“Setting the agenda of attributes for an issue is the epitome of political power. Controlling the perspective of the political debate on any issue is the ultimate influence on political opinion.”
(McCombs, 2014, p. 51)
Those are the words of journalism scholar Maxwell McCombs in his book Setting the Agenda. His quote is a clear reflection of his perspective on the power of the media and its influence on public opinion, a perspective which he has spent much of his career researching.
The Mind Behind the Research
Maxwell McCombs is the Jesse H. Jones Centennial Professor Emeritus in the School of Journalism at the University of Texas. He is known for his work on political communication, especially in the realm of agenda setting, which his book Setting the Agenda is about.
This article will examine this work on the power of the news, which is a compilation of decades of research to produce a comprehensive argument for the theory of agenda setting.
The Source of Media Power
Setting the Agenda acknowledges that the power of the media is widely recognized, but it seeks to reveal what that power truly stems from. His overarching argument is that the media does not so much have the power to persuade, but instead has the power to influence what people think about.
The media does not so much have the power to persuade, but instead has the power to influence what people think about. Share on XSetting the Agenda provides a compelling and fascinating argument for the theory of agenda setting through its use of evidence and facts coupled with persuasive analysis of the many studies contained in the text.
The Studies
The first factor that helps provide a compelling argument is the massive wealth of studies and evidence. While some texts will construct their arguments based primarily on abstract analysis or opinion, Setting the Agenda provides a solid foundation for its theory.
The book opens with the study that began the focus on the subject in 1968 when researchers wanted to know “if the impact of an event diminished when a news story receives less prominent play” (p. xi).
This study focused on undecided voters in the 1968 presidential election. “This was the Chapel Hill study, now known as the original agenda-setting theory” (p. xii). This key statistical study was the launching pad for all the future studies on agenda setting.
McCombs and other researchers then begin investigating other aspects of the theory. Multiple studies were conducted during other Presidential elections or national analysis of public opinion. However, the researchers broadened their horizon and examined local public issues as well.
They began not just conducting observational studies, but also experimental laboratory experiments, stating that “the best, most unequivocal evidence that the news media are the cause of these kinds of effects comes from controlled experiments in the laboratory, a setting where the theorized cause can be manipulated” (p. 16).
The researchers further examined how the press influenced the colonies in the American Revolution. By the end of the book, McCombs details how researchers even demonstrated agenda setting theory at work in sports.
The depth of research conducted over numerous decades is truly profound and provides a strong and reliable groundwork for the arguments he would make over the course of the book.
The Findings
With this wealth of studies providing the framework, McCombs also provides extensive analysis to draw arguable conclusions from the research. This is where the text gets truly interesting.
He points out that the media does not have significant ability to persuade. After all, if you have a Democrat watch a Fox News broadcast, they will likely not become a Republican. Likewise, if you have a Republican watch a CNN broadcast, they will likely not become a Democrat.
In both cases, they will probably not change their mind. Instead, McCombs argues, the media has the ability to influence what people think about.
It does this by giving certain issues and topics prominence and frequent repetition on the news. McCombs notes that,
“The mass media are teachers whose principal strategy of communication is that of redundancy.”
(p. 91)
This influences people to see certain events and issues as more prominent and thus more important than others. This is what McCombs calls agenda setting.
“Agenda Setting” Defined
In essence, agenda setting is the ability to focus the public eye on particular issues, thus influencing and prioritizing those issues for the public discourse.
And because public opinion drives governmental and political action, these priorities on the public agenda inevitably become the priorities on the government’s agenda.
It should be noted that the media is not omnipotent in regard to agenda setting, and there are exceptions and instances of reverse agenda setting in which the public sets the media agenda. As stated in Setting the Agenda, “the public is not an automaton passively waiting to be programmed by the media” (p. 55). However, the media certainly possesses an extraordinary power to influence people’s perception of the world.
As a whole, Setting the Agenda does an excellent job at supporting its theory of agenda setting through its extensive studies, and its logical and fascinating analysis.
Whether a person is interested in politics or not, they would do well to understand what the power of the media truly is. This is not to be pessimistic; there are many benefits to having such a free press. Possessing this knowledge can simply provide a more accurate view of what the press can do, and thus possibly even help equip people in the search for truth.
As said by Theodore White,
“The power of the press in America is a primordial one. It sets the agenda of public discussion; and this sweeping political power is unrestrained by any law. It determines what people will talk and think about- an authority that in other nations is reserved for tyrants, priests, parties, and mandarins. No major act of the American Congress… [or] great social reform can succeed in the United States unless the press prepares the public mind.”
(p. 7)
That is powerful influence.
Reference
McCombs, M. (2014). Setting the agenda: the mass media and public opinion (2nd ed.). Polity.