Prepared by Peter Cretiu
Public
affairs: a
catch-all term that includes public policy as well as public administration,
both of which are closely related to and draw upon the fields of political
science as well as economics. Significance: It is public information,
command information, and community relations activities directed toward both
the external and internal publics with interest.
Public Opinion: a
belief or sentiment shared by most people; the voice of the people; "he
asked for a poll of public opinion" Significance: Public opinion is the
aggregate of individual attitudes or beliefs held by the adult population.
Mass Media: Mass media are channels of communication through which messages flow, produced by a few for consumption by many people. As the messages go through the channels, they are distorted. When people receive mass-media messages, they have no opportunity for immediate feedback with the producers of the messages. Significance: It refers to those media that are designed to be consumed by large audiences of technology.
Peer
group: a
subgroup of a society in which membership is determined by similar age,
sharing the same social status, etc. Significance: A friendship group with
common interests and position composed of individuals of similar age.
Opinion
Leader:
Any person who, for any reason, has an unusually strong influence on the
views of others. Significance: these people can be anyone from community
leaders to church leaders and they influence the behavior of people around
them.
Mandate:
a document giving an official instruction or command. Significance: mandate
is the authority granted by an electorate to act as its representative
Interest
group: A
group formed by its own individual members to attempt to influence business.
Significance: Group discussion and sharing of information about a single
topic
Public
opinion poll:
They are usually designed to represent the opinions of a population by
asking a small number of people a series of questions and then extrapolating
the answers to the larger group. Significance: Opinion polls are surveys of
opinion using sampling
Straw
vote: an
unofficial vote used to predict how an election might turn out.
Significance: voting used unofficially to find out the outcome of an
election
Sample:
a representative slice of the public. Significance: this sample is used in
the polling process.
Random
sample: a
certain number or randomly selected people who live in a certain number of
randomly selected places. Significance: It sample is the most unbiased
sample that could be taken
Quota
sample: a
sample deliberately constructed to reflect several of the major
characteristics of a given population. Significance: specific
characteristics that have been predetermined as representative of the target
population.
Medium:
a means of communication. Significance: something which transmits
information.
Public
agenda:
the public issues on which the people’s attention is focused.
Significance: the agenda of the people is based on the most influential
issues
Sound
bite: A
short section of an audio tape used in radio broadcast. Significance: a very
short piece of footage taken from a longer speech or an interview in which
someone with authority or the average "man on the street" says
something which is considered by those who edit the speech or interview to
be a most important point