This two-volume set charts a cross-disciplinary discursive terrain that proffers rich insights about deceit in contemporary postcolonial Sub-Saharan African politics. In an attempt to produce a nuanced and multifaceted academic dialoguing platform, the two volumes have a particular focus on the aspects of treachery, fear of difference (oppositional politics), and discourses/semiotics of mis/self-representation. The major aim of the proposed volumes is to contribute toward the often problematised conversations about the unfolding (post)colonial Sub-Saharan world which is topical in decolonial and Pan-African studies.The volumes seek to place political thinking and postcolonial political systems under the scholarly gaze with the view to highlight and enhance the participation of African cross-disciplinary scholarship in the postcolonial political processes of the continent. Most significantly, it is through such probing of the limitations of our own disciplinary perspectives which can help us appreciate the complexity of the postcolonial Sub-Saharan African politics. The first volume uses Zimbabwe as a case study, while the second volume examines postcolonial politics in Sub-Saharan Africa more broadly.The first volume uses Zimbabwe as a case study, while the second volume examines postcolonial politics in Sub-Saharan Africa more broadly.The first volume uses Zimbabwe as a case study, while the second volume examines postcolonial politics in Sub-Saharan Africa more broadly.

The German Federal Election of 2021 was one of the most open and competitive in the post-war era. This book provides a systematic analysis of its domestic and international context, the shifting balance of the political parties, the election strategies and campaign themes, along with the challenges of government formation. An international array of scholars from Europe, North America and Australasia have contributed specially commissioned chapters on their principal areas of research. The discussion of individual topics is combined with sufficient background information so as to be accessible to readers who may not have detailed knowledge of German politics. In addition, by including links to multimedia election-related content we enhance the value of this volume and make it an indispensable reference tool.

This edited collection explores the intersections of populist communication, performative leadership and international politics. It investigates the mechanisms and dynamics connecting these core conceptual fields and offers empirical examples. Together, the contributors to the volume argue that populist communication, i.e. the language, deliberation and discursive performance of populist ideas, has a profound and lasting impact not only on domestic politics, but in terms of foreign policies as well as the conduct of international politics writ large. First, populist communication shapes how global, regional and transborder issues are debated and strategically used for political purposes domestically. Second, populist communication changes when and how states and other actors in turn formulate responses and policies vis-a-vis, for example, migration, global health, climate change, trade, or war. Finally, populist communication affects the nature of international politics.

European leaders faced the Covid-19 pandemic by adopting very different leadership styles, characterized by diverging approaches to crisis communication, power management, and relationship-building with actors and stakeholders in the public sphere. The pandemic also highlighted the importance of the already-existing cleavage between populism and technocracy, positioning it at the centre of the political scene.

This book offers a fresh take on the dynamics of the 2021 Canadian federal election by focusing on elements pertinent to political marketing and branding rather than just the horse race and campaign dynamics. Chapters by leading and emerging political marketing academics from different disciplines, including communications, political science and political management, are included as well as contributions from practitioners in different fields related to political marketing such as pollsters. Some chapters are collaborations between leading academics and practitioners, which provide new insights into the dynamics of political marketing that enrich this edited volume. The book’s content takes our current understandings of Canadian political marketing in new directions.

Diese Publikation untersucht die Akzeptanz der sächsischen Bevölkerung gegenüber Energie- und Rohstoffvorhaben sowie die Eignung von Kommunikationsmaßnahmen zur Verbesserung des Akzeptanzniveaus. Die Bürger:innen werden erstmals repräsentativ zu ihrer (In-)Akzeptanz gegenüber Anlagearten befragt.

This book focuses on the importance that EU politicization has gained in European democracies and the consequences for voting behaviour in six countries of the EU: Belgium, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Portugal and Spain. Most of the studies which research the way the EU is being legitimised focus on the European Parliament elections. In this book we argue that to understand how EU accountability works, it is necessary to focus instead on national elections and the national political environment. Through a detailed, multimethod analysis this book establishes rigorously the paths of European accountability at the national level, its propitious contexts in the media and parliamentary debates, and whether the paths are similar from Greece to Germany. The findings have implications for both national and European Union democracy, underlining the importance that national institutions have in enabling citizens to hold the EU accountable.

This book provides the first systematic, empirical analysis of the media’s approach to US vice-presidential selection (or the “veepstakes”). In their news coverage, Devine finds that media outlets typically treat vice-presidential selection as little more than a game—by focusing on how potential running mates might help to win the election, rather than how they might help the next president to govern. Based on an original content analysis of hundreds of veepstakes profiles from 2000–2020, this book quantifies the news media’s relative emphasis on various selection criteria, in general and across different electoral circumstances. The analysis suggests that journalists generally fail to serve the public interest by emphasizing electoral over governing considerations. However, Devine also points to positive examples of media coverage that help the public to evaluate potential running mates’ governing credentials, and suggests ways in which scholars, journalists, and citizens might encourage media outlets to provide more substantive, responsible coverage of the vice-presidential selection process in future elections.

This book is based on detailed empirical research conducted to analyse the communication dissemination approach applied to the world’s largest employment guarantee program MGNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act). To uncover the insights, perspectives and understanding of the program, more than 30 villages in Western parts of India were visited and more than 400 MGNREGA beneficiaries were contacted personally by the author.

This book deconstructs the core features of online misinformation and disinformation. It finds that the optimisation of emotions for commercial and political gain is a primary cause of false information online. The chapters distil societal harms, evaluate solutions, and consider what must be done to strengthen societies as new biometric forms of emotion profiling emerge. Based on a rich, empirical, and interdisciplinary literature that examines multiple countries, the book will be of interest to scholars and students of Communications, Journalism, Politics, Sociology, Science and Technology Studies, and Information Science, as well as global and local policymakers and ordinary citizens interested in how to prevent the spread of false information worldwide, both now and in the future.

This book is based on detailed empirical research conducted to analyse the communication dissemination approach applied to the world’s largest employment guarantee program MGNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act). To uncover the insights, perspectives and understanding of the program, more than 30 villages in Western parts of India were visited and more than 400 MGNREGA beneficiaries were contacted personally by the author.

Der Band beschäftigt sich mit Aspekten von Smart Cities, Digitalisierung und Bürgerbeteiligung. Digitalisierung mit Bürgerbeteiligung und Bürgerbeteiligung mit digitalen Instrumenten und Formaten – das sind zwei Seiten einer Medaille. Smart Cities erproben zahlreiche Facetten kommunaler Digitalisierung. Dialogorientierte Kommunikation ist notwendig, damit Politik, Verwaltung, Verbände sowie Bürgerinnen und Bürger dabei gemeinsam tragfähige Lösungen finden. Auch digitale Kommunikationsinstrumente sind hilfreich. Landesregierungen setzen Messenger-Dienste erfolgreich ein, und kommunale Bauämter nutzen Social-Media-Kanäle. Gemeinderäte und Bürgermeister*innen stehen digitalen Formaten der Bürgerbeteiligung aufgeschlossen gegenüber, wünschen sich aber oft mehr Informationen über deren Möglichkeiten und Grenzen.

The Palgrave Handbook of Media Misinformation provides a comprehensive and cutting-edge resource on the critical debates surrounding fake news and misinformation online. Spanning all continents and linking academic, journalistic, and educational communities, this collection offers authoritative coverage of conspiracy theories, the post-Trump and Brexit landscape, and the role of big tech in threats to democracy and free speech. The collection moves through a diagnosis of misinformation and its impacts on democracy and civic societies, the 'mainstreaming' of conspiracy theory, the impacts of misinformation on health and science, and the increasing significance of data visualization. Following these diagnoses, the handbook moves to responses from two communities of practice – the world of journalism and the field of media literacy.

Drawing on data from the Scottish Referendum Study and subsequent Scottish Election Studies, this book provides the first in depth analysis of how voters engaged with the independence referendum in 2014 and what impact this has had on vote choice, polarisation and engagement in Scotland since then. The book contains eight chapters, and discusses how voters engaged with the referendum campaign, explains vote choice by examining reactions to the cues of parties, leaders and events, and compares the importance of these to calculations about risk.