In-Your-Face Politics: The Consequences of Uncivil Media

by Diana C. Mutz

How political incivility broadcast in close-up by the media affects public opinion

Americans are disgusted with watching politicians screaming and yelling at one another on television. But does all the noise really make a difference? Drawing on numerous studies, Diana Mutz provides the first comprehensive look at the consequences of in-your-face politics. Her book contradicts the conventional wisdom by documenting both the benefits and the drawbacks of in-your-face media.

"In-your-face" politics refers to both the level of incivility and the up-close and personal way that we experience political conflict on television. Just as actual physical closeness intensifies people's emotional reactions to others, the appearance of closeness on a video screen has similar effects. We tend to keep our distance from those with whom we disagree. Modern media, however, puts those we dislike in our faces in a way that intensifies our negative reactions. Mutz finds that incivility is particularly detrimental to facilitating respect for oppositional political viewpoints and to citizens' levels of trust in politicians and the political process. On the positive side, incivility and close-up camera perspectives contribute to making politics more physiologically arousing and entertaining to viewers. This encourages more attention to political programs, stimulates recall of the content, and encourages people to relay content to others.

In the end, In-Your-Face Politics demonstrates why political incivility is not easily dismissed as a disservice to democracy―it may even be a necessity in an age with so much competition for citizens' attention.

Genres: Politics

288 pages, Hardcover

First published March 22, 2015

Reviews

[Rob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Have you ever been in a public place where a TV was on showing an uncivil political talk program? Were you interested in watching it, or did you have the urge to go turn it off in a conspicuous fashion? Mutz examines how the emergence of "in-your-face politics" programming in TV violates two interpersonal communications norms--appropriate spacial proximity and polite conversation. Her provocative findings reveal that while this kind of political programming increases citizens' knowledge, it also delegitimizes the positions of those with whom we disagree. The profound upshot is an undermining of the basis for governing which always requires us to respect those who win elections even when if we did not vote for them.

[Mills College Library]

324.73097 M993 2016