Rather than celebrating participatory governance and inclusive deliberation, politics degrades into a “tightly controlled spectacle” designed by media experts in which debate is confined to a narrow range of self-selected issues (p.4). As in theater, the democratic public becomes a passive audience watching a production designed for their consumption and whose details are determined through behind-the-scenes interaction, here between elected officials, elites, and business interests. New elections may come, and the voters may, in discontent, throw out the old and vote in the new; however, the policy differences between the new and old coalitions will be slight. The deference toward corporate interests will remain, and little effort will be expended in challenging the status quo and the existing structures of power that govern society. In the mind of the politician, the elections affirm the current status quo and provide a mandate for their platform—a tragic irony when all major party platforms converge on certain positions that the public opposes (e.g. lowering the corporate income tax, reducing Social Security benefits).
Posted on: Sat, 06 Jul 2013 13:20:12 +0000