Digital politics is shorthand for how internet technologies have fueled the complex interactions between political actors and their constituents. Cristian Vaccari analyzes the presentation and consumption of online politics in seven advanced Western democracies Australia, France, German, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States from 2006 to 2010. His study not only refutes claims that the web creates homogenized American-style politics and political interaction but also empirically reveals how a nations unique constraints and opportunities create digital responses. Digital Politics in Western Democracies is the first large-scale comparative treatment of both the supply and demand sides of digital politics among different countries and national political actors. It is divided into four parts: theoretical challenges and research methodology, how parties and candidates structure their websites (supply); how citizens use the websites to access campaign information (demand); and how the research results tie back to inequalities, engagement, and competition in digital politics. Because a key aspect of any political system is how its actors and citizens communicate, this book will be invaluable for scholars, students, and practitioners interested in political communication, party competition, party organization, and the study of the contemporary media landscape writ large.
Preface Acknowledgments 1. Introduction Part I: Theoretical Issues and Research Questions 2. Understanding Digital Politics in Western Democracies 3. Parties and the Internet 4. Citizens and the Internet Part II: Parties and Digital Politics 5. Structure and Features of Political Websites 6. Disparities in Political Websites 7. Party Characteristics and Their Online Presence 8. What Drives the Online Presence of Parties and Candidates? Part III: Citizens and Digital Politics 9. Online Political Information in Seven Countries 10. Socioeconomic Inequalities and Online Political Information 11. Political Attitudes and Online Information 12. Political Engagement, Mass Media Use, andOnline Information 13. Correlates of Online Political Information inSeven Democracies 14. Conclusion Appendix Notes References Index
""Digital Politics in Western Democracies... is rich in detail, showcasing Vaccari's impressive knowledge of a wide variety of political contexts, and puncturing a number of conventional assumptions about how digital politics works... Vaccari's work is an impressive contribution to the literature on the internet and politics, which injects a much-needed comparative perspective into a body of work which has been overwhelmingly dominated by perspectives from Anglo-American academia... The work is recommended to anyone with an interest in how development in digital technology is driving changes in the political process.""
