An Introduction to Political Communication introduces students to the complex relationship between politics, the media and democracy in the United Kingdom, United States and other contemporary societies. Brian McNair examines how politicians, trade unions, pressure groups, NGOs and terrorist organisations make use of the media.

Individual chapters look at political media and their effects, the work of political advertising, marketing and public relations, and the communicative practices of organizations at all levels, from grass-root campaigning through to governments and international bodies.

This fifth edition has been revised and updated to include:

• the 2008 US presidential election, and the early years of Barack Obama’s term
• the MPs’ expenses scandal in Britain, and the 2010 UK election campaign
• the growing role of bloggers and online pundits such as Guido Fawkes in the political agenda setting process
• the emergence of social media platforms such as Twitter, YouTube and Facebook, and their destabiising impact on the management of political crises all over the world, including the Iranian pro-reform protests of July 2009 and the Israeli atack on the anti-blockade flotilla of May 2010
• the growing power of Wikileaks and other online information sources to challenge state control of classified information