The History of Strategic Non-Parliamentary Political Commuication
(From 2003, draft ideas for ARC funded research, comments are most welcome)
The History of Strategic Non-parliamentary Political Communication in Australia 1960-2004
The well-documented rise of image politics and media spin within the major political parties communication methods is weakening established democratic relations. With the growing importance of media within politics, there is also increasing attention to political communication by other political actors, such as lobby groups and non-government organisations. This study will chart the evolution of non-major-party political communication within Australia with the goal of developing a typology of tactics utilised (communicated through a book and online archive). Innovation in political communication by non-government groups is reanimating the Australian democracy through a series of highly persuasive communication tactics.
Community organisations with limited budgets who aspire to convey their concerns to broad constituencies often have to contend with large media organisations with equally large fees for service. This enquiry into the history of political communication within Australia by non-major-party political organisations will reveal how many of Australia’s most persuasive community organisations, embedded within significant new social movements, have communicated within the public sphere. The findings of this research, that will present some notable case studies utilising significant post-war media artefacts, will be a vital resource for those involved in the community sector or for those with an interest in shifting democratic power relationships.
