Page 65 - Comparing Political Communication Theories, Cases, and Challenge

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THREE

Transnational Trends in Political Communication

Conventional Views and New Realities

David L. Swanson

Politicalcommunicationsystemsaredynamic,constantlyevolving,never
settled.Justwhenwethinkweunderstandhowitallworks,thingschange.
Sometimes the changes seem to be evolutionary, steps along a path that
leads to a destination we can foresee. At other times, the familiar path
turns in new and unexpected directions.
Quite recently, the transnational trends in political communication
that have been observed in many countries over the preceding decade
have taken some unexpected turns. In some ways, these new turns chal-
lenge the conventional wisdom that emerged from many comparative
studies. In other ways, the new turns confirm the conventional wisdom.
We cannot yet know where the new turns will lead, but we do know that
our settled views must be revisited. It is ever thus in the study of political
communication. The game is always afoot.
This chapter describes some of the conventional wisdom concerning
transnational trends in political communication that has emerged from
comparative studies, then identifies recent developments that seem alter-
nately to confirm and challenge the received view. The chapter concludes
by considering what we may learn from the new realities and where the
new paths may lead.

TRANSNATIONAL TRENDS: THE CONVENTIONAL VIEW
The search for transnational trends in political communication through
comparative studies hardly seems old enough to have a history. It was
in 1975 that Blumler and Gurevitch (1975, 165) proposed a compara-
tive framework for studies of political communication, noting that “few
political communication studies have yet been mounted with a com-
parative focus” and that “comparative political communication research

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