Public Opinion and Media Research Paper

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Media: Public Attitudes and Belief

The media impacts and shapes public opinion by highlighting preferred views and explanations to influence public understanding of an issue or event. The media accomplishes this through its content, which is mostly determined by powerful groups in the society (Happer & Philo, 2013, p.327). In most cases, powerful groups in the society influence ideologies, which in turn affect and shape public attitudes and beliefs. As a result, the media is involved in an ongoing process of shaping the news based on the usual competing needs and interests of leaders and the people (Baum & Potter, 2008, p.40). Leaders, especially political elites, usually determine news media content, which plays a major role in shaping public opinion.

The media impacts and shapes public opinion through setting the agenda of the country or focusing people's attention to certain public issues. In this case, the media acts as a platform through which the public obtains information about public affairs and attach importance to the issues based on the emphasis it gives (Mccombs, 2001). The media sets the agenda or focus people's attention through selecting and exhibiting stories that in turn affects public perceptions on the most important affairs of the day (Riaz, 2008). In essence, mass media has the capability to determine items or stories on their news agendas and transfer or make the selected items public agenda.

The media impacts and shapes public attitudes and beliefs by acting as the primary source of information on public issues and affairs.

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Mainstream media and social media has become the major source of information to citizens to an extent that it affects public opinion since its message is transmitted to the audience or readers' consciousness (Danilova, 2014). The media acts as the major public source of information since people no longer interact or relate to the extent they once did (Fiducia, 2012).

One of the most important aspects in academic writing is identifying and removing any fallacies so that claims provided in the paper logically support the thesis statement. In this case, the paper should be logical i.e. it should be supported by factual evidence and developed upon the foundation of logical appeal. In my work, one of the fallacies I have identified is either/or fallacy that occurs when the writer presents an issue with various sides or arguments in an oversimplified way. This is likely to occur when assumptions are made that since the media serves as a primary source of information, it affects public attitudes and beliefs. The second fallacy I have identified in this process is adpopulum, which occurs when the writer relies on popular sentiment instead of logic to prove a point. This fallacy is likely to occur in this work because the impact of the media on public opinion has attracted considerable attention in the recent past and generated significant popular sentiment.

I remove these fallacies….....

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