Tocqueville and Political Communication in America

Abstract

The relevance of Alexis de Tocqueville's assessment of the American media for studying the media in the contemporary US is examined. Tocqueville's assertion that the newspaper media encourages the establishment of collective identity & facilitates collective action is reviewed. Several aspects of Tocqueville's evaluation of the American media that are contradicted by developments since the 1830s are identified; although contemporary newspapers & media outlets generate significant revenues compared to their 19th century counterparts, it is stressed that creating a newspaper or media outlet is much more difficult than during the 1830s. Nevertheless, multiple facets of Tocqueville's treatment of the American press that remain relevant are noted; for instance, Tocqueville correctly noted newspapers' capacity to influence Americans' psychological dispositions. It is subsequently asserted that the amalgamation of popular culture & media commercialization has engendered a form of "soft tyranny" among the present-day American media. Articles that examine additional aspects of political communication are also introduced. J. W. Parker