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Recent research has yielded inconsistent findings regarding the relationship between interpersonal discussion and media use in the production of political knowledge. This study seeks to better illuminate this relationship by introducing political disagreement as an additional moderator. Using nationally representative survey data collected during the 2000 primary campaign, the authors find a negative interaction between discussion frequency and disagreement in predicting knowledge of candidate issue positions. This suggests either that the benefits of frequent discussion are stronger for those whose discussion networks are composed of like-minded others or that disagreement facilitates learning only at low levels of discussion frequency. Results also demonstrate that frequent discussion enhances the relationship between debate viewing and issue knowledge among those who reside in politically homogenous networks. In diverse networks, however, the relationship between debate viewing and issue knowledge is weaker for those who regularly talk about politics than those who talk less. Political disagreement is unassociated with knowledge of candidates' personal backgrounds.

Reviews several prominent & well-developed examples of deliberative or educational polling, arguing that (1) these new methods of assessing public opinion must be evaluated in terms of specific quality criteria that apply to different phases to maximize several distinct qualities at once, making it difficult to identify specific objectives for evaluating success; & (2) at least five important core methodological elements of educational or deliberative polls can be identified, each of which can theoretically alter results. To date, however, data bearing on the effects of these methodological elements are in limited supply. Lack of knowledge about how method influences individual & collective opinion outcomes thus renders several of these techniques problematic. 1 Table, 1 Figure, 56 References. Adapted from the source document.

Addresses the issue of "quality" in public opinion research, arguing that conceptions of quality in public opinion are inextricably bound to broader conceptions of quality in democratic decision making, a complex process involving multiple phases & collective participants. Contradictions & ambiguities underlying conceptions of quality & traditional & newer methods for attaining quality in public opinion are discussed. 1 Table, 2 Figures, 86 References. Adapted from the source document.

To determine whether the third-person effect (ie, overestimation of media influence on other people) depends on question-contrast effects (ie, self-serving comparisons triggered by back-to-back questions about media effects on self & others), survey responses from 287 U of Michigan undergraduates were analyzed regarding media coverage of President Bill Clinton's role in the Whitewater affair, Clinton's frequent policy reversals, the O. J. Simpson murder trial, & the child molestation charges against Michael Jackson. The data showed no significant effects of question order, although an interaction was found between political knowledge & question order; a negative relationship between knowledge & perceived impact on oneself emerged when the "self" question followed the "other people" question. 2 Tables, 2 Figures, 25 References. Adapted from the source document.