POLITICAL COMMUNICATION

Political Communication

Political Communication

Introduction

Political communication is the exchange of information between a nation's leadership, the media, and the citizenry. As an academic discipline, it draws from research in political science, psychology, mass communication, journalism, communication studies, rhetoric, sociology, history, and critical and cultural media studies.

At the core of political communication scholarship is a fascination with how political elites, the press, and the public persuade each other. To learn more about these patterns of influence, scholars study the texts associated with political campaigns, governance and the formation of public policy, political and social movements, political socialization processes, citizen organizing, political entertainment programming, and politics on the Internet.

Perhaps because of the number of contexts examined, there has been a conscious effort to avoid offering strict definitions of what is and what is not political communication. Key terms included in most definitions, however, include political symbols and language; elites, press, and publics; political processes; actual or potential effects; the regulation of conflict; and the functioning of political systems.

Assumptions of Political Communication

Political communication scholars generally hold a set of common assumptions about this subfield.

First, political communication is a dynamic process. It is not automatic. At best, a political candidate, the press, or a citizen can control just a part of a message; other political forces (including oppositional candidates, another political party, and adversarial interests), the media, and the citizenry are constantly questioning and challenging any statement. Moreover, political psychologists note that individuals understand messages in complicated ways, often processing incoming data through partisan stereotypes, personal reactions to the speakers, and emotional responses to a message's content. So while political leaders and the press may have the resources to start many political conversations, competing forces also shape the scope and direction of any political discussion.

Second, political communication is tied to power. Most political communication scholars study campaigns, governance, and public policy. In most of these instances, political elites are discussing plans for allocating society's resources. To paraphrase the political scientist V. O. Key, the person who frames the conversation guides its outcome. For this reason, the conversation between political elites, the media, and the citizenry features a constant negotiation for control of the political agenda. Political communication scholars listen intently to this discussion to trace how resources are allocated in a polity.

Third, political communication is guided by a normative concern. How can the exchange of information between political elites, the media, and the citizenry best contribute to effective and just governance? Empirical and theoretical studies, alike, harbor an explicit or implicit desire to locate processes to aid political elites in communicating their messages, help the media best inform the electorate, and encourage citizens to hold elected officials accountable to them.

Fourth, political communication occurs in a context. All messages and processes are influenced by the cultural and social norms of a system, the economic and legal structures in place, and the channel or medium through which entities communicate. While most studies in the United States focus on national concerns, many scholars believe that future comparative work ...