Stefaan Walgrave is an associate professor of political science and the coordinator of the research group Media, Movements and Politics at the University of Antwerp (Belgium). Since 1996, he has taught social movements and media and has coordinated the Media, Movements and Politics research group in the Department of Political Science. During 2003–2004, he was a visiting scholar at the Center for European Studies at Harvard University. He has published widely on social movements, mobilization, green parties, elections, and political communication in European Journal of Political Research, Comparative Politics, Political Communication, Mobilization, Acta Politica, so forth. He has published three monographs (in Dutch).
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The Contingency of the Mass Media's Political Agenda Setting Power: Toward a Preliminary Theory
Article first published online: 10 MAR 2006
DOI: 10.1111/j.1460-2466.2006.00005.x
Additional Information
How to Cite
Walgrave, S. and Van Aelst, P. (2006), The Contingency of the Mass Media's Political Agenda Setting Power: Toward a Preliminary Theory. Journal of Communication, 56: 88–109. doi: 10.1111/j.1460-2466.2006.00005.x
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Stefaan Walgrave is an associate professor of political science and the coordinator of the research group Media, Movements and Politics at the University of Antwerp (Belgium). Since 1996, he has taught social movements and media and has coordinated the Media, Movements and Politics research group in the Department of Political Science. During 2003–2004, he was a visiting scholar at the Center for European Studies at Harvard University. He has published widely on social movements, mobilization, green parties, elections, and political communication in European Journal of Political Research, Comparative Politics, Political Communication, Mobilization, Acta Politica, so forth. He has published three monographs (in Dutch).
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Peter Van Aelst is a research assistant at the Department of Communications and a member of the Media, Movements and Politics research group of the University of Antwerp (Belgium). His current research focuses on the role of media in election campaigns. He has published extensively on social movements and new media in Information Communication and Society, Comparative Politics, and European Journal of Political Research.
Publication History
- Issue published online: 10 MAR 2006
- Article first published online: 10 MAR 2006
- Abstract
- Article
- References
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Recently the study of the relationship between the media and the political agenda has received growing attention of both media and political science scholars. However, these research efforts have not led to a general discussion or a real theory on the media's political agenda setting power. This article first analytically confronts the often contradictory results of the available evidence. Then, it sketches the broad outline of a preliminary theory. Political agenda setting by the media is contingent upon a number of conditions. The input variables of the model are the kind of issues covered, the specific media outlet, and the sort of coverage. Political context variables, the features of the political actors at stake, are at the heart of the model. The model proposes five sorts of output ranging from no political adoption to fast substantial adoption of media issues.