Political Communication in Real Time ─ Theoretical and Applied Research Approaches

Much has been made of the speed and constancy of modern politics. Whether watching cable news, retweeting political posts, or receiving news alerts on our phones, political communication now happens continuously and in real time. Traditional research methods do not capture this changed, dynamic environment. Early studies that guided the way for the study of political communication took place at a time when the media environment changed dramatically. Transistors and FM radio, television and widely distributed films technologically changed the way people gained information and developed knowledge of the world around them. Now, the environment has changed again with digital innovations. It is time to recognize emerging ways of knowing how communication works.

This book provides the first real assessment of methods used to study the new digital media environment. It features eleven chapters—authored by leading researchers in the field—using continuous or real time response methods to study political communication in various forms. Moreover, the authors explain how viewer attitudes can be measured over time, message effects can be pin---pointed down to the second of impact, behaviors can be tracked and analyzed unobtrusively, and respondents can naturally respond on their smartphone, tablet, or even console gaming system. Leading practitioners in the field working for CNN, Microsoft, Google, and Twitter show how the approach is being innovatively used in the field.

Political Communication in Real Time is a welcomed addition to the growing field of interest in "big data" and continuous response research. This volume will appeal to scholars and practitioners in political science and communication studies wishing to gain new insights into the strengths and limitations of this approach. Political communication is a constant process, so theories, applications, and cognitive models of such communication require continuous measures and methods.

Dan Schill is an associate professor in the School of Communication Studies at James Madison University, where he teaches courses on advocacy, political communication, and media and politics. His research is focused on communication, politics, technology, and the mass media. Dr. Schill has published two books on political communication topics, includingPresidential Campaigning and Social Media (with John Allen Hendricks) and Stagecraft and Statecraft: Advance and Media Events in Political Communication. Other work has appeared inAmerican Behavioral Scientist, Review of Communication, Mass Communication & Society, andPS: Political Science & Politics. He has also received top paper awards from the Political Communication Divisions of the International Communication Association, National Communication Association, and the Central States Communication Association.

Rita Kirk is Professor and Director of the Maguire Center for Ethics & Public Responsibility at Southern Methodist University. Her research focuses on campaign communication concentrating on emergent technologies, the development of public arguments, and hate speech. Dr. Kirk’s books include: Political Empiricism: Communications Strategies in State and Regional Elections, which won the "Best Book in Applied Communication" from the National Communication Association;Hate Speech (with coeditor David Slayden), which was awarded the Outstanding Book on the subject of Human Rights in North America and the James Madison Prize for work on free speech; andSolo Acts: The Death of Discourse in a Wired World. Kirk has over 30 book chapters and articles in scholarly publications and is a frequent commentator in the media.

Amy E. Jasperson is Department Chair and Associate Professor of Political Science at Rhodes College. Her current research focuses on media framing and its resonance with citizens, communication during crises, campaign advertising strategies, gender and media, and citizens' real-time responses to candidate campaign messages. She has published research on these topics in a range of journals includingPolitical Communication, Polity, International Journal of Public Opinion Research, Journal of Advertising, American Behavioral Scientist, American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy and the Law,and the Journal of Political Marketing. Her research also appears in edited volumes, including a recent chapter examining candidate and citizen--generated social media frames during the presidential campaign inalieNATION: The Divide and Conquer Election of 2012. Her academic work is also informed by experience gained while serving as an APSA Congressional Fellow during the 109th Congress.