Course 2024-2025 a.y.

The aim of the course is to examine how mass media and political elites structure public opinion and political behavior, both from a theoretical and an empirical perspective. While the majority of the course focuses on advanced industrial democracies, specific attention is given to media, elite and mass linkages in the developing world and the international realm. Topics such as the persuasive effects of the media, strategic agenda setting of political elites and electoral campaigning are covered from a multidisciplinary approach, covering work from economics, political science and communication science. We devote special attention to social media and put social media effects in a historical context.

The course will cover the following topics:

• An historical and comparative look at the nature and origins of public opinion.
• The persuasion effects of political elites
• Mass-elite linkages within the realm of international politics
• Public opinion on foreign policy
• The mass media as economic and political actors
• The political role and partisanship of mass media
• The persuasion effects of the media
• Empirical analysis of campaign effects
• The role of interest groups
• Social networks and political communication.

• summarize the nature and main drivers of public opinion
• explain the key theories on the persuasion effects of the media, such as agenda-setting, framing and priming;
• describe the differences between domestic and international politics when it comes to media and elite effects

• use the theoretical and empirical insights presented during the course to assess and interpret the behavior of citizens, politicians and media actors;
• use the theoretical and empirical insights presented during the course to mechanisms through which media, elites and mass linkages operate or not;
• critically reflect on empirical insights presented during the course understand the role that the media plays in politics.

• Lectures

Lectures

With the purpose of measuring the acquisition of the learning outcomes, the student assessment is based on two partial exams. The exams are based on a mix of multiple-choice and open-ended questions. Each partial exam accounts for 50% of the final grade. Each partial exam covers one half of the semester.

Written general exam, (100 % of the final grade) based on a mix of multiple-choice and open-ended questions, which aims to assess the student’s ability to describe the main theoretical and empirical findings contained in the readings covered over the course of the semester. The exam covers the whole semester.

This course does not have a textbook. Readings include book chapters and academic journal articles. The book chapters will be made available via the Blackboard course page. All peer-reviewed journal articles should be readily available online through the library. Any readings not readily accessible online will be available on Blackboard.