Factors Influential in Shaping American Public Opinion about Politics and Why?
The Americans are often involved directly in the political affairs of the United States. Their political opinions are mainly influenced by a number of economic, political, and social elements. One of the factors that are fundamental in influencing the public’s political opinion is the media. The local and international media houses such as the CNN and BBC have served as important campaign platforms for shaping and influencing the public’s perceptions, opinions, and voting patterns in the electoral processes of the U.S (Lowi, Ginsberg, & Shepsle, 2014). It has been established that these media houses and the local dailies play a major role in shaping the opinions of the American voters. Social media and other networking platforms, on the other hand, are critical in influencing the opinions of the voters. It is because such platforms server as institutions and bodies for popularizing the policies of the political candidates. For instance, Donald Trump has extensively used social networks and media in his Republican presidential campaign, making him win additional sympathizers (McCall, 2015).
Another factor that is essential in shaping the opinions of the voters in the U.S. concerns the proposed policies and reforms. Political candidates often compete for the simple majority of the votes. In the process, they sell their proposed policies relating to foreign policies, economic reforms, healthcare policies, education, among others. Ideally, being a democratic country, the voters are very concerned about the future prospects of the country. Therefore, in addition to serving their political self-interests, the Americans are very sensitive to issues and policies raised by those seeking elective positions in different representative capacities (Lowi, Ginsberg, & Shepsle, 2014). Therefore, they consider and analyze the pros and cons of the all proposed social reforms, economic, and political policies. Undoubtedly, favorable and sustainable policies are referred by the voters. Thus, it is no secret that the manifestos and campaign strategies adopted y the various political entities and individuals are primary in influencing the opinions of the American voters.
References
Lowi, T. J., Ginsberg, B., & Shepsle, K. A. (2014). American government: Power and purpose (13th ed.). New York: W.W. Norton.
McCall, J. (2015). Op-ed: TV ‘news’ fuels Trump. JConline. Retrieved from: http://www.jconline.com/story/opinion/2015/12/16/op-ed-tv-news-fuels-trump/77434868/
