The Iran-Contra scandal serves as a test case for priming theory

Evidence

We treat the Iran-Contra revelation as a critical test for a theory—which we call priming—that claims to provide a comprehensive and psychologically plausible account of how citizens formulate and revise their views of presidential performance. — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 1568

Categorization

• XREF: Priming here connects to agenda-setting and framing research in media effects (Iyengar & Kinder era), and to the psychological priming literature more broadly.