From Interactions to the Mediatization of Politics. How the Relationships Between Journalists and Political Actors Explain Media Influences on Political Processes and the Presentation of Politics

Baugut, Philip (2019): From Interactions to the Mediatization of Politics. How the Relationships Between Journalists and Political Actors Explain Media Influences on Political Processes and the Presentation of Politics. In: Journalism Studies, Bd. 20, Nr. 16: S. 2366-2385

Abstract

The goal of this paper is to explain media impact on politics by focusing on characteristics of journalist-politician relationships. Based on the concept of political communication cultures, we present a model that assumes that four dimensions of a political communication culture affect media influences on the presentation of politics and on political processes. These characteristics of the journalist-politician relationships are assumed to depend on the competitive structures of a city's media and political system. To test this model, we selected four German cities with extreme competitive structures. Our findings, based on 31 interviews with political actors and journalists, show that a stronger media impact on political processes can be traced back to more proximity, conflicts, and background conversations between both sides-a result of media competition in a city. A stronger media impact on the presentation of politics can be explained by a more responsive political communication culture -the result of a consensus-oriented political system.

• Dokumententyp: Zeitschriftenartikel
• Fakultät: Sozialwissenschaften > Kommunikationswissenschaft
• Themengebiete: 000 Informatik, Informationswissenschaft, allgemeine Werke > 070 Publizistische Medien, Journalismus, Verlagswesen
• ISSN: 1461-670X
• Sprache: Englisch