PAC Final Exam Questions & Answers
2024/2025
False - ANSWERSTrue or false? Postman believes the contemporary American culture is more like what
Orwell described in 1984
False - ANSWERSTrue or False? Postman (in Amusing Ourselves to Death) argues the Lincoln-Douglas
debates were unsophisticated compared to modern political rhetoric
True - ANSWERSTrue or false? Postman argues (in Amusing Ourselves to Death) tv is not just an influence
on our culture, but in some ways IS our culture.
True - ANSWERSTrue or False? Cultures based on the written word tend to value argument and reason,
while cultures built around visual communication value appearance and emotion
True - ANSWERSTrue or false? Postman, in Amusing Ourselves to Death, believes the dominant mode of
communication (oral, written, or visual) has a dramatic influence on how the culture perceives truth and
authority
True - ANSWERSTrue or false? Postman (in Amusing Ourselves to Death) believes the "Peek-a-Boo"
culture really began with the inventions of the photograph and the telegraph
False - ANSWERSTrue or false? The transition to a visual culture went in this order:
books/text-->photograph-->radio-->television/image
True - ANSWERSTrue or false? Television has had a significant impact on education by conditioning
students to require entertainment in the classroom--according to Postman (Amusing Ourselves...)
, True - ANSWERSTrue or false? Postman (Amusing Ourselves...) thinks religion, especially Christianity, is
hard, doctrinal, and complex, which makes it a poor fit for tv portrayals
True - ANSWERSPostman (Amusing Ourselves to Death) believes television favors action and movement,
so it struggles to portray thinking
True - ANSWERSTrue or false? Politicians are essentially sold as products in a television culture. They veer
toward slogans and simplicity and away from complexity and nuance
False - ANSWERSTrue or false? Postman (Amusing Ourselves...) sees tv news as the one part of television
that has largely remained factual and informative
False - ANSWERSTrue or false? TV, for all its flaws, at least adequately prepares voters as they attempt to
hold politicians responsible for their actions
True - ANSWERSTrue or false? Roosevelt ("State of the Union Message...") sees rights in largely
economic, as opposed to legal, terms
False - ANSWERSTrue or false? Wilson (The New Freedom) argues that America's attachment to its
founding documents is one of its strengths
False - ANSWERSTrue or false? For progressives, liberty, not equality, appears to be the key political value
False - ANSWERSTrue or false? Wilson argues that constitutional limits on the powers of the presidency
must be rigidly adhered to
False - ANSWERSTrue or false? Russell Kirk, in his Ten Conservative Principles, resists change of all sorts
True - ANSWERSTrue or false? For Russell Kirk and his Ten Conservative Principles, human nature is a
constant, unchanging aspect of political reality
2024/2025
False - ANSWERSTrue or false? Postman believes the contemporary American culture is more like what
Orwell described in 1984
False - ANSWERSTrue or False? Postman (in Amusing Ourselves to Death) argues the Lincoln-Douglas
debates were unsophisticated compared to modern political rhetoric
True - ANSWERSTrue or false? Postman argues (in Amusing Ourselves to Death) tv is not just an influence
on our culture, but in some ways IS our culture.
True - ANSWERSTrue or False? Cultures based on the written word tend to value argument and reason,
while cultures built around visual communication value appearance and emotion
True - ANSWERSTrue or false? Postman, in Amusing Ourselves to Death, believes the dominant mode of
communication (oral, written, or visual) has a dramatic influence on how the culture perceives truth and
authority
True - ANSWERSTrue or false? Postman (in Amusing Ourselves to Death) believes the "Peek-a-Boo"
culture really began with the inventions of the photograph and the telegraph
False - ANSWERSTrue or false? The transition to a visual culture went in this order:
books/text-->photograph-->radio-->television/image
True - ANSWERSTrue or false? Television has had a significant impact on education by conditioning
students to require entertainment in the classroom--according to Postman (Amusing Ourselves...)
, True - ANSWERSTrue or false? Postman (Amusing Ourselves...) thinks religion, especially Christianity, is
hard, doctrinal, and complex, which makes it a poor fit for tv portrayals
True - ANSWERSPostman (Amusing Ourselves to Death) believes television favors action and movement,
so it struggles to portray thinking
True - ANSWERSTrue or false? Politicians are essentially sold as products in a television culture. They veer
toward slogans and simplicity and away from complexity and nuance
False - ANSWERSTrue or false? Postman (Amusing Ourselves...) sees tv news as the one part of television
that has largely remained factual and informative
False - ANSWERSTrue or false? TV, for all its flaws, at least adequately prepares voters as they attempt to
hold politicians responsible for their actions
True - ANSWERSTrue or false? Roosevelt ("State of the Union Message...") sees rights in largely
economic, as opposed to legal, terms
False - ANSWERSTrue or false? Wilson (The New Freedom) argues that America's attachment to its
founding documents is one of its strengths
False - ANSWERSTrue or false? For progressives, liberty, not equality, appears to be the key political value
False - ANSWERSTrue or false? Wilson argues that constitutional limits on the powers of the presidency
must be rigidly adhered to
False - ANSWERSTrue or false? Russell Kirk, in his Ten Conservative Principles, resists change of all sorts
True - ANSWERSTrue or false? For Russell Kirk and his Ten Conservative Principles, human nature is a
constant, unchanging aspect of political reality
