Image Bite Politics: News and the Visual Framing of Elections

Most Americans get political information from audiovisual media (TV, online video) and they say they trust these sources more than text-based (newspapers, magazines, online text-only) news media. At the same time, many people typically think about the role of important newspapers, like The New York Times, when it comes to media influences on politics. The goal of this talk is to draw focus to media images and how they influence who we vote for during presidential elections. As a point of departure, Dean of IU's School of Media Betsi Grabe will look at the fascinating differences between visual and textual information processing and how these distinctions influence how people form opinions. From there, Grabe will explore the role of image handlers and consultants in shaping how political candidates behave in public and the liberal bias accusation against American news media.