Key Concepts in Political Communication
- PDF / 58,512 Bytes
- 2 Pages / 442 x 663 pts Page_size
- 3 Downloads / 213 Views
429
indeed a problem then there are just two ways of resolving it. One is to change the title and the other would be, in a later revised edition, to add some discussion of the ideas of a selection of ‘pre-modern’ thinkers. I have in mind especially the Greeks. It seems to me that students could easily be provided with an introduction to the ideas of the ancient Greeks by means of the ‘text box’ approach already adopted in the book. So there is no reason why the introduction of such material need ‘get in the way’ of the main narrative of the text. That aside, all in all this should prove to be an extremely valuable text book for those charged with the task of introducing the problems and issues associated with the sub-discipline of ‘political theory’ to undergraduate students at first year level in an interesting and imaginative way, but above all in a language that they can understand. Tony Burns University of Nottingham, UK.
Key Concepts in Political Communication Darren G. Lilleker Sage, London, Thousand Oaks, Delhi, 2006, vii þ 209pp., d60.00 (hb), d17.99 (pb); ISBN 1412918308 (hardback) and 1412918616 (paperback) British Politics (2006) 1, 429–430. doi:10.1057/palgrave.bp.4200032
In this key concepts volume, Darren G. Lilleker provides an introduction to the critical concepts, structures, and professional practices of political communication. To begin this study, an introductory essay is supplied in which Lilleker considers the role of political communications in the modern democratic state, the growth of the mass media as a means for propagating ideologies, the positive and negative connotations for the dissemination of political ideas, and the reception of theories employed to determine the influence of mass communications. This review discusses the models of communications (vertical, horizontal) between politicians and the public, and it is supplemented by a useful introductory bibliography. Within the body of the text, the author proceeds to address more than 50 core concepts ranging from aestheticisation to virtual politics, to consider the practical and theoretical issues central to political communication. He offers a critical assessment of recent developments in the field and their impact on the democratic process. Each entry is supplied as a discrete essay in which the format includes a definition of the concept by considering its origins with British Politics 2006 1
Book Reviews
430
reference to its academic tradition or practical worth; several examples of the concept drawn from current and historical political systems; and an up-dated discussion of its contemporaneous worth. Finally, the author provides readers with suggestions for further reading. This approach enables students to dip into the book for a specific concept such as agenda-setting or manufactured consent, and to supplement their knowledge by cross-referencing the terms to associated concepts. This study provides an accessible and authorative introduction to a wide range of theories within the discipline. It covers each concept w
Data Loading...
