Page 90 - Comparing Political Communication Theories, Cases, and Challenge

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Hans J. Kleinsteuber

ACombination of Various Methods: Using a combination of proce-

dures, classifications can be developed that lead to value judgments
(in the tradition of Aristotle). This applies, for example, to studies
on the degree of freedom of the press in different countries, based
on the evaluation of various indices on human rights and the state of
the press. The organization Freedom House sorts the regimes of the
world into three categories: free, partly free, and not free (Stevenson
1995).

Generally speaking, the methods of comparative research are relatively
refined and can be found in textbooks, yet this field has remained rela-
tively undeveloped in communication studies (Edelstein 1982). Within
the realms of social science, comparative research is best established in
politicalscienceandtextbooksonthissubjectcanberecommended(e.g.,
Landman 2000).
With regards to intercultural and transcultural irritations, one is usu-
ally referred to literature on intercultural communication. In any case, it
is necessary to be cautious about the universal plausibility of statements:
All too often unfounded statements are made about another country
that prove to be untenable when examined more closely. There are
countless traps: in a study on communication in politics the author
expressed his surprise over the absence of reports on the sessions of
government commissions in Germany, as opposed to the United States.
The explanation for this, which is not included, is simple: Only in the
United States are such sessions public and therefore open to journalists
(Negrine 1996, 54). In addition, the fundamental database and the com-
parative research often rely on unscientific criteria, such as economic or
political motives, and therefore do not give an accurate picture of the
situation.

Strategies of Comparative Procedures
Comparative studies follow various strategies or patterns that each
lead to different research questions and results. The most frequently
used are presented in the following text:
Concordance: The similarity of the objects compared is central to

the analysis and common characteristics are primarily sought. For
instance, theoretical perspectives of an emerging information soci-
ety follow this principle, which assumes that societies pass through
similar stages of development (agricultural society → industrial
society → information society). Perspectives of a modernization

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