Excerpts:
Top political insiders talk about how campaigning has changed during the last 20 years -- and how it's likely to change during the next
....
On a deeper level, technology has transformed the whole mind set by which democratic politics is practiced. From a highly personal structure of relationships, our politics have been transformed by a market orientation based on the science of probability, a change which is more significant than is suggested by the oft used distinction between Aretail@ and Awholesale@ politics.
While party organizations had many detriments (which, incidently, political scientists often ignore), one of their principal benefits was to provide a direct, personal link between candidate and voter, between public official and constituent. Demands for services and policies passed up this chain of human contacts, while requests for support, volunteers, money and votes passed down through the same structure. The people in these organizations -- from party leader to ward heeler to precinct captain to loyal voter -- mattered.
posted by Charlie @ 3:59 PM
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