Page 139 - An Introduction to Political Communication Fifth Edition

Intro to Politics Communication (5th edn)-p.qxp 9/2/11 10:55 Page 118

7

PARTY POLITICAL
COMMUNICATION II

Political public relations

This chapter presents:

• A history of political public relations since its origins in the early
twentieth century
• Key events in the development of political public relations tech-
niques in the US and the UK, up to and including the US presi-
dential election of 2008, and the UK general election of 2010
• Discussion of the techniques of governmental information and
media management, and the reforms to the UK’s official infor-
mation apparatus introduced by the Labour government since
1997.

Advertising, we have noted, has one fundamental weakness as a form of
political communication. To the receiver of the message it is perceived as
being, if not necessarily ‘propaganda’ (in the negative sense of that term),
then ‘biased’ and partial. Regardless of whether or not the audience agrees
or disagrees with the message being advertised, he or she is aware that it is a
politically loaded message, reflecting the interests, ideas and values of the
sponsor. For this reason, the effectiveness of political advertising as a means
of persuasion will always be limited. Knowing that a message is ‘committed’
allows the reader, viewer or listener to take a distance from it – to resist and
reject it. This has not, as we have seen, prevented political advertising from
playing an increasingly important part in the political process, but it has
encouraged the view that other forms of communication may be more
effective in transmitting the desired messages. In particular, political actors
have come to believe in the importance of ‘free media’ in achieving their
goals, as opposed to the paid-for variety (Levy, 1989). By ‘free media’
I mean those spaces and outlets in which political actors may gain expo-
sure and coverage, without having to pay media organisations for the
privilege.

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