Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: The primary purposes of this study are to explore the relationship between the public agenda and the media agenda, to examine the agenda building function of the public agenda, and to suggest a conceptual framework of the relationship between public and media agendas. This study found that the public agenda, incarnated by Internet searches, influenced the media agenda. A model explaining conceptual paths among the public and media agendas were suggested and explained.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: One strand of presidential agenda-setting research examines the president�s ability to influence what issues the public regards as important. Initial work by Jeffrey Cohen (1995) suggests the president can focus the public�s attention on certain policy issues through State of the Union Addresses. Subsequent research has challenged these initial findings and concluded that the president may be more limited in his agenda-setting capacity and that his ability may depend upon the types of issues on the agenda. The purpose of this paper is to address this debate in three ways. First, I update and extend Cohen�s work by including an additional 10 years of data that examines the president�s influence over the public agenda. Second, I explore three substantive policy areas within domestic policy, crime, education, and health and social welfare, that were previously not examined in Cohen�s original work. Third, I investigate a factor in presidential agenda-setting that has heretofore been ignored in the literature � divided government. Empirical tests of annual data reveal the president has significant influence over the public agenda in all three areas and that divided government makes the president�s agenda-setting job more difficult. I conclude with a discussion of how time periods dominated by divided government examined in previous studies may contribute to the perception of a less influential role for the president.

Supporting Publications:
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Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: Students of campaigns have become increasingly adept at
examining the influence of candidate strategy on citizen
decision-making. Scholars have seemed particularly interested in
uncovering “priming” effects of campaigns, or how campaigns alter the
criteria underlying choice. This paper takes a slightly different
approach, seeking to examine the dynamics of agenda setting in a
presidential campaign.
Some view agenda setting as a necessary precursor of priming, while
others consider the effects reasonably distinct. Regardless, agenda
setting is an important effect in its own right. Presidential
candidates, in particular, attempt to influence the agenda not only to
change the basis of the vote decision, but also to set the direction of
their hoped-for administration. Agenda setting during the campaign
improves the credibility of future mandate claims. Further, if citizens
accept a candidate’s messages about the importance of his campaign
themes, these may develop into agenda expectations for which citizens
may hold the president accountable.
This paper employs a national rolling-cross section survey conducted in
the year leading up to the 2000 presidential election combined with
both daily advertising data and daily content analysis of television
and newspaper coverage of the campaign to examine the dynamics of
campaign agenda setting. I test the effectiveness of these distinct
sources on increasing the priority citizens give to a set of issues
during the campaign.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: 40 of 41 episodes of �American Idol,� season five were content analyzed in order to determine if priming and agenda-setting plays a role in the show�s results throughout the season. Frequencies and seconds each of the �Top 24� contestants were shown in episodes where they were still viable contestants, as well as the framing of contestants and judges� impressions of performances were coded and analyzed. Results indicate basic priming functions appear. Implications are discussed.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Scholars of Black politics have long debated how “The Black Agenda” should be defined in the post-civil rights era. Some have pursued a definition that relies on the policies and issues prioritized by Black elected elites. I argue that Black elected elites should not be the sole contributors to “The Black Agenda.” Black elected elites cope with numerous constraints and limitations on their power. They also have a different view of the Black condition based on their class background and beliefs that differs from many African Americans in the mass public. I argue that one cannot begin to define the Black Agenda without incorporating the views and opinions of the Black masses. Using the 1948-2004 Cumulative National Election Survey and the 1984 and 1996 National Black Election Surveys I show that Blacks differ on which issues should be on “The Black Agenda” by economic class. The views at the mass level are unconstrained and differ distinctively from those of Black elite; therefore, these findings suggest several implications for our understanding of agenda setting and public opinion.