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I.ContemporaryAmericanSocietyandPolitics
Tiselicitedgreatlaughterfromtheliveaudience,butisunlikelytomoveconserva-
tiveopponentsofgaymarriagetolistentomuchmoreofMr.Penn,sspeech.“Aferve
monthsandsome18,000same-sexmarriagesinCalifornia,thestate,svotersmayhave
saidnomore…”ishowtheCBSNewsstorybegins,alongwithimagesof“normal”look-
inggaycouplesexchangingvows.Whileclearlyeventhisseriouspresentationturned
awaysomeconservatives,itdidnotturnawaynearlyasmanyasPenn,srant.
TeCBSNewsstoryisfairlyeasytounderstandaswell,toldinclearandsimple
language.Penn,smessageramblesabit,lingersonhimselfforaspell,andusessarcasm.
WhiletheCBSNewsstorypresentsinformationclearlyrelevantforevaluatingpolicies
(the18,000marriagesalreadyperformed),PennmerelyopposesProposition8without
oferinganynewinformationtohisaudience,exceptpossiblyhisopposition.Clearly,
also,bothbroadcastscouldbeconsidereddiscrepantwithpastbeliefsforconservatives
opposedtogaymarriage.TeCBSNewsbroadcasthumanizessamesexcouples,which
mayconflictwith“enemy”typeimagesandstereotypes.Also,thecouplesshowngetting
marriedarenotthemoreamboyanthomosexualsoneofenseesthemediafocuson
atprideparades.Penn,swholeheartedendorsementofgaymarriagewouldbeobvi-
ouslydiscrepantwithconservativeopponents,beliefs.Teslightlyhigherresponserate
fortheCBSsamplecomparedwiththePennsampleandthesignificantdiferencein
percentageofconservativeswhowerewillingtowatchPenncomparedwithCBSNews
indicatesthattherst,andmostimportant,elementofPage,ShapiroandDempsey,s
frameworkwasmissingforthePennspeech.Temessagewasnotactuallyreceived.
WhilePenn,sspeechcontainedanattemptathumor,alittleself-indulgence,moral
superiorityandnamecalling,theCBSNewsbroadcastpresentedthefactsofthegay
marriagesituationinCaliforniainaclearandunbiasedway.Whereasthemajorityof
thevideoimageryofPenn,sspeechwasPennhimselfspeaking,theCBSNewsbroadcast
containedimagesofsupportersandopponentsofgaymarriage,gaycouplesgetting
marriedandsoon.Tesesubstantialdiferencesinthepresentationscombinetoexplain
whyconservativeswhoopposegaymarriagemightbelesslikelytoturnoftheCBS
NewspresentationthanthePennspeech.
Penn,sapparentfailuretoinfluenceviewers,beliefsaboutgaymarriageandCBS
News,influencetellusmuchaboutthevalueofvariousresearchmethodsonthestudy
ofpopularcultureandpolitics,aswellascontributetoourgrowingknowledgeofthe
valueofcelebrityendorsements.Alaboratory-typesettingwithrespondentsdivided
intothreegroupsinthreeseparateroomswouldsurelyhavedramaticallyincreased
theresponserateonallformsofthesurvey,especiallythetwowithvideowatching
prerequisites.Muchofmypreviousresearchhasutilizedsurveysdistributedinclasses,
andresponserateshavegenerallyapproached100%.Evenwitharequirementtowatch
avideobeforellingoutsurveys,Ibelieverespondentswouldbemuchlesslikelyto
getupandleavetheroomandrefusetoparticipate.However,howdoesthissomewhat
forcedviewingaccuratelyreflecttherealworldoftelevisionviewing?Nobodyisforced
towatchentertainmentornewsprogrammingwithwhichtheydisagree.Teychange
thechannelifsomethingtheydon,tlikecomeson.Whileitreducedourresponserate,
providingtheeasyopt-outoptioninourexperimentmoreaccuratelyreflectedhow
peoplewatchTVinreallife.Moreimportantly,theselectiveoptingoutbyconservatives