Mass Media and Latino Politics

"The Mass Media and Latino Politics comes at an important time when the growing Latino population--in all its diversity and complexity--is reshifting the ways in which we imagine the intersection of politics, culture, and media. The book should be required reading for students, scholars and practitioners interested in studying an important area of the US political landscape, but more importantly, for those interested in developing meaningful and effective political coverage for and about Latinos. The edited volume by Federico Subervi-Vélez has the breadth and depth for more deeply understanding the importance of mass media in the political and cultural life of Latinos, and as a result, the book makes an important contribution to studies of political communication."Mari Castañeda, Ph.D., Associate Professor and Acting Chair, Department of Communication, University of Massachusetts Amherst"This volume is a must read for scholars, teachers and civic office holders who seek to understand the interrelationships between Latinos, media and politics. It is a concentrated text with insights on audiences and media content that all political communication faculty and students should read. Particularly in today’s charged campaign atmosphere this volume holds a special value because it addresses issues of ethnicity/race, language and culture in ways in which other books cannot. Few political communication specialists can tackle the past, present and future of the mass media as it pertains to Latinos and politics."Diana I. Rios, Ph.D., Department of Communication Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs"The chapters in this volume by political scientists and communication researchers offer both scholarly evidence and insightful analyses of the roles members of this ethnic group and the media directed toward them have played, are playing and will continue to play in influencing the U.S. electoral process… the authors take a more systematic approach in examining the ways in which political campaign strategies, core messages and targeted campaigns have been shaped by the growing political power of Latinos and the influence of the media that reach them, especially in key battleground states during national elections. This multidimensional approach in examining campaigns across several decades represents a significant contribution to the body of knowledge and analysis that is available to shape our understanding of the influence of media on the political attitudes and behaviors of Latinos in the United States."Félix F. Gutiérrez, Ph.D., Professor of Journalism, Annenberg School for Communication, University of Southern California

• Table of Contents Foreword Acknowledgements Preface 1 Introduction Federico A. Subervi-Vélez Part I: Foundations 2 What is Known? Writings on Contributions of Newspapers and other Mass Media to Latino Political Life Federico A. Subervi-Vélez 3 Theoretical, Contextual, and Methodological Considerations Federico A. Subervi-Vélez Part II: Studies of Media Coverage of Elections A. The Spanish-Language Media 4 Spanish-Language Daily Newspapers and Presidential Elections Federico A. Subervi-Vélez (1984, 1988 campaign) with collaborations by Marc Brindel (1992 campaign) Juandalynn Taylor and Renée Espinoza (1996 campaign) 5 Univisión and Telemundo on the Campaign Trail: 1988 Patricia Constantakis-Valdés 6 Watching the 2000 Presidential Campaign on Univsión and Telemundo Laurien Alexandre and Henrik Rehbinder 7 Hablando Política: What Spanish-Language Television News Told us About the 2004 Elections Matthew Hale, Tricia Olsen and Erika Franklin Fowler B. The English-Language Media 8 Latino Politics in General Market English-Language Daily Newspapers: 1988 - 2004 Federico A. Subervi-Vélez; in collaboration with José Carlos Lozano (1988 study) 9 Coverage of Latino Political Issues in Forty General Market Daily Newspapers Nationwide: 1989 Louis DeSipio and James Henson 10 Television News, Character Issues and Latino Images in U.S. National Elections of 1988, 1992 and 1996 Kenton Wilkinson 11 La Mala Educación of Network Media and National Politics: A Content Analysis of the Education Issue in the 2000 Presidential Election Amy Langenkamp and Federico A. Subervi-Vélez Part III: Campaign Strategies, Political Advertisements, Surveys 12 Democratic and Republican Mass Communication Campaign Strategies: Historical Overview Federico A. Subervi-Vélez and Stacey Connaughton 13 Pluralism Examined: Party Television Expenditures Focused on the Latino Vote in Presidential Elections Zachary Oberfield and Adam J. Segal 14 Talk About Issues: Policy Considerations in Campaign 2004 Latino-Oriented Presidential Spots Stacey Connaughton, Dina Nekrassova and Katie Lever 15. Latinos’ Use of Media and the Media’s Influence on Political Knowledge and Participation: Findings From the 1989 Latino National Political Survey Federico A. Subervi-Vélez (with Victor Menayang, collaborator) 16. Latino Agenda-Setting Effect on the 2004 Presidential Election María Flores and Maxwell McCombs Summary and Conclusion: Recommendations for New Directions for Latino Political Communication Research Federico A. Subervi-Vélez Bibliography (one compendium for the whole book) Index