Media, Elections, And Democracy: Royal Commission on Electoral Reform

Media, Elections, And Democracy: Royal Commission on Electoral Reform PDF

Author: Frederick J. Fletcher

Publisher: Dundurn

Published: 1991-01-01

Total Pages: 160

ISBN-13: 145971895X

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Media, Elections and Democracy examines campaign communication in selected industrial democracies. Klaus Schoenbach, Karen Siune, Doris Graber and a host of authors around the world contribute critical overviews of the systems in their countries. The studies deal with a wide range of issues in modern communication, including the principles and practices of news and public affairs coverage and the impact of new technologies.

Media, Elections, And Democracy: Royal Commission on Electoral Reform

Media, Elections, And Democracy: Royal Commission on Electoral Reform PDF

Author: Frederick J. Fletcher

Publisher: Dundurn

Published: 1991

Total Pages: 272

ISBN-13:

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In modern democracies, election campaigns are contested to a large degree in the media. Most democracies have enacted regulations dealing with aspects of electoral communication out of concern for the legitimacy of the system. This document presents information on election communication in France; broadcasting and election communication in Britain; mass media and election campaigns in Germany; campaign communication in Scandinavia; campaign communication in Australian elections; the mass media and election campaigns in the United States of America; and mass media and elections in Canada.

The Politics of Electoral Reform

The Politics of Electoral Reform PDF

Author: Alan Renwick

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2010-02-04

Total Pages: 327

ISBN-13: 1139486772

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Elections lie at the heart of democracy, and this book seeks to understand how the rules governing those elections are chosen. Drawing on both broad comparisons and detailed case studies, it focuses upon the electoral rules that govern what sorts of preferences voters can express and how votes translate into seats in a legislature. Through detailed examination of electoral reform politics in four countries (France, Italy, Japan, and New Zealand), Alan Renwick shows how major electoral system changes in established democracies occur through two contrasting types of reform process. Renwick rejects the simple view that electoral systems always straightforwardly reflect the interests of the politicians in power. Politicians' motivations are complex; politicians are sometimes unable to pursue reforms they want; occasionally, they are forced to accept reforms they oppose. The Politics of Electoral Reform shows how voters and reform activists can have real power over electoral reform.

Comparative Issues in Party and Election Finance

Comparative Issues in Party and Election Finance PDF

Author: F. Leslie Seidle

Publisher: Dundurn

Published: 1991-01-01

Total Pages: 294

ISBN-13: 9781550021004

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This book is one of 23 volumes of research commissioned by the Royal Commission on Electoral Reform and Party Financing, and one of five volumes within this series dealing specifically with party and election finance. Because the issue of money in elections is as old as democracy, the experience of other countries is instructive. The studies in this volume offer Canadians information about approaches to funding political parties and elections in the United States and Western Europe. The studies by Herbert Alexander and Robert Mutch exmaine how the United States has approached issues such as contribution limits and the disclosure of election finances. The latter study provides explicit comparisons to Canada, noting the constitutional roleof the Supreme Court in each country. Jane Jenson draws on Western European experience to propose and assess reforms for the public funding for party foundations is documented by Michael Pinto-Duschinsky. The studies approach theirm aterial from a historical perspective, noting the uniqueness of the constitutions, institutions, and traditions of the countries reviewed. The authors provide background essential to any consideration of whether foreign experience might serve as a model for Canada.

Democratic Rights and Electoral Reform in Canada

Democratic Rights and Electoral Reform in Canada PDF

Author: Michael Cassidy

Publisher: Royal Commission on Electoral Reform and Party Financing and Canada Communications Group, Supply and Services Canada [and] Dundurn Press

Published: 1991-06

Total Pages: 596

ISBN-13:

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Royal Commission on Electoral Reform and Party Financing.

Reforming Parliamentary Democracy

Reforming Parliamentary Democracy PDF

Author: Leslie Seidle

Publisher: McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP

Published: 2003-06-13

Total Pages: 270

ISBN-13: 0773570829

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The authors address issues of representation - the move to a proportional electoral system in New Zealand, the unsuccessful attempt to establish a domestic head of state in Australia, and the reform of the British House of Lords - and demonstrate that citizens increasingly want legislative institutions to more closely reflect the societies they serve. To discuss responsiveness, the governance of indigenous communities and their place within the broader society in Canada and New Zealand are examined, as is the role of institutions other than legislatures that are involved in protecting minority rights and responding to various forms of diversity. A separate chapter analyses the basis for and merits of proposals to reform the Canadian House of Commons. In addition, authors review the dynamics of federalism, intergovernmental relations, and other processes of multi-level governance in Canada, the United Kingdom, and South Africa. Public debate about adapting governance processes to changing conditions and citizen values is a necessary condition of successful democracies and there is much to learn from progress and false starts in other parliamentary democracies. Contributors include Jonathan Boston (Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand), Paul Chartrand (consultant, Victoria, British Columbia), Stéphane Dion (minister of Intergovernmental Relations, Government of Canada), David Docherty, Mason Durie (Massey University), Robert Hazell (University College London), Christina Murray (University of Cape Town), Cheryl Saunders (University of Melbourne), Leslie Seidle, Jennifer Smith (Dalhousie University), and Lord Wakeham (former chairman of the Royal Commission on House of Lords Reform).

Reporting the Campaign

Reporting the Campaign PDF

Author: Frederick J. Fletcher

Publisher: Dundurn

Published: 1991

Total Pages: 368

ISBN-13:

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The objective of the research program was to provide Commissioners with a full account of the factors that have shaped the electoral democracy. This document presents discussions on the following topics: journalistic practice in covering federal election campaigns in Canada; relations between political parties and the media in Quebec election campaigns; free to be responsible: the accountability of the print media; smaller voices: minor parties, campaign communication and the news media; and the mass media and the reproduction of marginalization.

Voting Counts

Voting Counts PDF

Author: Law Commission of Canada

Publisher:

Published: 2004

Total Pages: 240

ISBN-13:

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"Through the electoral process, citizens grant authority to their governments and to the laws governments enact. In recent years more and more Canadians have expressed their desire for improvements to our system of democratic governance, and to the mechanisms through which they can participate in government decision-making processes...This report aims to clarify the debates surrounding electoral reform: it reviews the arguments advanced to justify change, evaluates their relevance and cogency, and proposes a new model." -- p. vii.