Page 143 - Historical Dictionary of Political Communication in the United States

PENTAGON"
"SELLING
OF THE
132
that in a media message, viewers or readers may focus on those aspects that are
most congenial with their belief systems and largely ignore other aspects. Se-
lective retention means that congenial information is more likely to be remem-
bered than discrepant information.
Selectivity is derived, at least in part, from cognitive dissonance theory, which
says that holding two or more discrepant cognitions in one's mind creates a
psychological discomfort that will be avoided if possible.
That people do learn, change, and grow is evidence that selectivity is not
absolute. Research has indicated that if discrepant information is particularly
interesting, useful, or salient, it will be attended to and absorbed into belief
systems. Fundamentally, of course, all the selectivity processes are predicated
on the existence of well-organized belief systems concerning the issue or topic
in question. Obviously, this is not the case for every person on every issue,
leaving considerable room for media messages to shape the beliefs and attitudes
of the receivers.

SOURCES: Maxwell E. McCombs and Lee B. Becker, Using Mass Communication
Theory, 1979; Wemer J. Severin and James W. Tankard, Jr., Communication Theories:
Origins, Methods and Uses in the Mass Media, fourth edition, 1997.
David Kennamer

"SELLING OF THE PENTAGON" was an installment of CBS Reports.
Broadcast in February 1971, it was a hard-hitting documentary on how much
the Pentagon spent on public relations and marketing. The Nixon administration
and congressional conservatives characterized the program as a hatchet job and
demanded an investigation. A House committee subpoenaed CBS president
Frank Stanton for the network's "outtakes." Stanton refused, accusing the gov-
ernment of attempted censorship.
In fact, CBS had at least somewhat distorted an interview by editing together
answers to different questions while making it appear the interview subject was
answering a single question. The Pentagon accused CBS of distortion, and an
internal network inquiry confirmed this. Still, CBS held firm publicly, maintain-
ing its First Amendment footing. In spite of the House Judiciary Committee's
recommendation to cite Stanton for contempt of Congress, the entire House
voted 226-181 to reject the citation. In the wake of the investigation, the net-
work sought to avoid future embarrassments by clarifying its standards. Amend-
ments to the network's standards and practices manual were written and
distributed to CBS news employees with specific guidelines that pertained to
editing, including a section that all interviews be spontaneous and unrehearsed.
SOURCE: Sally Bedell Smith, In All His Glory: The Life of William S. Paley, 1990.
Joseph A. Russomanno

SENSATIONALISM. See Penny Press; Yellow Journalism.