories — the number of likes and views. With the development of the Internet, Internet bloggers began to play a significant role in shaping public opinion, broadcasting their opinions to subscribers. Any technological revolution leads to changes in the social plan and the emergence of new values, as well as the necessity and inevitability of external and internal modernization of culture.

The power of history: How a victimization narrative shapes national identity and public opinion in China

We study the effect of a victimization narrative on national identity and public opinion in China experimentally. Previous research has suggested that governments can shape public opinion by guiding citizens’ collective memories of historical events, but few studies have established a clear causal link. By conducting an online survey experiment among 1890 urban Chinese citizens, we examine the causal impact of historical narratives on political attitudes. We find that, compared to control conditions, a narrative focusing on China’s humiliating past in the late Qing significantly reinforces respondents’ attachment to the victim side of the Chinese national identity, raises suspicion of the intention of foreign governments in international disputes, stimulates preference for more hawkish foreign policies, and strengthens support for China’s current political system. These effects are particularly strong among respondents without a college degree.

Discourse Battle on Borobudur Temple Tariff Increase Policy in Discourse Analysis Network

This study discusses the dynamic process in canceling the Borobudur Temple tariff increase policy using the Discourse Network Analysis (DNA) method and looking at the dynamics that develop through a network of actors and discourses sourced from various online media. The results showed that there was a change in government policy in a short time. The shift of the coalition of supporters to the opposition shows preventive measures in anticipation of widespread chaos. This shows that there are many factors that influence the policy-making process and political decisions. The DNA method used in this study can help map the relationship between actors and discourse in a network, so as to provide a more comprehensive picture of the policy-making process and political decisions. The research also shows the importance of the role of online media in shaping public opinion and influencing the policy-making process. The results of the study showed a change in policy delivered by the government. The shift of the coalition of supporters to the opposition shows preventive measures in anticipation of widespread chaos. In the policy context, this research makes an important contribution in understanding the dynamic processes that occur in policy-making and political decisions, as well as the factors that influence those processes. This can help the government and relevant stakeholders in making better decisions and taking into account all factors involved in policy making

Activity of social networks of the Faculty of Journalism of Advertising and Publishing

In the modern world, social networks play an important role for constant communication with users of the information space, in addition, they perform such functions as: informing, shaping public opinion, promotion, reminder, PR and advertising. Social networks are the most important platform and an integral part in building a personal brand, including the brand of the Faculty of Journalism, Advertising and Publishing. Nowadays, no company, media holding and even a government agency can communicate with its customers without having their own accounts in social networks. After all, the modern user of the information space primarily obtains information about any product from the Internet, and not from the newspaper as it was in the early 2000s. Today, social networks have become the main communication tool of the network society and are especially actively used in the system of marketing communications [7, 147]. The article examines the importance of social networks in the XXI century, the ability to use social networking tools for quality communication with users, maintaining the image, as well as attracting new users, and in the case of the Faculty of Journalism, Advertising and Publishing – future entrants, students.

The Influence of Media Coverage on Education Policy-making: A Comparative Analysis of the United States and the United Kingdom

The media plays a significant role in shaping public opinion and influencing policy- making in various fields, including education. This paper explores the influence of media coverage on education policy-making in the United States and the United Kingdom. Through a comparative analysis of the two countries, this study examines the ways in which media coverage affects education policy-making and how this influence differs in distinct political and cultural contexts. Specifically, this paper examines the impact of media coverage on education policies such as school funding, standardized testing, and teacher evaluation. The findings reveal that media coverage has a considerable influence on education policy-making in both countries, but the degree of this influence varies depending on the political and cultural context.

Role of Print Media in Reporting Conflicts Between India and Pakistan: A Comparative Analysis of Pakistani and Indian English Dailies (Jan 2016_Feb 2019)

The significance of print media in shaping public opinion is highlighted in this report from January 2016 to February 2019 by analyzing the disputes between India and Pakistan. It explores the water dispute, cross-border terrorism, the Kashmir conflict, and Line of Control (LoC) violations, which are four of the most divisive topics. The study also analyses any peace initiatives or bilateral discussions that have taken place between the two countries and looks at the coverage that these events received in a few print media publications. Incidents like the Pathankot incident, Uri attack, Kulbhushan Jadhav case, Burhan Wani's passing, ongoing ceasefire violations, worries about human rights in Kashmir, disagreements over projects like Kishanganga and Rattle hydropower, and the most recent Pulwama attack created palpable tensions between the two countries. The active coverage of print media in both countries provides important insight into the regional powerhouse newspapers' objectives.

Conspiracy as ARG: media and game essence of QAnon

The results of a comparative analysis of the functional features of the QAnon theory and the conceptual signs of ARG (games in alternative reality) are displayed. The signs of ARG are designated and given as elements of the reference game model, the basis for comparison. The authors found that the QAnon conspiracy theory, the history of its emergence and development features is of a synthetic nature: ARG elements are present in modified form. They transform the roles of developers and participants. The QAnon quest structure was visualized, the gameplay based on experiencing the state of apophenia - a painful search for a connection between random phenomena or events - was described. The similarities of QAnon with religion and at the same time political ideology based on the mechanics of the game were identified, which explains its popularity. The relevance of the topic is due to the steady growth in the number of conspiracy theories and their followers since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic against the backdrop of audience distrust in the media. The authors demonstrate how QAnon, not being essentially a game in an alternative reality, but using game technologies and eschatological narratives about the Great Tribulation and Judgment Day, achieves high efficiency in shaping public opinion.

News Trading in Indonesia’s Media: A Business in Shaping Public Opinion

This study aimed to study the massive and systematic extent of money politics in the 2017 elections of the Bireuen District. This study used a qualitative method with the participant-observer approach. Data were collected through FGD at Al-Muslim University in Bireuen and in-depth interviews with the relevant parties. The practice of money-politics in the Bireuen election was very immaculate and well-coordinated. It started by collecting the photocopies of ID and family registry cards and ended with distributing the money before and after the voting. The campaign teams in each village helped to assist this process to the villagers. The study found five major causes of money politics in the Bireuen District. First, the public confidence in the political elections has declined. Second, the political orientation of the community was pragmatic. Third, several candidates had the same power in the election; thus, they had no other choices but to give away money to the public in the hope of being elected. Fourth, the prevention of money politics in the local elections of the Bireuen regent was somewhat weak. The elections supervisory committee does not have the authority to punish the political money perpetrators but could only give recommendations to the District Independent Elections Commission (KIP). These recommendations are subject to being processed or neglected. Lastly, the regulation of money politics was also weak in the Bireuen regional election. This massive money politics in Bireuen could be prevented by establishing a concept and formulating policies in the form of qanun (Islamic bylaws) in Aceh. The qanun could cancel or disqualify the regent candidates if they are proven to have committed money politics based on convincing and legally binding evidence. The political parties could also be deprived of their political rights to carry the regional head candidates for a term of office. Aceh, through its self-government, has a special authority to produce regulations that do not contradict the higher regulation in Indonesia. The function of the qanun is to break the chain and the money politics system by imposing punishment on the regent candidates and political parties. This research has never been investigated before, especially the regulation potential to break the chains of money politics by establishing a qanun to be applied in Aceh.

Agenda Setting, Cross-cutting Effects, and Political Expression on Social Media: The Gun Violence Case

Focusing on a polarized issue—U.S. gun violence—this study examines agenda setting as an antecedent of political expression on social media. A state-of-the-art machine-learning model was used to analyze news coverage from 25 media outlets—mainstream and partisan. Those results were paired with a two-wave panel survey conducted during the 2018 U.S. midterm elections. Findings show mainstream media shape public opinion about gun violence, which then stimulates expression about the issue on social media. The study also reveals that partisan media’s gun violence coverage has significant cross-cutting effects. Notably, exposure to conservative media will decrease public salience of gun violence, pivot opinion in a more conservative direction, and discourage social media expression; and all of these effects are stronger among liberals.

Multimodal Emotion Recognition and Fluctuation: A Study on Sentiment Analysis of Online Public Opinion

Emotion is an important way for individuals to express their views on the Internet and an important variable that shapes public opinion. Considering the multimodality of data, such as text, picture and video, and the subtlety of emotional expression, a multimodal sentiment analysis model that addresses content involving difference senses, such as sight, hearing and touch at the same time is very necessary. This study outlines the basic steps, classification strategies and research methods of sentimental analysis and acknowledges the differences between sentimental analyses on text, picture and video. As multimodal sentiment recognition is still in its initial stage, there’s still room for improvement in cross-disciplinary research on multimodal data of text, picture, audio, video in terms of weighted scoring, complex emotion and intensity recognition. It’s concluded that future studies should focus on the intensity of different emotions, multimodal data fusion and how weighted scoring influences an emotion recognition model and explore application possibilities.

Rollin’ papers: Newspaper coverage of cannabis legalization in Canada

With Canada becoming the first G20 country to legalize the recreational use of cannabis, there has been increasing interest in the emergence of this new marketplace. Newspaper framing helps to shape public opinion on legalization and news sources play a role in determining how the public perceives the use of cannabis. This research analyzes how mainstream newspapers reported on the legalization of recreational cannabis in Canada in the years before and after legalization (between 2016 and 2019). Using a content analysis of 1,390 cannabis-related articles, 11 dominant reporting themes are identified. Over time, there was a shift from negative and sensationalist cannabis news coverage toward more balanced and progressive framing. The findings identify the influence of editorial political stance on thematic coverage.

Social policy expansion from below? The case of Chile’s student movement and free tuition higher education

Scholars have long sought to establish the strategies through which social movements can impact policy adoption. Yet, there is little evidence on the role they may play in policy expansion. We study the role of social movements in broadening the scope of social policies by analyzing whether Chile’s student movement impacted the expansion of the free college tuition policy between 2015 and 2020. We evaluate three mechanisms to assess the student movement’s influence on free tuition expansion. First, movements may use protests to affect the expansion process through disruption. Second, they can make use of their connections with and presence in parties and the bureaucracy to channel their demands and influence decision-making instances. Finally, movements may also try to shape public opinion to affect the scope of the policy through mobilizations and other forms of influence. We use a process tracing design to examine these mechanisms. We collect and analyze evidence from 32 elite interviews, congressional and administrative records, web scraped news, and public opinion and protest event data. Our results show that students influenced the implementation and expansion of the free tuition policy through all mechanisms using different strategies. First, students used protests to set free tuition in the public agenda. Second, and the most important strategy, by means of connections with incumbent parties and the presence of former student activists in the Education Ministry and in Congress, they indirectly influenced policy expansion. Finally, and indirectly, they shaped public opinion in favor of free tuition. Students played a role in defining the pace and scope of the policy but could not imprint all their demands. Overall, our analysis sheds light over the ways in which social movement can influence the implementation of policies, thus, expanding the scope of equity-enhancing social policies in Latin America and beyond.

Caste System and Indian Media: A Complex Relationship

The caste system has been a prominent feature of Indian society for thousands of years, and continues to shape the social, economic, and political landscape of the country. The media has a powerful role to play in shaping public opinion, and its portrayal of caste issues can have a significant impact on the way people think and act. In this research paper, we explore the complex relationship between the caste system and Indian media, and the challenges and opportunities facing the industry in addressing caste-related issues. We provide a historical overview of the portrayal of caste issues in Indian media, discuss the current scenario in Indian media with respect to caste-related issues, examine case studies of how caste-related issues have been portrayed in Indian media, and explore the way forward for Indian media in addressing caste-related issues.

Формирование положительного образа Китая в социальной сети «ВКонтакте» через призму дискурс-анализа (в период пандемии Covid-19)

The article deals with issues related to modern communication studies. Particular attention is drawn to the factors that influence the creation of a particular image (in particular, the image of China) by means of language. Taking into account the influence of the media text on public opinion and the formation of a certain vision of the image of the country, both lexical, grammatical, and syntactic language possibilities are analyzed. Based on the understanding of today's features of communication associated with the expansion of the information field due to the widespread use of Internet technologies, social networks stand out as a tool for shaping public opinion and a "sounding" response to the most significant events not only on a national scale, but also on a global scale. The COVID-19 pandemic is becoming such an event that has affected all countries without exception. In the context of this problem, the authors propose to analyze a large amount of material collected in the Russian social network VKontakte (VK). The choice of VK is substantiated due to the great popularity among Chinese users, recognition, wide distribution as the only “recognizable” Russian social network. Describes the method of discourse analysis and the relevance of its application for this study. The paper presents an overview of the works of Russian and foreign scientists devoted to the study of discourse. Based on the regularities identified from the discourse analysis, a classification of "evaluative" means is proposed, based on semantic and word-formation approaches. The conclusion is made about the dynamics of the formation of a positive image of China in the social and communicative context of the Russian-speaking community.

THE ROLE OF THE PALESTINIAN MEDIA IN SHAPING PUBLIC OPINION: AN APPLIED STUDY ON POLITICAL PROGRAMS ON PALESTINIAN TELEVISION IN THE PERIOD (2016-2022)

In this research, we will learn about the role of the Palestinian media in shaping public opinion: an applied study on political programs on Palestinian television in the period from 2016-2022, and how Palestinian television played an important role in shaping international public opinion on the Palestinian issue. This study aims to reveal the role of political programs in changing reality and creating political awareness among the Palestinian society during the period in which Palestinian television witnessed a renaissance and transformation in the field of media, which is the period between 2016 and 2022. Hence, the research problem was determined by answering Its main question represented in the following: How does the Palestinian society view the role of political programs on Palestinian television in forming their political awareness through political programs? Research questions: Did the citizen feel the transformation and development in the Palestinian TV during the period between 2016 and 2022? What is the degree of interest of the Palestinian community in the political programmes? What are the ways for students of the Palestinian society to benefit from the political issues presented by the Palestinian TV? What is the role of the political program presented by the Palestinian TV in encouraging the Palestinian society to participate politically? What is the degree of confidence of the Palestinian society in the topics presented by the Palestinian TV? By evaluating the political product of the Palestinian television programs in the period between 2016 to 2022, by analyzing the political discourse to reveal the impact of media policy on the contents, the quality of the media discourse and the style of presentation, and the extent of the impact of political programs on the audience. The importance of research: Television dealt with its history and Its advantages, dialogue programs, their forms and patterns, in addition to presenting the media strategy for television After presenting and analyzing the data, classifying and interpreting it, the research methodology: using the descriptive approach that aims to depict, analyze and evaluate the characteristics of a specific situation that is characterized by specificity.The researcher designed a questionnaire A questionnaire to measure the role of political programs in shaping public opinion and targeted the political elite in the Palestinian society.The researcher also used the field practice survey method to The Department of Political Programs for Palestinian Television to find out the policy it pursues in producing programs. Keywords: only five words within the research specialization: soft power, political media, Palestinian society, political culture, public opinion

Informing a Nation: The Newspaper Presidency of Thomas Jefferson

Informing a Nation: The Newspaper Presidency of Thomas Jefferson

Post-truth and Social Media: Distinctive Narrative Ecologies for Social Platforms with Targeted Users

Social media, regarded as one of the major sources of information in modern times, has also caused perplexing problems in communication and the post-truth is on the list. Defined as appealing to emotion and personal belief has a greater impact on public opinion than objective facts, people are getting more and more aware of the negative influence of the post-truth phenomenon which is the starting point of this work. This paper focuses on the users experience on popular social media which reflects the role of post-truth in shaping public opinions and narrative vibes, in order to appeal to the rising awareness of solid truth and real information in the digital media era. In this work, an online questionnaire and in-depth interviews are both adopted to support the credibility of the research. The accuracy of the information and the concerns on truth are supposed to be strengthened for social media consumers from this work.

Deliberative democracy and the digital public sphere: Asymmetrical fragmentation as a political not a technological problem

Deliberative democracy and the digital public sphere: Asymmetrical fragmentation as a political not a technological problem