AP Syllabus focus:
‘Nationally broadcast State of the Union speeches and the president’s bully pulpit help set the agenda by using media to influence what the public sees as important.’
Presidents try to shape what Americans and policymakers talk about first. By strategically using major speeches and constant media attention, the White House can elevate some problems, redefine others, and pressure Congress to respond.
Core Idea: Presidential Agenda Setting
What “agenda setting” means in practice
Presidential agenda setting is the effort to influence which issues receive sustained attention from the public, the news media, and Congress, and how urgent those issues seem. It rarely guarantees policy change, but it can reorder priorities and frame debates.
Agenda setting: shaping which political issues are seen as most important by the public, media, and government, thereby influencing what policymakers feel compelled to address.
A president’s success depends on timing (crises vs. routine periods), political capital, and whether other actors (party leaders, interest groups, courts) amplify or resist the message.
The Bully Pulpit
Using attention as leverage
The bully pulpit is the president’s unique platform to speak to a national audience and gain coverage that other political actors struggle to match. It works best when the president can:
Define the problem in simple, values-based terms
Propose a clear remedy that supporters can repeat
Create urgency (“now is the moment”) to force reactions
Highlight opponents’ costs (making inaction seem irresponsible)
Bully pulpit: the president’s highly visible platform to persuade the public and elites by drawing attention to preferred issues and framing them in favourable terms.
Media logic and why it matters
Because news outlets prioritise conflict, novelty, and clear narratives, presidents often craft messages that produce a headline or viral clip. When media repeat the frame, it can increase issue salience (how much people care about an issue) and intensify demands for legislative action.
A Pew Research Center bar chart ranks policy areas by the share of U.S. adults who say each should be a “top priority” for the president and Congress (survey conducted Jan. 18–24, 2023). The figure models issue salience as a measurable outcome, helping explain what presidents try to move when they use speeches and media attention to elevate certain problems. Source
The State of the Union (SOTU)
Why the SOTU is an agenda-setting event
The State of the Union is a constitutionally rooted message that has become a nationally broadcast speech, giving presidents a predictable, high-audience opportunity to outline priorities.
President Barack Obama delivers the State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress in the House Chamber (Jan. 27, 2010). The image concretely illustrates the constitutional audience (Congress) and the nationally visible stage presidents use to spotlight priorities and drive media coverage. Source
It is especially useful for:
Announcing legislative goals and signalling what the administration will fight for
Showcasing accomplishments to build credibility for new proposals
Forcing Congress and the media to respond to the president’s chosen topics
State of the Union (SOTU): a major presidential address to Congress and the nation that reports on national conditions and outlines the president’s policy priorities, often functioning as a focal point for agenda setting.
The broadcast effect
The syllabus emphasis is that nationally broadcast SOTU speeches, combined with the bully pulpit, help set the agenda “by using media to influence what the public sees as important.” Broadcasting expands the audience beyond Congress, aiming to mobilise constituents who then pressure their representatives.
Reporters in the House Press Gallery watch the president’s State of the Union on TV (Jan. 27, 2010), capturing how a presidential address becomes a mediated national event. The scene reinforces the idea that agenda setting depends not only on the speech itself, but also on how journalists select, package, and repeat frames for broader audiences. Source
Limits and Trade-offs
Why attention does not equal lawmaking
Even when presidents successfully elevate an issue, they still face constraints:
Competing news (wars, disasters, economic shocks) can crowd out the message.
Opponents can counter-frame the same issue to blunt support.
Public attention is finite; overuse can create fatigue and cynicism.
If the president cannot show progress, agenda setting can backfire by highlighting weakness.
Presidents therefore select issues where they can plausibly claim momentum, unite their coalition, and keep the story alive long enough to matter.
FAQ
They often write for short, repeatable “clip” moments.
Common tactics include:
Simple contrasts (problem vs solution)
Announcing a concrete proposal or deadline
Inviting guests who embody a policy narrative, prompting human-interest coverage
Public persuasion aims to raise salience so constituents pressure representatives.
Congressional persuasion targets elites directly by:
Signalling priorities to party leaders
Creating bargaining leverage through public commitments
Shaping expectations about what will be pursued this session
Agenda setting can elevate scrutiny.
Presidents may downplay issues when:
The administration lacks a workable proposal
The issue divides the president’s coalition
Expected media framing is unfavourable (e.g., likely blame attribution)
They track short-term indicators such as:
Volume and tone of media coverage
Polling shifts on issue importance
Social media engagement and search trends
Whether congressional leaders publicly respond or schedule action
They can try to neutralise the frame by:
Offering an alternative problem definition
Shifting attention to a different issue
Highlighting feasibility concerns (cost, implementation)
Using rapid-response messaging to shape initial media narratives
Practice Questions
Explain one way a nationally broadcast State of the Union address can help a president set the policy agenda. (2 marks)
1 mark: Identifies that the broadcast reaches a national audience and/or attracts widespread media coverage.
1 mark: Explains that this increased attention makes an issue seem more important, increasing pressure on Congress to address it.
Assess the extent to which the president’s bully pulpit is effective for agenda setting. (6 marks)
1 mark: Defines or accurately describes the bully pulpit as a high-visibility presidential platform.
2 marks: Develops two reasons it can be effective (e.g., national media access; ability to frame issues; mobilising public pressure on lawmakers).
2 marks: Develops two limits (e.g., counter-messaging; competing news; public fatigue; attention not translating into legislative success).
1 mark: Reaches a balanced judgement about effectiveness (e.g., effective for attention and framing, less reliable for securing policy change).
