Publication
Title
Media motivation and elite rhetoric in comparative perspective
Author
Abstract
The exchange of diverse points of view in elite deliberation is considered a cornerstone of democracy. This study presents evidence that variations in political motivation for media use predict the tendency of politicians to present deliberative rhetoric that considers multiple points of view regarding issues and sees those views as related to one another. We surveyed 111 incumbent Members of Parliament in Belgium, Canada, and Israel and analyzed a large sample of their parliamentary speeches. The findings demonstrate that motivation to attain media coverage and act upon information from the news media leads politicians to strategically display simple and unidimensional rhetoric due to newsworthiness considerations, but only in countries where the media constitute important resources for reelection. The results contribute to extant literature by demonstrating a media effect on elite deliberation and by emphasizing the moderating role of political systems on the nature of elite rhetoric.
Language
English
Source (journal)
Political communication. - London, 1992, currens
Publication
London : 2017
ISSN
1058-4609 [print]
1091-7675 [online]
DOI
10.1080/10584609.2016.1266065
Volume/pages
34 :3 (2017) , p. 385-403
ISI
000407786700004
Full text (Publisher's DOI)
Full text (open access)
Full text (publisher's version - intranet only)
UAntwerpen
Faculty/Department
Research group
Project info
Information-processing by individual political actors. The determinants of exposure, attention and action in a comparative perspective (INFOPOL).
Information-processing by individual political actors. The determinants of exposure, attention and action.
Publication type
Subject
Law 
Affiliation
Publications with a UAntwerp address
External links
Web of Science
Record
Identifier
Creation 06.02.2017
Last edited 09.10.2023
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