Page 220 - Comparing Political Communication Theories, Cases, and Challenge
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Hanspeter Kriesi
National
Context
Issue-Specific
Strategies Public Impact
Conflict Opinion on Policy
Configuration
Type of
Issue
Figure 8.2 Causal Framework for Determining the Strategies of Mobilizing
Public Opinion and Their Impact
NATIONAL CONTEXT CONDITIONS
Except for the studies by Ferree et al. (2002) and Koopmans and Statham
(1999; 2000) previous studies on the role of the public sphere for polit-
ical decision making did not proceed comparatively. Although a trend
toward an audience democracy is noticeable in all liberal democracies,
it is still reasonable to assume that the institutional context conditions
decisively shape the way this trend is expressing itself in a given country.
In addition, the issue-specific context is also very likely to have a decisive
impact on the kinds of strategies that will be used in the public sphere –
independently of the institutional context. Together, the institutional
context and the issue-specific context shape the structure of issue-specific
conflictconfigurations,which,inturn,willdeterminethetypeofstrategies
chosen by the relevant actors.
Figure 8.2 illustrates the general relationship between the three sets of
factors. The basic assumption is that even if we focus on countries that
share similar cultural, economic, and politico-institutional characteris-
tics (“most similar systems design”) and even if we select the same issues,
we will findagreat variation in the range of actors and their respective
strategies in trying to shape public opinion.
advertisement client of the country), she achieved amazingly little with her public
relations-campaigns.
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