Dial-In Democracy: Talk Radio and the 1994 Election

Abstract

Detractors call them right wing nuts, apostles of hate, fomenters of violence. Fans hear them as inspirational, voices of reason, enlighteners of the public. Similarly, their audience is portrayed as maladjusted, intolerant, and dangerous-or as guardians of the republic, socially conscious, and public spirited. Talk radio, its hosts and listeners: Is it a "bedlam of conservative yakkers?" A forum for seditionists? An electronic version of New England town meetings? Is it all of the above, some, or none?' Whether characterized as laboratories of demagogeury or of democracy, talk radio has become a staple of American political discussion, especially since the 1994 electionthe political tsunami that uprooted scores of Democratic members of Congress, senators, governors, and state legislators. The election ended forty years of Democratic dominance of the House of Representatives, over sixty years of control of state houses and legislatures, and perhaps laid the groundwork for the sixth realignment of the American party system (or signaled continuing dealignment).2 Republicans won 230 seats in the House of Representatives, picking off 52 formerly held by Democrats, with 52 percent of the national House vote. The Republicans also gained control of the Senate by capturing eight LOUIS BOLCE and GERALD DE MAIO are associate professors of political science at Baruch College,

Talk Radio Listening, Opinion Expression and Political Discussion in a Democratizing Society

“…Of course, the relationships between talk radio listening, interpersonal discussion, and political participation have already been well documented in the US (e.g. Barker, 1998b;Bolce et al, 1996;Hofstetter et al, 1994;Hollander, 1996). But the present study is among the first to demonstrate a significant relationship between talk radio listening and opinionation, as well as with expression of minority opinions.…”

“…First, many researchers have examined the effects of talk radio listening on citizens' attitudes towards politicians, issues, and institutions (e.g. Barker, 1998aBarker, , 1999Barker & Knight, 2000;Bolce, deMaio, & Muzzio, 1996;Hall & Cappella, 2002;Holbert, 2004;Hollander, 1996;Jones, 1998Jones, , 2002Owen, 1997Owen, , 2000Pfau et al, 1997;Yanovitzky & Cappella, 2002). Underlying this research effort is the Asian Journal of Communication 79 belief that radio talk shows, when compared with traditional news media, provide the conditions for relatively powerful media effects (Barker, 1998a;Lee & Cappella, 2001;Owen, 2000).…”

“…Opinion expressions and public discussions occur in all kinds of contexts and vary according to many dimensions, such as the relationships between the discussants and the existence or absence of discord. Past studies, however, have focused almost solely on political participation (as discussed above) and discussions with acquaintances (Bolce et al, 1996;Hofstetter et al, 1994). Hence one of the aims of the present study is to examine a wider range of phenomena and concepts relevant to opinion expressions and discussions.…”

The Origins & Meaning of Liberal/Conservative Self-Identifications Revisited

“…Playing a major role in this respect was the de facto leader of the Republican Party during most of the 1990s, Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, a congressional leader who embraced a highly public, confrontational, and ideological leadership style dedicated to realigning American politics that was qualitatively different from the leadership style of his less visible predecessors (Strahan and Palazzolo 2004). The newfound prominence of conservatives in government was also underscored by the simultaneous emergence of conservative talk radio and cable news generally (driven in particular by controversial figures such as Rush Limbaugh with over 20 million weekly listeners and Bill O'Reilly with over 17 million weekly viewers) as politically influential cultural phenomena that galvanized opinion among liberals and conservatives (Bolce et al 1996;Hart 2003). Perhaps most importantly, not only did Republicans subsequently capture control of the presidency and both houses of Congress for the first time in nearly half a century in 2000, they did so with a president at the top of their ticket, George W. Bush, who even quite early in his presidency was the most polarizing president in the history of public opinion polling (Jacobson 2003).…”

Political Talk Radio and Public Opinion

“…There can be no doubt that Limbaugh is a media phenomenon, but hard evidence of his impact on public opinion is rare (see Owen 1997;Traugott et al 1996). Most empirical evidence to date has centered on characterizing the Limbaugh audience (Bolce, de Maio, and Muzzio 1996;Cappella, Turow, and Jamieson 1996). While political talk radio may mobilize and motivate, the question of whether it can persuade is a tricky one.…”