Sending a political message: lessons from the American 1790s

Political communication should be understood as a field of human activity comprised not only of discrete political messages but of the political framework in which messaging takes place. A case study of the American public sphere in the 1790s reveals that the American Founders objected to political parties, voluntary associations that discussed politics, and electoral campaigning. They offered very limited support for public education and only intermittently endorsed a free press. This case dramatizes the point that understanding political communication requires seeing it in the context of state structures and political norms.