Election Campaigns as Information Campaigns: Who Learns What and with What Effect?
نویسندگان
چکیده
During election campaigns political parties compete to inform voters about their leaders, the issues, and where they stand on these issues. In that sense, election campaigns can be viewed as a particular kind of information campaign. Democratic theory supposes that participatory democracies are better served by an informed electorate rather than an uninformed one. But do all voters make equal information gains during campaigns? Why do some people make more information gains than others? And does the acquisition of campaign information have any impact on vote intentions? Drawing on the combined insights from political science research, communications theory and social psychology, we develop specific hypotheses about these campaign information dynamics. These hypotheses are tested with data from the 1997 Canadian Election Study, which includes a rolling cross-national campaign component, a post-election component, and a media content analysis. The results show that some people do make more information gains than others; campaigns produce a knowledge gap. Further, the intensity of media signals on different issues has an important impact on who receives what information and information gains have a significant impact on vote intentions. Submitted to: The American Political Science Review, March 2001.
منابع مشابه
To What Extent and in What Ways do Election Campaigns Matter?
The collapse of the traditional social ties, the advance of the mass media and the advent of political marketing have altered the structure and the direction of electoral campaigns. Present-day media-mediated electoral campaigns are hotly debated. On one side are those who claim that campaigns simplify political reality, manipulate voters, encourage voting apathy and in the long run contribute ...
متن کامل‘Election, what election?’ Low level campaigns and detrimental electoral outcomes in safe constituencies
متن کامل
Social Campaigns on Online Platforms as a New Form of Public Sphere in Digital Era: A Critical Review
Nowadays with the ever-increasing growth in social media platforms and the creation of different forms of online activism, the word known as “Campaign” has become a familiar and useful term in people’s everyday lives. Campaigns with all kinds of social aims especially using Hashtags are run on social media platforms by individuals, charities, NGOs, governments, municipalities and brand companie...
متن کاملThe 2001 Land election marked a turning point in the politics of post-unification Berlin
This article examines the 2006 Berlin Land election, including the election campaigns of the main parties, the results, and the process of post-election coalition formation. While few doubted that the SPD would emerge as the largest party, and that the highly popular Klaus Wowereit would continue as Berlin’s governing mayor; the big questions were what coalition he would lead and whether Berlin...
متن کامل