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Political communication in the age of austerity
1. Political communication in the age
of austerity
Nick Anstead
ECPR General Conference
Sciences Po Bordeaux, Domaine Universitaire
4th – 7th Sept 2013
[email] n.m.anstead@lse.ac.uk
[twitter] @nickanstead
2. The nature of the crisis
• There is some agreement as to the depth situation,
which has been referred to as the “second great
contraction” (Reinhart & Rogoff, 2009).
• There is some debate as to the temporal nature of the
post-2008 crisis:
– Some argue that it is a relatively recent situation, caused
by the collapse of the banking system (Blyth, 2013);
– Some argue it has been created by long-term structural
deallignment between income and outgoings in advanced
economies, which has been in place since the early 1970s
(Schafer & Streeck, 2013).
3. The economics of austerity
0.0
20.0
40.0
60.0
80.0
100.0
120.0
140.0
160.0
180.0
200.0
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014
National debt levels as a percentage of GDP
Germany Greece Ireland United Kingdom Euro area (15 countries) OECD-Total
4. The economics of austerity
-35.0
-30.0
-25.0
-20.0
-15.0
-10.0
-5.0
0.0
5.0
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014
DepositasapercentofGDP
Year
Deposit level, as a proportion of national GDP
Germany Greece Ireland United Kingdom
United States Euro area (15 countries) OECD-Total
5. What is austerity?
Austerity is a form of voluntary deflation in
which the economy adjusts through the
reduction of wages, prices, and public spending
to restore competitiveness, which is
(supposedly) best achieved by cutting the
state’s budget, debts, and deficits.
Mark Blyth, 2013
6. What is austerity
• This definition carries a implicit and explicit
content.
• Austerity is:
– Voluntary;
– Achieved wholly through spending cuts;
– Ideologically driven.
• There is undoubtedly some truth in this but I
want to define austerity in a different way.
7. Austerity in historical perspective
• The second position argues that:
– European post-war settlement was put in place by
sustained economic growth between 1945 and
early 1970s.
– Subsequently, the illusion of sustainability has
been maintained by various policies: Labour
market controls in the 1970s, weakening of unions
in the 1980s, fiscal consolidation through
“privatised Keynesianism” in the 1990s
(Crouch, 2009), more readily available credit in the
2000s.
8. Austerity in historical perspective
• Furthermore, it is unlikely that growth rates will ever
return to post-war levels.
• King (2013) argues that post-war circumstances were
unique:
• Particular technological developments;
• an era of free trade;
• women entering the work force;
• Relatively available credit.
9. Austerity in historical perspective
• If it is accepted the implications of this reading
are profound.
• Whole theories of politics have been built
around the continuation of the post-war
political settlement (i.e. Inglehart, 1990).
• If the building blocks of the post-war
settlement are decreasingly sustainable, then
this will have huge political import.
10. Austerity deposits
• Therefore, austerity potentially creates two
deposits – a democratic deposit and (related
to this) a communication deposit.
– What does growing austerity mean for democratic
political systems?
– What in turn does this mean for the political
communication environment, and what problems
does it create?
11. The democratic problem of austerity
• Democracy is ultimately about choice (Schafer &
Streeck, 2013).
• But if voters wish to reject policies of austerity, whom
do they vote for?
• This is especially problematic in harder hit countries
(notably Greece, Ireland etc.) where foreign or supra-
national involvement may be heavy.
• Options may exist outside the established political
system, but these are likely to be extremist or anti-
system parties.
• What does this mean for political communication?
12. Possible questions for political
communication research
1. Change and continuity with the past
2. Going beyond tax and spend
3. Addressing the hybridity paradox
4. Maintaining institutional legitimacy
13. 1. Change and continuity with the past
• Stripped of economic control, politicians may
seek to continue to focus on valence political
issues (i.e. focusing on administrative
efficiency) (Clarke, Whiteley, Sanders, &
Stewart, 2013).
• However, concerns about “followerism” may
decline, as politicians are less able to react to
public opinion (Geer, 1996)
14. 2. Beyond tax and spend
• Stripped of the ability to promise either tax cuts
or spending rises (or both), politicians need to
find new ways to entice the electorate.
– This is especially problematic as policies could run for
multi-election cycles.
• One solution is clearly employing the rhetoric of
crisis (Hay, 2010).
• Alternatively, others either inside or outside a
society can be blamed (specific
nationalities, bankers, workshy etc.).
15. 3. The hybridity paradox
• Chadwick (2013), writing on what he terms
hybrid media systems, argues we are living in
an age of media abundance and pluralism.
• Furthermore, even elite or traditional media
are becoming increasingly porous to outside
information.
• However, how is this reconciled with political
systems that are less able to cope with
divergent voices?
16. 4. The question of institutional
legitimacy
• One obvious is whether the public will accept the
measures implemented to achieve austerity?
• But if not, and given the democratic deposit, created
by austerity, there is a question as to whether
democratic institutions can retain legitimacy.
• The public may also reject the whole political class
seeking to implement measures.
• One solution has been to remove political institutions
from civil society control (Katz & Mair, 1995).
17. 4. The question of institutional
legitimacy
• But, if they don’t, we may find outlets in
political parties outside the mainstream
system.
• We are already seeing some examples of this.
• Alternatively, non-party organisations may
gain traction (i.e. Occupy).
• Alternatively, we may see increasingly levels of
political apathy.
18. Conclusions and going forward
• There is still a need to disentangle the definition of austerity
grounded in neo-liberal ideology from broader or alternative
definitions.
– For example what would a social democratic version of austerity look
like?
• For politicians the major challenge may be retaining legitimacy for
institutions and the political class as a whole as they implement
austerity measures.
• Academics need to better understand both the content of and
decision behind party political communication with the public.
– How do government, mainstream opposition and outsider parties
position themselves in this new environment?
– How aware are they are operating in a new environment?
19. Bibliography
• Blyth, M. (2013). Austerity : the history of a dangerous idea. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Clarke, H. D., Whiteley, P., Sanders, D., & Stewart, M. C. (2013). Affluence, Austerity and Electoral
Change in Britain: Cambridge University Press.
• Crouch, C. (2009). Privatised Keynesianism: An unacknowledged policy regime. The British Journal
of Politics & International Relations, 11(3), 382-399.
• Geer, J. (1996). From tea leaves to public opinion polls: New York: Columbia University Press.
• Hay, C. (2010). Chronicles of a Death Foretold: the Winter of Discontent and Construction of the
Crisis of British Keynesianism. Parliamentary Affairs, 63(3), 446-470. doi: 10.1093/pa/gsp056
• Inglehart, R. (1990). Culture shift in advanced industrial society. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton
University Press.
• Katz, R. S., & Mair, P. (1995). Changing Models of Party Organization and Party Democracy - the
Emergence of the Cartel Party. Party Politics, 1(1), 5-28.
• King, S. D. (2013). When the money runs out : the end of western affluence. New Haven, CN: Yale
University Press.
• Reinhart, C. M., & Rogoff, K. S. (2009). This time is different: eight centuries of financial folly.
Princeton: Princeton University Press.
• Schafer, A., & Streeck, W. (2013). Introduction: Politics in the Age of Austerity. In A. Schafer & W.
Streeck (Eds.), Politics in the Age of Austerity. Cambridge: Polity.