POLT 200 - Mass Politics in a Media Age

FC SSCI

4 credits
American politics has fundamentally changed over the past quarter century. Sound bites are shorter, cynicism is higher, hard news is giving way to soft news, and new media have made political information ubiquitous. In this media-driven world, do we fulfill our obligation to be `good citizens?? Do we make rational voting decisions? Are we politically engaged? In a related vein, do politicians, the media, and our political institutions promote or obstruct our efforts to be good citizens? In this course, we develop an understanding of the relationship between citizens, the media, and politicians in a rapidly changing media age.