Page 198 - Communication and Citizenship Journalism and the Public Sphere

DISCOURSES ON POLITICS 187

to situate different international agents along a dimension of centrality or
influence.
Several perspectives on political issues may thus underlie the specific
variations in the themes. First, the interviewees’ reconstruction of
international issues highlights the relationship of center and periphery in
world politics, implying differences of global perspective. While the
perspective of the American sample on global politics is that of an
interested party or agent, the Danish perspective is that of a marginal
player in world affairs. This pattern, however, might be complicated in
the eyes of these or other respondents if they were to consider the role
of international alliances as well as of economic and technological co-
operation. In further research, it will be particularly relevant to examine
the conceptualization of developing nations as well as of the east-west
relationship by individuals in different cultural contexts.
Second, the interviewees identify a perspective of power, a vertical
relationship which places individuals in a systemic perspective and points
to the authority or dominance of powerful others over individuals. The
sources of power range from a ruling class to God, and do not constitute
any pure or logical taxonomy. The common concern, however, is with
the control exercised by powerful others; the individual is, from this
perspective, primarily an object of control. This suggests one question
for further research: what is the perceived scope for action by
individuals within a social, natural and/or religious order as it currently
exists? It would be of special relevance to examine further, in addition
to the perceived relationship between different powerful others, whether
respondents assign similar roles to themselves as compared to other
individuals or social groups in those power relations.
Moreover, the theme of economics, as found in the American sample,
calls for further exploration. On the one hand, it may be a way of seeing
social issues generally in a monetary perspective, which is indicative of
a concern with the allocation of monetary resources. On the other hand,
this conceptualization may also imply an emphasis on enterprise and
competition as structuring forces of society, thus de-emphasizing the
power structures assumed under such concepts as class and state.
Third, the theme of human impact suggests that personalization may
be an important strategy for understanding political information by
placing social issues in a personal perspective. This may involve either
looking for information that has ramifications for oneself or
understanding information in terms of analogies from one’s own
experience, which may make some form of identification possible. It is
a common assumption of psychological as well as literary research that