COMM 226 Midterm Study Guide

TERMS:
Inoculation

An act which minimizes the likelihood of counter-persuasion by first stating the

other side, defending the other side, then rebutting this POV, stating your own
position, and building your case
o Doesnt require all steps to be effective
Often an anticipatory strategy
Example: Nixons Checkers Speech

Enthymeme

Logic: the suppression of a premise in syllogism/deductive reasoning

Rhetoric: when audience invests a message with meaning; accomplice in own
persuasion; when audience fills in unstated contention in an argument; often
occurs when two images are juxtaposed; more explicit a message is the less
effective because it leaves less room for us to draw own conclusions
Fill in the blank (investment in ones own bias when forming opinions about
messages)

Heuristics

Cognitive shortcut that allows us to make inferences based on most present

assumptions; often used to create enthymematic reaction

Party Heuristics

Inferences we draw based on assumptions we make about the tenets of a

political party

Endorsement Heuristics

If you dont have a lot of time to figure out who you support, but you trust a
certain editorial page, you will trust their endorsements (trust that its ideology
matches yours so you trust its opinion).

Availability Heuristics

If something is made dramatic, vivid and/or real, than we over-generalize the

likelihood that it can and will happen

Affect Heuristics

When positive emotions are attached to a person or activity, you become more
likely to evaluate positively
Feeling assigned by certain terms

Epideictic Rhetoric

A rehearsal of basic values to build a community; speakers often use this to

create appeal for action
Ceremonial, creating a sense of community, building identity, and rehearsing
common values

Test of Plausibility

Asks whether a reasonable politician would do what the advertisement forecasts

Visual Deception

Were not good at putting in quote marks and breaks when watching political
commercials, so we conflate the narration and the direct quote, thus attributing
what is said about the candidate with what the candidate actually says.
When things are juxtaposed, we assume a relationship; we read print displayed
over an image as contextualizing the image

Fear

Emotional response of negative hedonic tone related to avoidance or escape due

to perception of real or imagined threat. Universal; triggered by threat

Evocative MaterialFear Appeal

Appeal to fear as motivating or persuasive factor; to be successful it must invoke

enthymeme successfully, be appropriately strong without overwhelming, and
allow people to realistically associate the threat with the target

Political Fear Appeal

Fear that occurs when source credibility is believable, fear is widely known,
voters are targeted, and potential victims should be relatable
Only successful when fear level is raised, attached to an opponent, and then
reduced fear by voting for the candidate
Strong fear appeal is generally less effective at changing attitudes unless it also
offers means of assurance

Personal Narrative

Strong narrative can displace issues to which a candidate is otherwise

vulenerable
Speed mattersif the pace is too slow, we ask questions
Content mattersif there is print on a screen, we are more likely to be analytical.
Manipulated images and sounds invite affect-based responses. Its easier to get
an extreme, final inference if we disagree with the content
Candidate matterswe process things more casually when we agree with the
candidate

Synecdoche

Verbal or visual statements that give a brief and digestive expression of an entire
construction of reality
Serves as memory pegs for audiencebrings to mind visual and verbal clues
Effective synecdochic statements have pointing cue and then reinforcing
statement
Examples:
o Reagans Challenger Speech replaces image of exploding shuttle with
astronauts waving goodbye
o Political slogansonly effective when frames a question that can be
answered by voting for a candidate, creates a contrast with opposing
candidate, and is not subject to parody
They understand what peace demands vs. In your heart, you
know hes right

Priming

Process of making a topic more salient

Synecdochic campaign slogans are meant to prime certain issues
Can be used to displace weakness
Cognitive concept that captures a psychological process; when an attribute or
issue is primed in campaign, it is more likely to be used to evaluate the candidate
Example: Kennedys heroism eliminates rumors of ill health

Framing

Involves assumptions and priming; lets you interpret by inclusive and exclusive
statements; featuring what the campaigner wants the public to see
Provides meaning

Causal Frame

How do you account for this?

Blame/Credit Frame
Tactical/Strategic Frame

Sets audience up as spectator; focuses on what the candidates are doing to win,
not what they are actually saying
Depresses learning and increases cynicism

Biography as a Rebuttal

Positions drawn out of biographical paths

Agenda Setting

Process by which certain issues take on prominencemedia tells people what to

think about, not what to think
Salience based theory

Negativity Bias

One bad thing can ruin all good things

Negative Potency

If two events are presented, one positive and one negative of equal value, the
negative event will have a greater effect

Greater Steepness of Negative Gradient

Increasing units of negativity have greater exponential effect than equal positive
increases

Negative Dominance

When good and bad outcome are mixed in the same event, the negative outcome
always dominates

Synchronic: when events occur simultaneously

Diachronic: when events occur successively

Inertial Resistance

Resistance to political persuasion based in political awareness

Partisan Resistance

Resistance that occurs when information differs from what previously believed;
more likely to believe information that coincides with what they already hold true

Cross Pressuring

When subject to two opposing forces; most likely situation under which highly
knowledgeable and highly partisan individuals are subject to change

Adwatch

News story in which candidates ad is analyzed for its accuracy, fairness, and
setting

Negative Advertising

Critiques opponent without advocating the sponsors position

Newsad

An ad that is intended to generate news coverage, magnifying its effect as played

on newsprograms

Paid Media

Time bought for advertising

Indexing

Provides legitimacy to actors, policy issues, debates; comes up with narratives

while doing this

Third Person Effect

Media does not affect me, it affects them

CONCEPTS/PHRASES
Meaning exists

At the intersection between audience, context, and the message itself

Never exists in the message alone

Influence of Television

Changed the messages of politics by making them more conversational, intimate,

ideologically complex, dramatic, visual, immediate

Political audiences differ

Based on knowledge and partisanship

Zallers Reception Acceptance Model

The more politically aware one is, the more likely she will be exposed to the
message, but the less likely she is to accept the message if exposed; those who
are somewhat politically aware are most likely to change their attitudes; those
who have lowest political awareness are less likely to receive, but most likely to
accept

Language

does our thinking for us

if you can control language, you can control what inferences people will make.

News should

Preview, recap, distance, correct advertisements on air

Use metacommunication

Inoculation
Enthymeme
Heuristics
Party Heuristics
Endorsement Heuristics
Availability Heuristics
Affect Heuristics
Epideictic Rhetoric
Test of Plausibility
Visual Deception
Fear
Evocative MaterialFear Appeal
Political Fear Appeal
Personal Narrative
Synecdoche
Priming
Framing
Causal Frame
Blame/Credit Frame
Tactical/Strategic Frame
Biography as a Rebuttal
Agenda Setting
Negativity Bias
Negative Potency
Greater Steepness of Negative Gradient
Negative Dominance
Inertial Resistance
Partisan Resistance
Cross Pressuring
Adwatch
Negative Advertising
Newsad
Paid Media
Indexing
Third Person Effect
Meaning exists
Influence of Television

Political audiences differ

Zallers Reception Acceptance Model
Language
News should

Frames
Strategic/tactical
Causal
Blame/credit
Enthymemethe process by which audiences invest messages with meaning
Affect Heuristicthe american flag, patriotic music, happy, well-fed children,
puppy dogs, and jane smith for senate
Agenda-Settingsince jane smith is a democrat, I know she must oppose the
death penalty
Endorsement Heuristicthe AFL-CIO and Sierra Club support jane smith for
senate
Epideicticceremonial rhetoric that binds a nation-state together