Political Communication in Times of Crisis

Political communication, exploring the dynamic nature of the relationship between citizens, political actors, and the media, has developed into a prominent subfield within political science. It involves the creation, dissemination, and processing of information among political actors, media agents, and citizens, as well as the effects of such communication on a wide range of outcomes. In recent months, contemporary societies have been put under extreme stress by increasing division and polarization. Several crises have worsened or newly emerged, underscoring the relevance of reliable, accurate information and effective, convincing political communication (e.g., the climate crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic, constitutional crises). These challenges take place in an era where the media landscape is in full transformation with newly emerging political and media actors, new communication forms (digital media), and related phenomena (e.g., micro-targeting, filter bubbles, disinformation) that affect the interplay between politics, media, and the citizenry. These developments make a better understanding of the dynamics of political communication more essential than ever. Building on prior successful political communication sections at ECPR, this section seeks to bring together relevant scholarship in the field of political communication research in its broadest sense. This section invites contributions that explore key issues in the field regarding the causes and consequences of media and mediated communication for political processes, actors, and citizens in all its facets. Research pertaining to current challenges to political communication in times of crisis (e.g., misinformation, filter bubbles, micro-targeting, populist communication, incivility, and negativity in campaigns) is especially welcome. More generally, contributions assessing the role of election campaigns in Europe and the US, mediatization, framing, agenda-setting, effects of political communication on attitudes, personalization, communication strategies, and political journalism are strongly encouraged too. In short, we warmly invite panels and papers on current issues in political communication, welcoming a variety of theories and empirical approaches. Submissions using innovative methods in the field (e.g., big data analysis) are highly encouraged. Hence, we aim to convene a section advancing our understanding of political communication’s role in times of crisis, addressing a wide range of key issues.