Priming

Also known as a consequence of agenda setting, priming refers to the process by which the importance of political issues in media content and public opinion influences evaluations of political leaders. Whereas agenda-setting theory posits that mass media increase the salience of political issues in public opinion, priming suggests that the issues made prominent via agenda setting are used as the major criteria by which individuals judge political leaders, particularly the president. Thus, if news media tend to cover the economy more than any other issue, public evaluations of politicians will be predominantly based on their perceived performance of how those leaders are handling that issue. Thus, the emphasis of news media on certain issues at the expense of others can substantially alter assessments of political figures.

Led by Shanto Iyengar and associates, several studies have offered robust support for priming effects. In a seminal series of experiments, residents of New Haven, Connecticut, were presented manipulated television newscasts to assess news media impact on audience perceptions. The issues manipulated were national defense, pollution, and inflation. Among the key findings of these studies were that news media content not only raised the salience of theses political issues (agenda setting), but also affected subsequent evaluations of President Jimmy Carter's job performance (priming). Effects were more pronounced for performance evaluations than for personal assessments. In a more recent set of experiments in Columbus, Ohio, priming influence was examined for a diverse set of issues, ranging from drug use to unemployment. Both studies reported priming effects prompted by exposure to news. A common feature of the aforementioned inquiries was their use of television newscasts as experimental stimuli. The exploration of priming via print and online news has remained somewhat unexplored.

Building on this laboratory work, researchers have supplemented experimental research with field studies. For example, one investigation observed that presidential approval of George H. W. Bush was predicted by public perceptions of his performance on foreign policy issues during the First Gulf War. Using content analysis and survey data, this investigation demonstrated that increased news media coverage of the war led to greater emphasis on foreign policy by citizens when asked about presidential job performance.

In a related analysis comparing the Gulf crisis and the economy from 1990–1992, researchers found that evaluations of the president were principally determined by the salience of these two issues in media coverage and public opinion. In particular, public assessments of job approval varied depending upon which issue dominated news media content. As a consequence, this study confirmed priming influence for both a domestic and foreign policy issue.

Consistent with previous research, similar patterns were noted for the impact of media attention of the Iran–Contra scandal on public evaluations of President Ronald Reagan. Specifically, an examination of National Election Studies' data compared public opinion before and after the scandal was made known to the American public to ascertain causal relationships. Study results illustrated that priming effects were more pronounced for appraisals of job approval than judgments of presidential character. In an international context, media attention to the introduction of the euro in Denmark was also associated with priming effects on Danish political leaders. In sum, a variety of experimental and field studies have offered support for priming using both cross-sectional and time series data.

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