Political Communication Ethics: Theory and Practice

by Peter Loge (Editor)

Overview

Political Communication Ethics: Theory and Practice brings together scholars and practitioners to introduce students to what, if any, ethical responsibilities political professionals have. Chapter authors range from a top Republican lobbyist to an Obama appointee, from leading academics to top digital strategists, and more. As a collection of diverse perspectives covering speechwriting and political communication, advocacy, political campaigns, online politics, and American civil religion, this book serves as an essential resource for students and scholars across many disciplines.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781538129968
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	08/14/2020
Series:	Communication, Media, and Politics
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	276
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.69(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Peter Loge is associate professor in the School of Media and Public Affairs at The George Washington University and the founding director of the Project on Ethics in Political Communication. He has served in senior staff positions in the US Congress and Obama administration, has worked as a lobbyist and strategic communications consultant, and had led and advised a range of advocacy organizations.

Table of Contents

Part One: Political Communication Ethics in Theory
1. Ancient Democracy and Ethical Persuasion, Kenneth R. Chase
2. Ethics and the Ends of Rhetoric, Janet M. Atwill
3. Communication Ethics in Machiavelli, Alexander S. Duff
4. Toward an Idealistic Political Theory of American and Global Politics in an Era of Ascendant Incivility, Benjamin Voth
5. Civil Religion as an Ethical Foundation for Political Communication, Peter Loge
6. The Rhetoric and Ethics of Political Communication: Freedom Summer as a Case Study in Moral Leadership, Mark L. McPhail
7. The Ethical Implications of the Presidential Speechwriter's Metaphors: Michael Gerson's "The First Sign of a Smoking Gun Might be a Mushroom Cloud", David A. Frank
8. Overview of Digital Political Communication and Marketing, Jennifer Lees-Marshment and Vincent Raynauld
Part Two: Political Communication Ethics in Practice
9. Goalposts and Guardrails: A Mixed-Metaphor Guide to Ethics in Advocacy Campaigns, Elisa Massimino
10. Yes, We Must Do Better (But It's Not as Bad as You Think), Edward Brookover
11. Instructions Not Included: The Limited Function of Laws, Norms, and Political Incentives in Political Communications Ethics, Kip F. Wainscott
12. Defense of the Dark Arts: A Primer on the Ethics of 'Oppo', Andrew Lautz
13. How Political Fact-Checkers Obscure Larger Truths in the Pursuit of Small Ones, Anson Kaye
14. Ethics in Political Speechwriting, Rachel Wallace
15. Identity Crisis: The Blurred Lines for Consumers and Producers of Digital Content, Cheryl Contee and Rosalyn Lemieux
16. The Ethics of Lobbying, Matthew L. Johnson and Israel S. Klein

Editorial Reviews

The language of a highly polarized and populist politics forces the question: What are the ethics of political communication? Peter Loge, founder and director of the unique Project on Ethics in Political Communication at the George Washington, has brought together a rich and timely compendium of professional and scholarly wisdom to answer that question from a variety of disciplines, experiences, and viewpoints.

James A. Thurber

If ever there was a time we needed considerations of ethics in political communication, it is now. Peter Loge and his contributors provide a comprehensive and contemporary analysis of political communication ethics. This text is essential in understanding the essential role of ethics in the theory and practice of politics in a democracy.

Robert E. Denton Jr.

This book is a much needed resource for students and scholars across many disciplines who want to better understand the role of ethics as it applies to the theory and practice of politics in a democracy.

Journal of Media Ethics