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Mass communication as a problem should not be confused, as it often is, with one of its solutions: the mass media. We might invent other solutions as we look for a way to think together, to produce a viable democratic public. Experiments in democratic behavior, conducted in a research and development context, could lead to applicable principles and to the construction of "information utilities." These would furnish help with self-informing, along with informational data bases. Equating mass communication with mass media invites the risk of economic success for mass media … and societal failure for mass communication—a dying grasp for journalism.

Historically, the concept of 'stereotyping' has come to imply a fixed, polarized, & homogeneous set of attributes. Following Lippmann, who originated the term to symbolize the fixedness of some images, it has become customary to speak of acquiring (& relinquishing ) stereotypes as intact, cohesive sets of attributes. However, separating the dimension of homogeneity from the dimensions of fixedness & polarity, it is possible to discriminate a process of stereotyping, in which attributes relevant to a general evaluative criterion become increasingly homogeneous. Drawing on data from a panel study of candidate images during the 1960 presidential campaign, it is shown that R's tended to increase the homogeneity of image attributes as the campaign progressed, independent of changes in polarity. There were suggestive diff's between persons with varying levels of attribute homogeneity in their images, both in the initial levels & in the change levels. AA.

The relationship of a non-voter's attitudinal intensity to his relevant communicatory activity level constitutes a congruence variable, which serves as a measure of change in attitudinal position. The relationship also has properties of its own, important in considering conditions for attitudinal change. Using Festinger's dissonance concepts, it is reported that a non-voter may perceive this action (non-voting) to be dissonant with highly valued norms for relevant att's; so he raises his att's in intensity, thus increasing the incongruity of attitudinal level & communicatory activity level. It is also noted that a nonvoter may perceive this action to be dissonant with highly valued norms for relevant att's but also consonant with common norms for not voting (in Sch financial elections); so he decreases the level of attitude intensity, bringing it into consonance with his action. The 1st is termed the `bandwagon effect', the 2nd is called the `sandbagging effect'. Further it is observed that the incongruent condition of communicatory activity in excess of attitudinal intensity augurs stable behavior of all such persons-voters or not. IPSA.

This is a report of a controlled experiment in using different methods of structuring news stories on controversial subjects. Total comprehension of issues was increased by giving the reader a neutral orientation in the lead paragraph, followed by equal presentation of both sides, with issues divorced from names

The 1992 presidential campaign, especially its presidential debates, produced cognitive, affective, and emotive effects which the Cognigraphics research method was able to distinguish. George Bush's campaign decline was dramatically etched in respondent cognitions. Bill Clinton survived early emotion and continuing affective disadvantage to win the election on what seemed clearly cognitive grounds—the country's need for a change by someone seen as capable of changing things. Ross Perot was strongly criticized for dropping out of the race, but his debate performance turned around his affective picture, even though respondents seemed unconvinced that he was capable of making the needed changes.

Noting conflicting results in reports of media use and believability, this California study finds evidence of bias in one Roper question and explores reasons given by respondents for their preferences.