Which the best characterize the influence of the news media on public opinion in the US?

The influence of the media has evolved along with technology, from early newspapers to modern Cable Television and the internet. The nineteenth century saw the use of yellow journalism (or stories driven by scandal, sex, and violence) to sell newspapers. These stories also had a profound impact on public opinion. The advent of radio was significant in that it soon replaced newspapers as the primary source for news and political information. Once politicians could directly speak to large numbers of people, their influence over public opinion could be immediate as well as dramatic. Television combined sound with pictures and made the news appealing, quickly replacing radio as the dominant source for political information. Media report on the activities of government, tell the government which public issues warrant government action, focuses the public on a particular issue, and investigates politicians and events. One of the most famous episodes of investigative reporting occurred after the break-in at the National Democratic Campaign Headquarters in the Watergate Complex - when Washington Post reporters discovered that members of the Committee to Reelect the President (CREEP) were involved, Nixon's presidency became vulnerable and he ultimately resigned. The nature of the short, superficial, television news story has changed the way that political campaigns, especially presidential campaigns, are managed. Messages are delivered in short sound bites that are most likely to wind up on that evening's news broadcasts. The sound bite is a memorable phrase lasting about 9.8 seconds. Television advertising now occupies two-thirds of the budget of an average statewide campaign. And, despite the fact that the public does not like negative advertising, they remember it longer, and it affects their opinion, so it has been on the increase. Media Bias? Both sides of the political spectrum - liberals and conservatives - argue that there is a media bias against them. And although reporters tend to be slightly more liberal than the general population, editors and owners are decidedly conservative as a group. Since owners and editors determine content, a conservative political orientation would be predicted. Media has increasingly become concentrated in the hands of a few corporate entities. At the same time, the Internet allows public access to numerous other sources for political information. The Internet Politicians have begun to use the Internet to send out political information and political commercials to the general public. They also use the Internet to raise considerable amounts of money for their campaigns and to attract and sign up volunteers. Recently, candidates began to use e-mail to contact supporters and answer criticisms, or explain their policy positions. Proposals for Reform The acknowledgement of the importance of media in political campaigns has stimulated calls for reform Although many proposals have been fielded, proposals to offer free media time to either candidates or political parties have received some concentrated attention.