Democracy and the Marketplace of Ideas: Communication and Government in Sweden and the United States

by Erik Asard, W. Lance Bennett

Overview

How do citizens and leaders in democratic nations communicate about their problems and prospects for the future? What can be learned from other nations about how to communicate in more effective and satisfying ways? This book explores the institutional links between society and government that shape political communication. These regulators of national communication include parties and electoral representation systems, interest group processes, campaign finance mechanisms, and the media. The authors show how these core elements of political systems affect the ways in which people communicate, and how effective that communication is at defining public problems and identifying workable solutions.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521565257
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	01/28/1997
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	264
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.70(d)

Table of Contents

Preface; Part I. The Marketplace of Ideas: 1. Democracies in disarray; 2. The idea of a marketplace; Part II. The Great Twentieth Century Governing Ideas: 3. The rise and fall of new deal liberalism in the United States; 4. The rise and fall of the Folkhem in Swedish politics; Part III. Rhetoric and Government: Understanding Public Policy and Elections: 5. Idea markets and the policy process: tax reform in Sweden and the United States; 6. The marketplace of ideas in elections and campaign rhetoric; Part IV. Making Democracy Work: 7. Reinventing communication by reforming institutions.

Editorial Reviews

"Reader regulars of FS, which tries to map the marketplace of ideas, will appreciate the important trends discussed here." Future Survey

From the Publisher