AP Government Jeopardy – Public Opinion and Participation

Politics and You

What do you

think?

It’s My Party

Shifting Loyalties

Interest-ing

Media, & image

Mis-cell-any

100 100 100 100 100 100 100

200 200 200 200 200 200 200

300 300 300 300 300 300 300

400 400 400 400 400 400 400

500 500 500 500 500 500 500

AP Government Jeopardy – Public Opinion and Participation

Final Jeopardy! QuestionPublic Opinion & Participation

Mass Media

A set of basic values and beliefs about

government shared by most citizens

Political culture

Politics & You 100

Process by which citizens acquire political values and beliefs and

develop a political identity

Political socialization

Politics & You 200

A set of basic values and beliefs held by an

individual that creates a basic structure through

which they interpret politics and determine

their positions on issues

Ideology

Politics & You 300

Party membershipBased on individual self-identification,

formalized when you register to vote

Politics & You 400

An organization of citizens (linkage

institution) whose goal is to shape public policy

towards a particular end, focusing on issues

of concern to their membership

Interest group

Politics & You 500

Attitudes and beliefs relating to public policy

and politics, often measured by polls

Public opinion

What do you think? 100

A measure of reliability of a poll, reduced

through valid methods and procedures such as

random sampling, unbiased question

wording

Sampling error


Person supportive of reform and change; in

the U.S., this is generally a person who supports government

action to promote individual welfare and

civil rights

Liberal (“left”)


Person who supports traditional values and lifestyles; in the U.S.,

this is generally a person who favors

lower taxes and a more limited governmental

role

Conservative (“right”)


Those who influence others; can be

government officials, but are also often

individuals outside government (like

celebrities)

Opinion leaders


A system in which minor parties do not

play a major role except as “spoilers”;

encourages moderation; describes the U.S. party

system

Two-party system

It’s My Party 100

The major area of growth in party

identification; a person who is not a member of

any political party

Independent

It’s My Party 200

Founded just before the Civil War; dominated politics from 1860 to

1932, often controlling both the presidency and

Congress

Republican Party

It’s My Party 300

Dominant party from 1932 to 1968; main

opposition party from 1860 to 1932

Democratic Party

It’s My Party 400

Document that spells out the party’s stand on public policy issues;

adopted at the national convention every four

years

Party Platform

It’s My Party 500

CoalitionGroups bound together in

their support of a candidate or party; may become the basis for a

long-lasting party majorityEx: Majority of blacks, Jews, Catholics, labor

unions, and women who supported the New Deal

Shifting Loyalties 100

Divided governmentCharacterizes U.S.

government since 1968, with no dominant political

party; different parties often control the

presidency and one or both houses of Congress


GridlockCondition in which there is no dominant party and

both parties have the power to block the

changes sought by the other; a result of divided

government and party polarization


Electoral realignmentDramatic shift in voting

parties as a new coalition is formed; often results in replacement of dominant party and a new political

eraEx: Civil War, Great

Depression, and Civil Rights all caused this to

happen Shifting Loyalties 400

Critical electionElection in which sharp changes in the existing patterns of party loyalty

occur as a result of social and economic conditions


Economic Interest GroupsThe most common type of interest group; including labor (such as the AFL-

CIO), groups like the U.S. Chambers of Commerce,

and professional organizations (such as the

National Education Association)

Interest-ing100

LobbyingAttempting to influence

policymakers at national, state, and local levels

through the use of personal contacts, getting interest-group members to contact policymakers, or working together with related interest groups

Interest-ing200

Grassroots MobilizationGetting members of

interest groups (or parties) directly involved in

politics; this may include contacting policymakers

via e-mail, telephone, mail, fax, or personal visit

– or it may include citizens getting involved

in electioneering Interest-ing300

LitigationUse of the court system by an interest group in order to block/force an agency’s

actionEx: Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka

(1954)

Interest-ing400

Political Action Committee (PAC)

An organization created by a corporation, labor

union, or interest group to raise campaign funds for candidate(s) for federal office; regulated by the

FEC

Interest-ing500

Third partiesParties not likely to win

campaigns, but often instrumental in producing new ideas and reforms, as well as siphoning off votes

from major party candidates

Not really related to media… but I couldn’t find another

place for it! Media & Image 100

Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

Independent regulatory agency over broadcast

media (radio, TV, telephone, cable),

enforcing federal laws

Media & Image 200

Horse-race journalismTendency of media to

focus on which candidate is winning or daily

agenda, not on issues of an election

Media & Image 300

Sound biteQuotes of newsmakers taken out of context; a symptom of broadcast

media’s tendency to cover most stories in a minute or

two, which makes presentation of complex

issues difficult

Media & Image 400

Media eventsNews staged by a

candidate, official, or interest group to get the attention of the media or

influence coverageEx: photo-ops, speeches,

press conferences

Media & Image 500

Political partyVoluntary association of people who seek to elect officials who share their

common political principles and goals

Mis-cell-any100

Single-member districtsDivision into legislative districts with a winner elected in each district;

serves to shut minor parties out of the

legislature

Mis-cell-any 200

Proportional representationRepresentation in the

legislature is based on the proportion of the popular

vote won nationwide; promotes a multiparty

system

Mis-cell-any 300

Single-issue partiesThird party focused on a narrow area of concern

Ex: Free Soil Party opposed to extension of

slavery to U.S. territories, Prohibition Party

Mis-cell-any 400

National committeeManages party affairs between conventions, elected by state party

organizations; chooses national party chairperson

Mis-cell-any 500

• Name three current trends in mass media

FINAL JEOPARDY

• Decline of newspapers• Rise of the internet (selective news)• Growth of cable TV/focused news programming (sacrificing objectivity)

• Concentration of media ownership (giving certain individuals/groups a greater voice

in agenda setting)

FINAL JEOPARDY

Documents

AP Government Jeopardy – Public Opinion and Participation