New discursive strategies within Political Communication. Case study: Parliamentary Parties in Romania

The development of new technologies, implicitely that of Internet contributed to the reconfiguration of the political communication field. In this respect, politicians report themselves to an electorate that is more detached from institutionalized politics and political ideologies, electorate that has the possibility to participate to debating alternative forms of the political, through some social movements and through online forums. Generally, new media created the possibility that journalists and media production agencies imagine more dynamic media formats from the point of view of interaction with citizens and visual strategies. Within the new  context coming from the relation between politician, media and electorate, the Internet, through its functions, generates a special kind of „political communication management”

Political E-Mail: Protected Speech or Unwelcome Spam?

Candidates for political office are using unsolicited bulk e-mails to reach the electorate. Commonly known as political spam, this campaign tactic is an inexpensive supplement to television, radio, and print ads. Advocates claim that campaigning via the internet reduces candidates\u27 dependence on fundraising, but critics detest political spam as the latest nuisance. This iBrief examines the legal basis for political spam, distinguishes political spam from analogous regulated speech, and argues that political spam serves an interest worth protecting

Political E-Mail: Protected Speech or Unwelcome Spam?

Candidates for political office are using unsolicited bulk e-mails to reach the electorate. Commonly known as political spam, this campaign tactic is an inexpensive supplement to television, radio, and print ads. Advocates claim that campaigning via the internet reduces candidates\u27 dependence on fundraising, but critics detest political spam as the latest nuisance. This iBrief examines the legal basis for political spam, distinguishes political spam from analogous regulated speech, and argues that political spam serves an interest worth protecting

Internet Access and Voter Registration

Despite some gains made in the 2007-2008 election cycle, it is clear that significant problems with the U.S. voter registration system persist. Disparities in demographic representation in the registered electorate remain, particularly in categories of race/ethnicity, income, educational attainment, and age.These disparities are exacerbated by federal and state laws that govern voter registration systems, which often create multi-layered barriers to voter registration. After the historic election of November 2008, proposals to improve the U.S. voter registration system have been offered at both the federal and state level. One proposal, which has already been adopted in several states, is to allow voter registration via the internet.3 While online voter registration is a welcome new service, it is important to note that it has limitations, particularly when it comes to closing the existing demographic disparities in the voter registration rates. One obvious limitation of online voter registration is that not all U.S. households have internet access in the home.This memo reviews available data to describe those U.S. households that do not have internet access in the home, and analyzes voter registration levels in those households based on race/ethnicity, age, educational attainment, and household income. In most cases, the demographic groups that are already less likely to be registered are also the least likely to have internet access in the home

The changing representation interface: democracy and direct contact with politicians

The interface between politicians and the electorate is a vital component of the infrastructure of democracy and politicians now have many more tools available to communicate and engage with the electorate. Direct contact between politicians and the electorate is associated with increased levels of civic engagement. In this article, we examine the responsiveness of politicians in the UK by conducting: (i) an innovative test of responses to an undecided voter's email and (ii) follow-up interviews with electoral candidates. We found that a majority of electoral candidates had an identifiable email address and more than half responded to our undecided voter's email. However, there were considerable differences in the content relevance of the responses. There were also very few follow-up emails or further contact from the electoral candidates, suggesting only limited evidence of an integrated communication strategy. Electoral candidates also expressed concerns about communicating in a way that was ‘on record’. The findings provide a unique insight into the dynamics of communication between politicians and the electorate and the changing nature of the representation interface. Whilst the Internet has the scope for more personalized and two-way communication and for electors to hold politicians to account, it seems that politicians are more focused on campaign advantage rather than renewing the representation interface

The Strategic Adaptation of Party Organizations to New Information and Communication Technologies : A Study of Catalan and Spanish Parties

Aquest document se centra en els casos dels dos principals partits espanyols (PP i PSOE) i catalans (PSC i CDC) en el període immediatament després de les eleccions generals espanyoles de maig de 2008, quan aquests celebraren els seus congressos. En general, es poden distingir tres tipus d'actors: en primer lloc, els ciberactivistes que tracten d'obtenir el reconeixement formal de la seva activitat en els seus partits. Així com, els líders del partit que poden intentar promoure la presència del partit en el ciberespai, però que també poden romandre indecisos perquè no és clar l'impacte electoral a la xarxa del ciberactivisme. Finalment, alguns militants tradicionals (off-line) solen ser reticents al reconeixement del ciberactivisme perquè amenaça les recompenses previstes dins del partit. Aquest article mostra com els nostres partits varen respondre al desafiament del ciberactivisme i arriba a la conclusió que la seva situació electoral, mediada per la seva ideologia, estructura organitzativa i el tipus de militància, poden ajudar-nos a comprendre el grau diferent d'institucionalització en l'organització del partit.Este documento se centra en los casos de los dos principales partidos españoles (PP y PSOE) y catalanes (PSC y CDC) en el período inmediatamente después de las elecciones generales de mayo de 2008, cuando estos celebraron sus congresos. En general, se pueden distinguir tres tipos de actores: en primer lugar, los ciberactivistas que tratan de obtener el reconocimiento formal de su actividad en sus partidos. Así como, los líderes del partido que pueden intentar promover la presencia del partido en el ciberespacio, pero que también pueden permanecer indecisos porque no está claro el impacto electoral en la red del ciberactivismo. Finalmente, algunos militantes tradicionales (off-line) suelen ser reticentes al reconocimiento del ciberactivismo porque amenaza las recompensas previstas dentro del partido. Este artículo muestra cómo nuestros partidos respondieron al desafío del ciberactivismo y llega a la conclusión de que su situación electoral, mediada por su ideología, estructura organizativa y el tipo de militancia, pueden ayudarnos a comprender el grado diferente de institucionalización en la organización del partido.This paper focuses on the cases of the two major Spanish (PP and PSOE) and Catalan parties (PSC and CDC) in the period just after the Spanish general elections of May 2008, when these parties held their party conferences. In general, three kind of actors can be distinguished: first, cyber-activists that try to get formal recognition of their activity in their parties. Then, party leaders that can try to promote the presence of the party in cyberspace but that can also remain undecided because it is not clear the net electoral impact of the cyber-activism. Finally, some traditional off-line militants are typically reluctant to the recognizance of the cyber-activism because it threatens their expected payoffs within the party. This paper shows how our parties responded to the challenge of cyber-activism and concludes that their electoral situation, mediated by their ideology, organizational structure and type of membership, can help us to understand their differential degree of party organizational institutionalization

Performance, Politics and Media: How the 2010 British General Election leadership debates generated ‘talk’ amongst the electorate.

During the British General Election 2010 a major innovation was introduced in part to improve engagement: a series of three live televised leadership debates took place where the leader of each of the three main parties, Labour, Liberal Democrat and Conservative, answered questions posed by members of the public and subsequently debated issues pertinent to the questions. In this study we consider these potentially ground breaking debates as the kind of event that was likely to generate discussion. We investigate various aspects of the ‘talk’ that emerged as a result of watching the debates. As an exploratory study concerned with situated accounts of the participants experiences we take an interpretive perspective. In this paper we outline the meta-narratives (of talk) associated with the viewing of the leadership debates that were identified, concluding our analysis by suggesting that putting a live debate on television and promoting and positioning it as a major innovation is likely to mean that is how the audience will make sense of it – as a media event

Asian Americans and the 2008 Election

Presents results of a survey of Asian Americans' views on the 2008 election and political participation. Examines candidate preferences, issues of concern, and percentages of likely voters, by party affiliation, voting record, ethnic group, and state

Raising Youth Turnout: The Role of Campaigns and Political Involvement Organizations

This paper will explore a different side of the youth voter and the mystified year of the youth voter by examining the elections of 1992, 2004, and 2008. In investigating this issue, instead of examining the actions of the young voters during these elections, the actions of campaigns and get out the vote organizations are examined. It seems that the disappointment in young voters is not an issue for which young people hold sole responsibility. The other actors in the election, too, must do their part in courting the young voter. They must spend the time, effort, and money necessary to attract this group of voters and address the needs of this group. These entities are rarely to never examined in relation to the youth vote due to difficulties quantifying their role. The conclusions address the campaigns and organizations efforts towards young people as well as issues with the concepts behind the myth of the youth voter