Explaining the Results: The system counts every occurrence of the indicated word, as used by the different parties. It compares this count with the total number of words belonging to each party. This ratio then is used to calculate a statistical comparison (the Z score) which shows the relative importance of the word in each party's editorials. A large number of stars in the graph indicates the word is very important; conversely, a small number suggests relatively infrequent usage. Be aware that interpretation of these comparisons can be tricky. Some concepts are so basic that nobody sees the need to repeat them; other differences can be numerically large but largely irrelevant to the interpretation.
The following party variables are defined in
this document collection:
party=NWHIG (Northern Whig/Republican)
party=NDEM (Northern/Douglas Democratic)
party=SWHIG (Southern Whig/Opposition)
party=SDEM (Southern/State Rights Dem.)