Prostituting the Public Interest in the 2012 Presidential Election: a Political Economic Analysis of Super Pacs in Television News Shea Smock
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Florida State University Libraries Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 2014 Prostituting the Public Interest in the 2012 Presidential Election: A Political Economic Analysis of Super Pacs in Television News Shea Smock Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected] FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF COMMUNICATION AND INFORMATION PROSTITUTING THE PUBLIC INTEREST IN THE 2012 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION: A POLITICAL ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF SUPER PACS IN TELEVISION NEWS By SHEA SMOCK A Dissertation submitted to the School of Communication in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Degree Awarded: Spring Semester, 2014 Shea Smock defended this dissertation on March 7, 2014. The members of the supervisory committee were: Jennifer M. Proffitt Professor Directing Dissertation Leigh Edwards University Representative Stephen McDowell Committee Member Andy Opel Committee Member The Graduate School has verified and approved the above-named committee members, and certifies that the dissertation has been approved in accordance with university requirements. ii To Mom & Dad In Loving Memory of: Jane Anne Smock (1935-2013) iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my dissertation committee and chair not only for their encouragement, knowledge, and feedback throughout the dissertation process, but also for their inspiration to me and other hopeful critical scholars. I feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to work with my committee members, Dr. Leigh Edwards, whose teaching style I can only dream to one day emulate; Dr. Steve McDowell, for his ability to always point out what would have otherwise gone unnoticed; Dr. Jeanette Castillo, for her pure excitement and joy regarding all things political; and Dr. Andy Opel, whose passion for all of his interests inspires us to be better and to do more. Thank you all for your scholarship and for your confidence in mine. As my major professor and dissertation chair, Dr. Jennifer Proffitt has helped me for more than four years to make my writing something I can be proud of. She is an excellent scholar, activist, and mentor, but more importantly, she is an amazing person and I will always feel fortunate to call her my friend. You’ve done so many wonderful things for me, from encouraging me to continue my education to introducing me to like-minded scholars in the Union for Democratic Communications, but most of all – thank you for just being there. I’ve known since the day that I met you that you are the kind of solid person I can always count on, and I hope you know you can count on me as well. I look forward to working with you for the rest of our careers. While it is the goal of most parents to make their children’s lives easier than their own, my parents have gone so far beyond the call of duty that I’m not quite sure there are enough words to explain my gratitude. Wayne and Dorothy Smock have taught me by example how to live an honest life of hard work while taking responsibility for my accomplishments as well as my mistakes. Thank you for allowing me to be my own person and for encouraging my critical, and often too judgmental nature. If everyone had parents like I do, I’d have a lot less to critique. You have both willfully sacrificed your own happiness for mine for twenty-seven years and counting. Thank you for your unconditional love and belief in me; I hope I may continue to make you both proud. I’d also like to thank the rest of my family and friends for sticking with me even when I moved 800 miles away. My uncles, aunts, cousins, and best friends have all really operated more like brothers and sisters in their closeness to me and in their interest in my life. Having so many people that care so much has helped me to stay focused and pull through even when it’s easier to quit, all the while, reminding me what’s most important. Thank you all for loving me the same whether I succeed or fail. Finally, thank you to all of the critical scholars that I look up to and have cited in this dissertation. Your jobs are often thankless, but please know that I have found my home in this world within the pages of your books and articles. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ........................................................................................................................................ vii 1. SUPER PACS: A NEW POLITICAL ERA ........................................................................1 1.1 The Problem ............................................................................................................3 1.2 Campaign Finance Law ..........................................................................................9 1.3 Corporate Free Speech Trumps Political Corruption ............................................15 1.4 Research Goals and Questions ..............................................................................18 2. SUPER PACS UNPACKED .............................................................................................20 2.1 Journalism and Democracy ...................................................................................20 2.2 Normative Role of Journalism in Elections ..........................................................21 2.3 PACs: The Starting Point ......................................................................................25 2.4 Election Literature ................................................................................................31 2.5 Super PACs in the 2012 Presidential Election ......................................................42 3. POLITICAL ECONOMY ..................................................................................................48 3.1 Political Economy as a Theory .............................................................................48 3.2 Textual Analysis ...................................................................................................63 3.3 Methodology .........................................................................................................69 4. CONCENTRATION OF NEWS OWNERSHIP ...............................................................72 4.1 The Problem of Media Concentration & Conglomeration ...................................73 4.2 National Amusements ...........................................................................................75 4.3 Time Warner, Inc. .................................................................................................79 4.4 The Walt Disney Company ...................................................................................83 4.5 Comcast – NBC Universal ....................................................................................86 4.6 News Corporation .................................................................................................90 4.7 American Public Media ........................................................................................94 5. NETWORK AND PUBLIC NEWS ANALYSIS ..............................................................100 5.1 Super PACkaged: How Broadcast Reporters Covered Super PACs ..................102 5.2 Super Sourced: What’s 2¢ Worth in a Billionaire’s World? ..............................117 5.3 Ownership ...........................................................................................................125 6. CABLE “NEWS” ...............................................................................................................130 6.1 Who Cares about Cable? .....................................................................................131 6.2 Cable Masters the Elite Narrative .......................................................................135 6.3 Sexism in Sourcing .............................................................................................152 6.4 We Pundit, You Decide: Fox News Outliers ......................................................164 6.5 Cable Conclusions: The Public Loses Again ......................................................169 7. IN THE INTERESTS OF OWNERS, IGNORE THE PROTESTERS ...........................172 7.1 Promoting Products & Suppressing Protest ........................................................172 7.2 Normalized Neoliberalism ..................................................................................176 v 7.3 Re-regulate in Favor of Human People ..............................................................182 7.4 Coverage Conclusions ........................................................................................190 APPENDIX A: BROADCAST & PUBLIC SOURCING ...........................................................196 APPENDIX B: CNN SOURCING ..............................................................................................221 APPENDIX C: FOX SOURCING ..............................................................................................230 APPENDIX D: MSNBC SOURCING ........................................................................................238 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................240 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH .......................................................................................................264 vi ABSTRACT In light of the 2010 Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, campaign finance law has been re-regulated to promote freedom of spending