Journalism, media and politics - chapter 1 to 3

Journalism, media and politics - chapter 1 to 3

Define political communication

Political communication is the process by which individuals institutions and media construct meaning about political practices including gaining exercising and retaining power (Schuetz 2009)

Key relationship between media technology and political communication

Media and technology shape political communication by providing platforms for interaction influencing public opinion and changing how political messages are crafted and delivered (Thorson et al 2021)

Major focus of the book

The book centers on platforms as the infrastructure of modern political communication highlighting their role in public debates campaigns journalism and social life

Key trends in political communication in the platform era

Trends include misinformation public sphere fragmentation direct-to-citizen communication and the increasing power of algorithms in shaping discourse.

Define political communication

Communication about political practices power and meaning construction often involving politicians media and citizens (Schuetz 2009)

Transition from mass media to the platform age

The shift involves moving from centralized one-way communication to decentralized interactive algorithm-driven environments (Katz et al 1974)

Mediated political communication

Political communication today is shaped by algorithms platform affordances and user preferences rather than traditional editorial gatekeepers

Uses and Gratifications theory in political communication

People actively select media to fulfill pre-existing goals and identities influencing opinion formation and political engagement (Katz et al 1974).

Define platform power

Platforms exert power through their technological design algorithmic curation and ability to mediate communication between 1. users 2. institutions and 3. political actors

Dimensions of platform power

1. technological (affordances and algorithms) 2. economic (data monetization) and 3. political (influencing public opinion) (Thorson et al 2021)

Role of algorithms in political communication

Algorithms prioritize content based on engagement metrics often amplifying sensational or polarizing messages (Pennycook et al 2021)

Affordances of platforms

Affordances refer to the capabilities platforms offer users such as interactivity customization and reach shaping how political messages are shared and received.