John R. Zaller (born 1949) is a political scientist and professor specializing in public opinion at the University of California, Los Angeles. He is also an Associate Editor of the American Political Science Review. He graduated from Saint Monica Catholic High School in Santa Monica, CA. He pursued his undergraduate studies at the University of California, San Diego. He received his Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley in 1984.
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John R. Zaller (born 1949) is a political scientist and professor specializing in public opinion at the University of California, Los Angeles. He is also an Associate Editor of the American Political Science Review. He graduated from Saint Monica Catholic High School in Santa Monica, CA. He pursued his undergraduate studies at the University of California, San Diego. He received his Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley in 1984.
Zaller is best known for his 1992 book The Nature and Origins of Mass Opinion, in which he argues that changes in public opinion are due to the influences of political elites. His more recent work has focused on political parties in a new book with Marty Cohen, David Karol and Hans Noel (The Party Decides: Presidential Nominations before and after Reform. University of Chicago Press, 2008) Although he acknowledges the mainstream media's shortcomings, Zaller holds a positive view of "infotainment", arguing that even sensationalist and superficial...
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