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This article examines the influence of television news on viewers' attributions of responsibility for political issues. Television's systematic reliance on episodic as opposed to thematic depictions of political life elicits individualistic attributions of responsibility for national problems such as poverty and terrorism. These attributions emphasize the actions of private rather than governmental actors. By obscuring the connections between political problems and the actions or inactions of political leaders, television news trivializes political discourse and weakens the accountability of elected officials.

The influence of TV news on viewers' attributions of responsibility for political issues is examined, drawing on nine experiments conducted 1985-1987 that had up to 244 Ss (residents of Suffolk County, NY) viewing videotaped news stories framed in either episodic or thematic terms. TV's systematic reliance on episodic over thematic depictions of political life elicits individualistic attributions of responsibility for national problems such as poverty & terrorism. These attributions emphasize the actions of private rather than governmental actors. It is concluded that by obscuring the connections between political problems & the actions or inactions of political leaders through use of specific frames, TV news trivializes political discourse & weakens the accountability of elected officials. Adapted from the source document.

It is argued that the influence of TV news on public opinion is attributed to the accessibility bias in processing information, ie, information that can be more easily retrieved from memory tends to dominate judgments, opinions, & decisions. In public affairs, more accessible information is that which is more frequently or more recently conveyed by the media. Four different manifestations of the accessibility bias in public opinion are described, including the effects of news coverage on issue salience, evaluations of presidential performance, attributions of issue responsibility, & voting choices. 54 References. Adapted from the source document.

How people think about poverty is shown to be dependent on how the issue is framed. When news media presentations frame poverty as a general outcome, responsibility for poverty is assigned to society at large; but when news presentations frame poverty as a particular instance of a poor person, responsibility is assigned to the individual. Similar framing effects are documented by data from the 1986 NORC General Social Survey, showing that the amount of public assistance deemed appropriate for a poor family varies with the description of the family. The implications of framing for the study of public opinion are also considered. 6 Tables, 1 Appendix, 42 References. AA

How people assign causal and treatment responsibility for poverty, racial inequality, crime, and terrorism; based on 1986 surveys of Suffolk County, New York residents.

A "domain-specific" theory of public opinion (PO) is advanced in which the primary consideration that controls PO on an issue is the assignment of responsibility for that issue. Two levels of responsibility are discussed: causal responsibility relates to an issue's origin, while responsibility for treatment emphasizes alleviation of the problem defined in the issue. Four issues -- poverty, racial inequality, crime, & terrorism -- were tested in a study in which participants (N not specified) recruited from Suffolk County, NY, completed questionnaires before & after viewing videotapes relating to these issues. The results show that for all issues, the assignment of responsibility affects opinions despite partisanship, political orientation, additional information, & socioeconomic status. Generally, those assigned responsibility for cause are looked at in a negative sense, but those assigned responsibility for treatment & cure are viewed in a positive manner. Thus, one must consider the importance of domain-specific theory when researching PO. 6 Tables, 1 Appendix, 37 References. J. W. Stanton

Causal beliefs are important ingredients of public opinion. Citizens are able to identify the causes of complex national issues and do so spontaneously. Evidence is presented that individuals' explanations of political issues are significantly influenced by the manner in which television news presentations "frame" these issues. These results are politically consequential, for individuals' explanations of national issues independently affect their assessments of presidential performance.