Test Bank for Practicing Texas Politics, Enhanced, 17th Edition, Lyle C. Brown, Joyce A.

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Test Bank for Practicing Texas Politics, Enhanced,

17th Edition, Lyle C. Brown, Joyce A. Langenegger,
Sonia GarcÃa, Robert E. Biles, Ryan Rynbrandt
Veronica Vega Reyna Juan Carlos Huerta

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chapter 6

Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.

1. Which amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects freedom of the press?

a. First Amendment
b. Second Amendment
c. Fifth Amendment
d. Eighth Amendment
e. Tenth Amendment

2. Which of the following statements regarding freedom of the press in Texas is true?
a. Texas has a shield law that protects journalists from having to reveal certain confidential sources.
b. Texas has a right-to-know law that requires journalists to reveal all of their sources upon request.
c. Texas has a prior restraint law that allows the government to block newspapers from using certain sources.
d. Texas has no laws regarding freedom of the press.
e. Texas has a defamation law prohibiting journalists from criticizing elected officials too harshly.

3. People are more likely to hear and remember ideas and information if they come from which source?
a. The governor
b. A trusted opinion leader
c. A teacher or professor
d. Anonymous reporters
e. Online political bloggers

4. Newspapers were once the nation’s main source of news. What has been responsible for their decline?
a. Scandals that demonstrated too much bias in newspapers
b. Competition from television and the Internet
c. Lack of funding from political parties
d. Dramatic declines in American literacy rates
e. Cutbacks in coverage of local and state news

5. Generally speaking, which source of information do most people trust the least?
a. Time magazine
b. National Public Radio
c. The New York Times
d. CNN
e. Twitter

6. Daniel tends to seek out sources of news that support what he already believes. Which of the following is Daniel
exhibiting?
a. Clustering illusion
b. Dunning-Kruger effect
c. Confirmation bias
d. Courtesy bias
e. Framing effect
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7. Which was an important aspect of Rick Perry’s highly successful 2010 gubernatorial campaign?
a. He relied heavily on direct mail and phone banks.
b. He enlisted an army of young volunteers to go door-to-door soliciting votes.
c. He discouraged supporters from using social media on his behalf.
d. He relied on friendly bloggers and social media more than on the editorial boards of newspapers.
e. He made it a point to visit and deliver a campaign speech in each and every county in Texas.

8. What has been the trend in media ownership in Texas?

a. Ownership of Texas media outlets by Texas companies has declined.
b. Ownership of Texas media outlets by Texas companies has increased.
c. Ownership of Texas media outlets by Texas companies has stayed the same.
d. No Texas media outlets are owned by Texas companies.
e. Texas media outlets are increasingly owned by ethnic minorities and women.

9. What is a news medium engaging in when it focuses on a narrow audience defined by a special interest?
a. Niche journalism
b. Yellow journalism
c. Monopolizing
d. Concentration of ownership
e. Priming

10. How did the three major television networks respond when they began to face competition from cable news in the
1980s?
a. They reduced coverage of hard news and increased coverage of scandals, horserace journalism, and
controversial sound bites.
b. They increased the amount of hard news they covered to differentiate themselves from their less serious
competitors.
c. They sought out more funding from government sources and fewer advertising dollars from major
corporations.
d. They moved more of their operations to the Internet and hired more reporters and commentators.
e. They became more and more ideological, devoting much more time to commentary and less time to
reportage.

11. Kenyon, a recent African American graduate from journalism school, is least likely to be hired at which media outlet?
a. A daily newspaper in Austin
b. A large radio station in Houston or Dallas
c. A CBS-affiliated TV station in San Antonio
d. A weekly newspaper serving a small Texas town
e. An NBC-affiliated TV station in Fort Worth

12. As of 2018, which of these is the major gatherer of news?

a. Social media
b. Broadcast television news organizations
c. Cable television news organizations
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d. Newspapers
e. Radio stations

13. What happened when the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) abolished the Fairness Doctrine in 1987?
a. Conservative and liberal talk radio hosts had about equal success.
b. Liberal talk radio hosts quickly outpaced conservatives.
c. Conservative talk radio hosts quickly outpaced liberals.
d. Talk radio virtually disappeared from both AM and FM radio.
e. The syndication of popular talk radio programs became much easier.

14. What is it called when the news media say how important an issue is or which part of a situation is most important?
a. Framing
b. Priming
c. Cropping
d. Marginalizing
e. Sealing

15. Which type of candidate is generally supported by Texas newspapers?

a. Conservative political candidates
b. Moderate political candidates
c. Liberal political candidates
d. Libertarian political candidates
e. Environmentally conscious political candidates

16. When it comes to measures of civic engagement like voter turnout, being involved in groups, donating to charity, and
volunteering and discussing political issues online, how do Texans stack up?
a. Texans are the most active in the nation.
b. Texans are above the national average.
c. Texans are exactly at the national average.
d. Texans are below the national average.
e. Texans are the least active in the nation.

17. American courts are very hesitant to allow prior restraint. As a consequence, which of the following statements is
true?
a. It is very easy for the government to censor or suppress material before it is published.
b. It is difficult for the government to censor or suppress material before it is published.
c. It is easy for the government to detain reporters who are critical of its policies.
d. There is no way for the government to limit what the press can find or print.
e. Newspapers are highly regulated in the United States, compared to other countries.

18. Which of the following statements regarding public radio stations like KERA and KUHF is true?
a. They are entirely funded by tax money.
b. They provide substantial coverage of local, state, and national news.
c. They are purely for entertainment purposes and include no news.
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d. They only include brief news headlines for about five minutes every hour.
e. They have become hotbeds of conservative and libertarian political activism.

19. What is the most prevalent ethnic minority media outlet in Texas?
a. Asian American
b. Latino
c. African American
d. Native American
e. Pacific Islander

20. What was the result of the 1964 Supreme Court case New York Times Co. v. Sullivan?
a. Obscenity is now regulated more tightly in the United States than in most other Western nations.
b. Shield laws were declared unconstitutional.
c. Newspapers can no longer be sued for libel.
d. Strategic lawsuits against public participation are now illegal.
e. Public figures suing for defamation have a heavier burden than ordinary citizens.

21. Despite their relative decline, why are the print media still important sources of information?
a. People prefer to hold paper in their hands rather than look at screens.
b. They deliver news more quickly than any other source and are more accessible.
c. They cover stories in more detail, inform the elite, and remain the largest gatherers of news.
d. They provide a conservative bias to balance the liberal bias of television news.
e. Print media outlets are much less expensive to purchase than any other news outlets.

22. To what does the term yellow journalism refer?

a. Journalism based on sensationalism and exaggeration
b. Reporting that is objective, neutral, and accurate
c. Reporting featuring opposition and a combative style
d. Cowardly reporting
e. Journalism that is funded by the government

23. Which term describes the idea that Internet service providers should treat all Internet data equally without charging
differentially or blocking content they don’t like?
a. Web nondiscrimination
b. Net neutrality
c. Prior restraint
d. Broadband freedom
e. Digital rights

24. What is the largest Spanish-language television network in the United States?
a. Univision
b. Azteca América
c. Telemundo
d. Estrella TV
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e. UniMás

25. What is it called when the media help keep public officials honest by asking hard questions and looking into
suspicious actions?
a. Attack journalism
b. Agenda setting
c. Yellow journalism
d. Framing
e. Investigative journalism

26. Which of the following statements regarding talk radio is true?

a. Talk radio is dominated by liberals at both the local and national levels.
b. Talk radio is dominated by conservatives at the local level and liberals at the national level.
c. Talk radio is dominated by liberals at the local level and conservatives at the national level.
d. Talk radio is dominated by moderates at the local and national levels.
e. Talk radio is dominated by conservatives at both the local and national levels.

27. How well are political candidates in Texas able to control or influence the news, compared to candidates at the
national level?
a. They have an easier time controlling or at least influencing how the media covers them.
b. They have a harder time controlling or at least influencing how the media covers them.
c. They have about the same level of difficulty in controlling or at least influencing how the media covers them.
d. They have no trouble completely controlling the way the media covers them.
e. They are completely unable to control the way the media covers them.

28. How has representation of ethnic minorities in the media changed over the past 20 years?
a. Ethnic minorities now outnumber Anglos in most large-city newsrooms.
b. The percentage of ethnic minorities in newsrooms now mirrors that of the U.S. population as a whole.
c. There has been little change.
d. The number of ethnic minorities in the media has declined by a small amount.
e. There are fewer ethnic minorities working in the media now than two decades ago.

29. Which of the following statements regarding news magazines is true?

a. There are more news magazines than there are newspapers, and they are read by more people.
b. They are quite influential because they are read by elites.
c. Their reporters are on much tighter deadlines than newspaper and television reporters.
d. No major news magazines are devoted primarily to Texas politics.
e. Political websites have led to a resurgence of interest in news magazines.

30. Which of the following has been a trend in news coverage?

a. There has been no change over time in the diversity and quality of news.
b. There has been less softening of the news and more hard news.
c. There has been a reduction in the number of and range of alternative sources of news.
d. Most media outlets have added more investigative reporters to their rosters.
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e. Competition for viewers and advertising dollars has led to more entertainment and less news in broadcasts.

31. Which of the following provides the least objective commentary and reporting?
a. ABC
b. PBS
c. NPR
d. CNN
e. Fox

32. According to a 2012 study by the Pew Research Internet Project, which statement regarding civic engagement and the
Internet is accurate?
a. Use of the Internet and social media lead to less civic engagement and political activity.
b. Lower education and income have more of a negative effect on civic engagement among Facebook and
Twitter users.
c. Young people are less likely than older adults to be engaged in political activities on social networking sites.
d. There was a major decline in political activity on social networking sites during 2008–2012.
e. For most Internet users, politics is not just a social network activity; they are often also active in civic life.

33. During the 2014 political campaign, seven political scientists were the dominant sources of quotes in the Texas media.
What was true of these seven individuals?
a. Two were Anglo males, one was an Anglo female, two were Latino males, and two were African American
females.
b. Three were Latino males, two were Anglo males, and two were African American females.
c. Five were Anglo males, one was an African American male, and one was a Latino female.
d. Five were Anglo males, and two were Anglo females.
e. All were Anglo males.

34. Which of the following statements regarding media ownership today is true?
a. Most media outlets are owned by a multitude of small corporations.
b. Fewer than ten corporations own most of the national media outlets.
c. The majority of media outlets are owned by private individuals.
d. The government owns most national media outlets.
e. Foreign companies own more than half of the media outlets in the United States.

35. When did candidates begin to use social media for their campaigns in a major way?
a. 1996 and 2000
b. 2000 and 2004
c. 2004 and 2008
d. 2008 and 2012
e. 2014 and 2016

36. Which Texas politician live-streamed a filibuster of an antiabortion bill on YouTube in 2013?
a. Ann Richards
b. Beto O’Rourke
c. Rick Perry
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d. Ted Cruz
e. Wendy Davis

37. Which statement about media bias is accurate, according to most research?
a. Major newspapers and network television news tends to skew politically right.
b. Major newspapers are generally objective, but network television news tends to skew politically left.
c. Major newspapers tend to skew politically right, and network television news tends to skew politically left.
d. Major newspapers and network television news are generally objective.
e. Major newspapers and network television news tend to skew politically left.

38. Which of the following is a common concern about concentration of media ownership?
a. The likelihood of homogenization of news stories increases.
b. There is an increase in the amount of state and local news.
c. There is a decrease in hard news and an increase in soft news.
d. There is less favorable news about the owner’s company.
e. Fewer women and ethnic minorities will be hired by media outlets.

39. What is the name given to the reporters who are assigned to cover state-level news and commonly work in the state
capital?
a. Capitol press corps
b. Muckrakers
c. Reporters’ circle
d. Beltway insiders
e. Investigative reporters

40. From which two media sources do most Texans get their news?
a. Radio and newspapers
b. The Internet and radio
c. Newspapers and television
d. Television and radio
e. The Internet and television

41. Which of the following is true of people who follow talk radio, cable news (such as FOX or MSNBC), or ideological
blogs?
a. They develop more political knowledge but accept inaccurate or incomplete versions of reality.
b. They develop less political knowledge but have more accurate and complete views of reality.
c. They develop less political knowledge and are less likely to vote in local, state, and national elections.
d. They develop more political knowledge and have more accurate and complete views of reality.
e. They develop more political knowledge and are more likely to run for elected office.

42. Compared to stories about Anglos, stories about ethnic minorities are more likely to focus on which topic?
a. Education
b. Medicine
c. Taxation
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d. Crime
e. Economics

43. What was one of the key strategies that helped Barack Obama win both of his elections for president?
a. Investing heavily in direct mail to reach older voters in their homes
b. Identifying and microtargeting potential younger voters through their email and social media accounts
c. Traveling to less populated parts of the country to target marginalized rural voters
d. Putting lots of resources into television advertisements in conservative states to win them over
e. Writing a daily blog of his experiences on the campaign trail and taking e-questions from voters

44. So-called “humorous” political talk shows such as Last Week Tonight with John Oliver tend to exhibit which type of
political bias?
a. Moderate
b. Liberal
c. Conservative
d. Libertarian
e. Christian

45. Which agency is responsible for media regulation?

a. National Media Regulation Agency (NMRA)
b. National Security Agency (NSA)
c. Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
d. Federal Television Monitoring Commission (FTMC)
e. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)

46. Who is most likely to get the majority of their news from social media?
a. 75-year-old Betty
b. 65-year-old Stanley
c. 55-year-old Soledad
d. 40-year-old Benjamin
e. 25-year-old Isabel

47. To what are media critics referring when they complain about horserace journalism?
a. Media outlets are obsessed with getting to good stories faster than their competitors.
b. The media tend to ignore campaigns in favor of covering horseraces.
c. The media tend to focus more on who is winning an election than on the issues that matter.
d. Reporters tend to follow candidates to social events like horseraces.
e. Reporters are too “chummy” with candidates and elected officials.

48. What is the most common way that Americans get their news?
a. From conversations
b. From newspapers
c. From political speeches
d. From radio
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e. From social media

49. Which of the following is true of media outlets today?

a. Reporters tend to be conservative and Republican, while owners and publishers tend to be liberal and
Democratic.
b. Reporters tend to be liberal and Democratic, while owners and publishers tend to be conservative and
Republican.
c. Reporters, owners, and publishers tend to be liberal and Democratic.
d. Reporters, owners, and publishers tend to be conservative and Republican.
e. Reporters, owners, and publishers have become increasingly Libertarian.

50. How might shortages of minority group members in newsrooms affect how events are interpreted?

51. How well are African Americans and Latinos represented in Texas media, compared to their population in the state?

52. What aspects of the media are regulated by the national government, and which aspects are regulated by the
government of Texas? Distinguish how print and electronic media are regulated.

53. How has the Internet (and social media in particular) had an impact on campaigns in Texas? What are the positive and
negative aspects of the rise of social media in elections?

54. Which demographic groups are more likely to use social media? How might this have an impact on political
participation rates among these groups?

55. In what ways does the media set the public agenda? How much influence does the Texas media have on agenda
setting? Explain.

56. Are the media today becoming more or less able to investigate government wrongdoing?

57. Which current trends seem most likely to affect the future of news in the media? Based on these trends, do you think
future citizens will be more or less informed than today’s citizens?

58. Give a critique of professionalism in journalism. What evidence indicates whether there is ideological or partisan bias
in the Texas media?

59. Do you believe it is important for the representation of women and ethnic minorities in Texas media to reflect the state
population of these groups? Why or why not? How might reporting be impacted if the media representation of these
groups increased?

60. Summarize the history and impact of investigative journalism in Texas. Include a discussion of open meetings, open
records, and scandals.

61. Define and categorize the different kinds of bias in the media and their consequences. How has media bias changed
over time?

62. Explain the conflicting views regarding the media’s influence on our political opinions. Which view do you find has
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the most merit and why?

63. How are changes in the media affecting the ability of citizens to affect government? Do you think these changes make
citizens more or less powerful in their ability to influence elected officials and why?

64. Distinguish between hard and soft news. Discuss the concerns arising from the softening of the news.

65. Evaluate the media’s roles in furthering democracy. Describe these roles in terms of Texas politics.

66. Distinguish between libel and slander. Should it be easier for public personalities to prove slander? Explain.

67. Summarize the major arguments about regulation of the media in America and Texas. What might you change about
the way the media is regulated? If you prefer no change, explain why you think current regulations are adequate.

68. To what do you attribute the shortages of minority group members in newsrooms?

69. Discuss the changes over time in how Texans get their news. Compare the ways in which Texans get their information
today with past patterns.

70. What is SLAPP? What effect has SLAPP had on reporting in the United States?

71. What concerns are caused by the growing concentration of ownership of media outlets? Discuss the positive and
negative effects of the changes the media are undergoing in Texas.

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Answer Key
1. a

2. a

3. b

4. b

5. e

6. c

7. d

8. a

9. a

10. a

11. d

12. d

13. c

14. b

15. a

16. d

17. b

18. b

19. b

20. e

21. c

22. a

23. b

24. a

25. e
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26. e

27. a

28. c

29. b

30. e

31. e

32. e

33. e

34. b

35. d

36. e

37. d

38. a

39. a

40. e

41. a

42. d

43. b

44. b

45. c

46. e

47. c

48. a

49. b

50. Students’ answers may vary.

51. Students’ answers may vary.

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52. Students’s answers may vary.

53. Students’ answers may vary.

54. Students’s answers may vary.

55. Students’ answers may vary.

56. Students’ answers may vary.

57. Students’ answers may vary.

58. Students’ answers may vary.

59. Students’ answers may vary.

60. Students’ answers may vary.

61. Students’ answers may vary.

62. Students’ answers may vary.

63. Students’ answers may vary.

64. Students’ answers may vary.

65. Students’ answers may vary.

66. Students’ answers may vary.

67. Students’ answers may vary.

68. Students’ answers may vary.

69. Students’ answers may vary.

70. Students’ answers may vary.

71. Students’ answers may vary.

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