Publics
Publics are small groups of people who follow one or more particular issue very closely. They are well informed about the issue(s) and also have a very strong opinion on it/them. They tend to know more about politics than the average person, and, therefore, exert more influence, because these people care so deeply about their cause(s) that they donate a lot of time and money. Therefore, politicians are unlikely be reelected by not pleasing the publics while in office.[1]
Issue publics
Issue publics are groups of people who pay attention to one particular issue. One can be part of more than one issue public.[1]
The term was introduced by Philip Converse in The Nature of Belief Systems in Mass Publics (1964). He defined it in contrast to mass public.[2]
Attentive publics
Attentive publics are groups of people who pay attention to several particular issues.[1]
See also
References
- ^ a b c Peverill Squire; James M. Lindsay; Cary R. Covington (2008) [1st pub. 1995: Brown & Benchmark], Dynamics of Democracy (5th Alternative ed.), Mason, Ohio: Thomson Custom Solutions, ISBN 9780759395343, OCLC 1285579891[page needed][verification needed]
- ^ Han, Hahrie (2009). "What are Issue Publics?". Moved to Action: Motivation, Participation, and Inequality in American Politics (illustrated ed.). Stanford University Press. p. 50. ISBN 0804762244. OCLC 316327162.