Media story selection determines which standards citizens use to judge presidents

Evidence

In turn, what information is accessible for presidential evaluations is determined by the prevailing economic, social, and political conditions of the times. For their knowledge about such conditions, most citizens of course rely on information and analysis provided by mass media. This means that the standards citizens use to judge a president may be substantially determined by which stories media choose to cover and, consequently, which considerations are made accessible. The more attention the news pays to a particular domain—the more frequently it is primed—the more citizens will, according to the theory, incorporate what they know about that domain into their overall judgment of the president. … Hence, by calling attention to some matters while ignoring others, news media may alter the foundations of public opinion toward the president. — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 1575

Categorization

• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 1575
• XREF: connects to: Sovereign influence over government hinges on mass-media enlightening quality. — Jürgen Habermas, A New Structural Transformation of the…, 18