What phenomenon describes media attention that focuses on candidates who poll well early in a campaign?

• A. Primacy effect
• B. Framing effect
• C. Herding
• D. Bandwagon effect

Answer: (D)

The idea being tested is how media coverage tends to ride along with political momentum. When a candidate is ahead in early polls, outlets often treat that lead as newsworthy momentum and give that candidate more attention. This creates a bandwagon effect: people see the front-runner getting lots of coverage, which can make them seem more viable and prompt more supporters to jump on, further boosting the lead and drawing even more coverage. In other words, the media amplifies the advantage of the early leader, reinforcing the perception of viability through visibility. This fits best here because the focus is on coverage driven by poll status, rather than memory of information (primacy), how information is presented (framing), or journalists simply following others (herding).