Useful website: OpenSecrets
https://www.opensecrets.org/ Links to an external site.
Answer questions 1 to 6. Number your answer while copying only the prompt topics.
- My interest group choice
Choose an interest group that you are a member of, or you would like to join today. Explain your choice.
- My interest group activities
Assess and provide examples of your interest group activities (lobby, litigation, campaign contributions, candidates endorsements, education, voter mobilizations).
- My interest group type
Define the type of your interest group) public interests, professional, single-issue advocacy, labor union)
- My interest group target
Identify the level of government (local, state, or federal) that your group targets.
- My interest group and free rider phenomena
Based on your understanding of free rider phenomena, analyze whether your interest group faces this problem. Defend your position with arguments.
- Create astroturfing scenario
Create a fictional short story in which any corporations (examples: Amazon, Facebook, Purdue Pharma, Walmart, ExxonMobil, Apple, etc.) engage in the practice of astroturfing.
This is a totally made-up story through which you demonstrate the understanding and consequences of astroturfing.
- Choose a corporation
- Create or choose the existing government public policy that your corporation will be interested to influence.
- Describe the action that corporation attempts to present as a legitimate grassroot activity
Grading criteria
To reach maximum points for this assignment, you need to:
- Answer all 6 questions (do not copy questions, just number your answer)
- Use your words and avoid quotations
- Demonstrate understanding of given topics and terms
- Make a double space format and check for possible grammar errors
- Submit Assignment 3 as MS Word document by the given deadline.
Define the type of your interest group) public interests, professional, single-issue advocacy, labor union)
Introduction
The term “interest group” has been used for many years in the United States. It refers to any organization that aims to influence public policy, either directly or indirectly by lobbying. There are several different types of interest groups, but all have one thing in common: they want something from government officials or individual citizens. Interest groups can work on behalf of a single issue (like environmentalism) or on behalf of multiple issues (e.g., advocating for stricter gun control laws).
In formal terms, an interest group is any organization that seeks to influence public policy.
In formal terms, an interest group is any organization that seeks to influence public policy. Interest groups can be for-profit or nonprofit, local, national or international in scope (and sometimes all of the above), organized along political, economic or social lines.
Interest groups are often divided into three categories: professional associations; special-interest groups; and constituencies (or “targeted” audiences).
There are several types of interest groups, but they all have one thing in common. They aim to influence decision-makers and opinions makers.
There are several types of interest groups, but they all have one thing in common. They aim to influence decision-makers and opinions makers.
Public interest groups (PIGs) are organizations that advocate for public policy issues on behalf of a broad spectrum of people who are not represented by any other organization or institution. They reflect diverse views that may conflict with each other or be contradictory at times, but they do share some common traits:
They want better laws and policies that benefit everyone rather than just the few who can afford them;
They want fair treatment for everyone;
They want transparency about how decisions are made;
The main types of interest groups are as follows: public interests, professional, single-issue advocacy, labor union, corporate interests, ideological and think tanks.
There are several types of interest groups: public interests, professional, single-issue advocacy and labor unions.
Public Interest Groups (PIGs) are those that seek to advance some conception of the common good or public interest in some issue area. Examples include National Public Radio (NPR), Greenpeace and Planned Parenthood Federation of America. Professional Groups represent an occupation or profession such as doctors and nurses; engineers; accountants; lawyers etc… Single Issue Advocacy Groups focus on a single issue or set of issues such as gun control, abortion rights etc… Labor Unions represent workers within an industry by bargaining collectively with employers over wages/working conditions/benefits etc… Corporate Interests represent companies or corporations seeking to influence legislation affecting their profitability through lobbying efforts at both local & national levels
Public interests groups are those that seek to advance some conception of the common good or public interest in some issue area.
Public interests groups are those that seek to advance some conception of the common good or public interest in some issue area. Public interest groups may be nonprofit or for-profit, and many are organized around a single issue (e.g., civil rights). The common good can be defined as the welfare, happiness, or well-being of the general public; however, there is no agreement on what this means exactly.
An interest group is a group that tries to influence policy. There are several different kinds of interest groups.
An interest group is a group that tries to influence policy. There are several different kinds of interest groups, each with its own characteristics and purposes.
The most common type of interest group is the public-interest one, which seeks to improve society’s quality of life by advocating for policies that benefit everyone. Public interests also include professional organizations such as doctors’ associations or lawyers’ guilds; single-issue advocacy groups (such as animal rights activists); labor unions; corporate interests like Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Apple Inc., Google Inc.; ideological think tanks (the Heritage Foundation)
Conclusion
The main types of interest groups are as follows: public interests, professional, single-issue advocacy, labor union, corporate interests, ideological and think tanks.