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This book analyzes why we believe what we believe about politics, and how the answer affects the way democracy functions. It does so by applying social evolution theory to the relationship between the news media and politics, using the United States as its primary example. This includes a critical review and integration of the insights of a broad array of research, from evolutionary theory and political psychology to the political economy of media. The result is an empirically driven political theory on the media's role in democracy: what role it currently plays, what role it should play, and how it can be reshaped to be more appropriate for its structural role in democracy.
List of contents
1. Introduction: Why Democracy Is Not Working.- 2. Information - Evolution, Psychology, and Politics.- 3. Evolution - How We Got the Minds We Have Today.- 4. When Our Evolved Minds Go Wrong - Social Psychological Biases.- 5. The Transition - Information from Media to Mind.- 6. The Supply Side - What Affects the Supply of Information Provided by the Media.- 7. Comparing Media Systems - What a Difference Supply Makes.- 8. Conclusion: The Invisible Hand and the Ecology of Information.
About the author
Peter Beattie is Assistant Professor and Assistant Programme Director of the MSSc in Global Political Economy at The Chinese University of Hong Kong, China, where he teaches political economy and political psychology. His published work has focused on the role of ideas in politics, and his research has been presented at conferences in Asia, Europe, South America, and the United States.
Summary
This book analyzes why we believe what we believe about politics, and how the answer affects the way democracy functions. It does so by applying social evolution theory to the relationship between the news media and politics, using the United States as its primary example. This includes a critical review and integration of the insights of a broad array of research, from evolutionary theory and political psychology to the political economy of media. The result is an empirically driven political theory on the media’s role in democracy: what role it currently plays, what role it should play, and how it can be reshaped to be more appropriate for its structural role in democracy.
Additional text
“One cannot help but be impressed with the extensiveness of Beattie’s knowledge and command of the diverse information he has assembled and uses in addressing the dual questions of why democracy, at least in the context of political process in the United States, is ‘broken’ and what avenues are open for its ultimate repair. The consistently careful manner in which he documents his claims is equally impressive. He asks much of the reader but gives much in return.” (Dennis S. Gouran, International Journal of Communication, Vol. 14, 2020)
“This is a really interesting book, which can provide the basis for a novel approach to understanding of media effects, and a series of testable hypotheses which can be the basis for further empirical work.” (Sharon Coen, The International Journal of Press/Politics, February 1, 2020)
“The book ‘explains how ‘an invisible hand’ creates a de facto propaganda system within the American marketplace of ideas’ … . Peter Beattie’s thought-provoking book has a lot to offer to students and scholars interested in the link between media and democracy.” (European Journal of Communication, Vol. 34 (2), 2019)
Report
"One cannot help but be impressed with the extensiveness of Beattie's knowledge and command of the diverse information he has assembled and uses in addressing the dual questions of why democracy, at least in the context of political process in the United States, is 'broken' and what avenues are open for its ultimate repair. The consistently careful manner in which he documents his claims is equally impressive. He asks much of the reader but gives much in return." (Dennis S. Gouran, International Journal of Communication, Vol. 14, 2020)
"This is a really interesting book, which can provide the basis for a novel approach to understanding of media effects, and a series of testable hypotheses which can be the basis for further empirical work." (Sharon Coen, The International Journal of Press/Politics, February 1, 2020)
"The book 'explains how 'an invisible hand' creates a de facto propaganda system within the American marketplace of ideas' ... . Peter Beattie's thought-provoking book has a lot to offer to students and scholars interested in the link between media and democracy." (European Journal of Communication, Vol. 34 (2), 2019)
