Keywords

Elections, primaries, media, electorate, presidential, new hampshire primary

Abstract

The function of the mass media in the democratic process is crucial to an informed public and vital to a democratic system. One primary role of the media is that of gatekeeper between political candidates and the public. The influence the media has on the electorate is heightened during the primary process of presidential elections and even more so in the pre-primary season when a large majority of potential voters have yet to form opinions of candidates. The effects of the media in the pre-primary season of politics play out in significant relationships where media coverage results in measurable increases in campaign contributions to the candidates included in this research, while the tone of content has no measurable influence. Although models that tested the ability to predict success in primaries failed to reach statistically significant levels, the raw data show high correlations between media coverage and candidate success.

Notes

If this is your thesis or dissertation, and want to learn how to access it or for more information about readership statistics, contact us at STARS@ucf.edu

Graduation Date

2014

Semester

Summer

Advisor

Pollock, Philip

Degree

Master of Arts (M.A.)

College

College of Sciences

Department

Political Science

Degree Program

Political Science; American and Comparative Politics

Format

application/pdf

Identifier

CFE0005423

URL

http://purl.fcla.edu/fcla/etd/CFE0005423

Language

English

Release Date

August 2014

Length of Campus-only Access

None

Access Status

Masters Thesis (Open Access)

Subjects

Dissertations, Academic -- Sciences; Sciences -- Dissertations, Academic

Download

Share

COinS