Political Communication Research

Abstract

Abstract Political communication, both as a field of study and in practice, is changing rapidly in the digital age. In the face of major transformations in communication technology, such as the transition from a system dominated by mass media to networked, digital media, tenets of political communication research are ripe for reexamination. This article summarizes the past trajectory and development of political communication as a research subject, with the goal of exploring areas where research could expand further to address recent changes in patterns of communication. Five core perspectives that have been dominant in political communication research are outlined and discussed, along with new challenges for the field in the digital era. Within the context of the shifting paradigm from mass to networked communication, key emergent issues and areas of political communication research are examined including: digital news and information flows, anti‐institutional politics, online publics and fragmentation of the public sphere, shifting relationships between political actors and constituents, changing perceptions of leaders through social media, the blurring of entertainment and politics in viral and other media, and the emergence of a global networked public arena.

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