1st Edition
The Public Congress Congressional Deliberation in a New Media Age
1. Introduction 2. Let’s Take It Outside: The New Front on the Hill 3. A New Washington Community: The Foundation for Congressional Public Strategies 4. Congressional Responses to Changes: Members Adapt to "Going Outside" 5. The Parties’ Public Relations Response: Marketing the "Brand" 6. Running Public Relations Operations on the Hill: Strategies, Successes and Failures in Message Marketing 7. The President Meets Congress in a New Media World: The Public Relations Battle Over the Stimulus Package 8. Thinking Constitutionally: Challenges of Deliberating While Turned Inside-Out
Biography
Gary Lee Malecha is Associate Professor in the department of political science at University of Portland.
Daniel J. Reagan is Associate Professor in the department of political science at Ball State University.
"The Public Congress is a fine addition to the literature on Congress. Its attention to the development of congressional communication practices is valuable in itself, but it also offers an informative new perspective on the growth in partisan polarization in Washington. For anyone who wants to understand how Congress reached its current state, this book will be a great place to start."
—Gary Jacobson, University of California San Diego"This book deals with an important and timely subject—how members of Congress have adapted to changing or new media technologies during the past few decades in their attempt to interact with and represent their constituents. The authors utilize numerous case studies, interviews and other types of evidence to demonstrate how this new ‘public Congress’ has evolved and shaped the strategies for representatives to interact with voters in the modern media age."
—Jamie L. Carson, University of Georgia"This book provides much needed historical context to help us understand how members of Congress have increasingly turned outward to influence policymaking, and it offers a look at how new media are becoming an important communications tool for congressional members and parties that will contribute much to the discussion of communication in Congress."
—C. Danielle Vinson, Furman University
"This is a strong book addressing a somewhat neglected dimension of congressional studies. Summing Up: Highly recommended. General readers, undergraduate students, and graduate students." - S. Q. Kelly, California State University Channel Islands, CHOICE
