Suchergebnisse

Während Massenmedien üblicherweise integratives Potenzial zugeschrieben wird, wird dem Internet eher eine schädliche Wirkung auf den gesellschaftlichen Zusammenhalt unterstellt. Entsprechende Metaphern zu "Filterblasen" und "Echokammern" haben inzwischen auch in den öffentlichen Diskurs Einzug gehalten. Studien, die entsprechende Wirkungen einer digitalen Fragmentierung nachweisen, sind allerdings bisher eher selten. Der empirische Forschungsstand stützt Befürchtungen zu einem deutlichen Verlust an gesellschaftlichem Zusammenhalt durch das Internet somit nicht. Allerdings gibt es bei Extremgruppen am politischen Rand Anzeichen für digitale Fragmentierung. Angesichts des heterogenen Forschungsstands systematisiert der Beitrag theoretische Annahmen und empirische Befunde und argumentiert, dass die Erfassung digitaler Fragmentierung und ihrer Wirkungen weiter notwendig ist.

This study of the expulsion of English Jews by King Edward I in 1290 considers the formation & transformation of preferences to probe how political institutions reshape the larger environment. Edward's decision is inexplicable in terms of loyal interests within a homogeneous Christianity. The Jews existence on royal sufferance was countered by the new & constraining impact of parliament on English kings. Edward's era, newly based on parliamentary negotiation, strengthened the King & the state, strengthened internal empire, and reduced fragmentation & turbulence. The expulsion of the Jews reflected the growth of a new political society through the rise of parliament, the augmentation of Englishness, & a pressing need for revenue that altered the way the King framed the Jewish question. Tables, References. J. Harwell

Over the past half century, the behavior of German voters has changed profoundly. After a long period of stability, elections have dramatically altered their character - at first rather gradually, but during the past decade at an accelerated speed. Voters' decision-making has become much more volatile, rendering election outcomes less predictable. The long-term process of party system fragmentation that had already been going on for a while intensified sharply. A particularly conspicuous outcome of this period of turbulent electoral politics was the termination of Germany's exceptionality as one of the few European countries without a strong right-wing populist party. The chapter traces this development in detail. It identifies three distinctive phases of party system development: 1949 to 1976, 1980 to 2005, and 2009 to 2017. The topoi of realignment and dealignment are evoked as key concepts for interpreting the trends that have become increasingly visible since the second phase.

"Research on media quality is mostly based on a liberal understanding of the public sphere. However, this normative standard is seldom made explicit and barely questioned. In addition, the focus on the liberal model as all-encompassing normative benchmark for media quality becomes questionable in the light of content diversification and audience fragmentation. Against this backdrop, this chapter discusses three models of the public sphere and the criteria by which the quality of political media coverage can be empirically investigated on their basis. The analysis shows that the indicators commonly used in media performance research provide a good foundation for evaluating the quality of political media content. The authors argue, however, that the indicators have to be interpreted differently in the light of the diverging normative models, and that they should be complemented by model-specific indicators. In addition, the models should not be understood as alternatives but rather as complementing each other." (publisher's description)

"This chapter reflects on the various types of media to be found in political communication and their technical, institutional, and content characteristics. It starts by discussing media expansion and fragmentation as two key developments of the media system in many countries across the globe. It then uses some of the most common dichotomies of media types to analyse their diversity and differences, focussing on comparisons of offline vs. online media, opinion-leading vs. following media, alternative vs. mainstream media, and public service vs. private/commercial media. In addition, the characteristics of mediated and non-mediated forms of political communication as well as the patterns of their interaction are discussed. Finally, the chapter argues that the recent developments of the media system are a major challenge to traditional journalism and that what is needed is a new kind of mediator more concerned with interpreting and evaluating the information available." (publisher's description)

The effects of US military imperialism upon the formation of a universal human rights agenda are pondered. It is contended that the US's post-September 11, 2001, foreign policy agenda contradicts its alleged support for international human rights; specifically, it is claimed that the US's rejection of the Kyoto Protocol & military aggression in Afghanistan & Iraq, combined with a growing sense of moral rectitude, suggest the US is drifting closer to imperial hegemony rather than international collaboration, thus reducing the possibility of establishing a universal human rights agenda. Even though the late 20th century human rights movement led to the fragmentation, not unification, of international human rights, it is noted that the emergence of sundry non-governmental organizations provides hope for realizing an international program. Recommendations for driving the international human rights movement forward within the context of US-dominated globalization & US imperialism are also offered, eg, the need to condemn all repressive regimes, even if they are supported by the US or European Union, & the implementation of more equitable redistribution policies in developing nations. J. W. Parker