The personalization of politics in comparative perspective: Campaign coverage in Germany and the United Kingdom

Abstract

In the last few decades personalization has been identified as a defining trend of contemporary political communication. The empirical evidence, however, is mixed and there are very few studies that explore more than a single-case study. This article investigates media personalization in comparative perspective by analysing the press coverage of recent general elections in Germany (2009) and the United Kingdom (2010). Was the reporting in both campaigns (equally) personalized? How and to what extent does the phenomenon vary across the two countries? What does this mean for our understanding of personalization? The analysis shows that there are at least as many differences between the countries as there are similarities; although both campaigns can be considered personalized in some respects, the form it takes is substantially different due to structural variations in the media and political systems, as well as the more transient, but key, impact of the distinctive characteristics of the campaigns and each of the candidates.

Putting a Face on It

“…Also studies made by Karvonen (2010) and Adam & Maier (2010) confirm this picture. Based on a comparative study on the personalization of politics in Germany and the UK, Holtz-Bacha et al (2014) show that references to political or professional qualities outnumbered personal references in recent general elections. At the same time, personal life and personal qualities played a bigger role in the UK than in the German coverage.…”

Serving the Media Ministers: A Mixed Methods Study on the Personalization of Ministerial Communication

“…Moreover, intensified 6 competition, commercialization, tabloidization, and popularization in the media sector have enhanced a type of news and political reporting focused on the personal and emotional, as well as highlighting strategic aspects of contemporary politics (e.g., Mazzoleni 2000;Meyrowitz 1985;Swanson and Mancini 1996;Holtz Bacha et al 2014). Reflecting changes in the news media, media personalization broadly refers to news coverage characterized by heightened focus on individual politicians and a diminished focus on parties, organizations, and institutions (e.g.…”

“…Dalton and Wattenberg 2000). Parties can no longer rely on loyal partisan votes; ideological differences have become less distinct; and political problems and solutions have become tied up in supranational relations (Holtz-Bacha et al 2014;Bjerling, 2012). In their conceptualization of the personalization processes, Rahat and Sheafer (2007) distinguish between two main types of politically motivated personalization:…”

“…The existing literature on the personalization of politics primarily maps the extent of personalization in media coverage or political campaigns, predominantly through quantitative, longitudinal studies of single countries or through comparative studies (see Holtz-Bacha et al [2014] and Van Aelst et al [2012] for informative overviews). Rather than measuring the extent of personalization, this study aims to illuminate the processes behind it and thereby reveal the external and internal drivers of and barriers to personalization in contemporary ministerial communication.…”

The Spitzenkandidaten in the European Parliament Election Campaign Coverage 2014 in Germany, France, and the United Kingdom

“…Hardly any media personalisation was found in German election campaign coverage (e.g. Holtz-Bacha, Langer, & Merkle, 2014;Leidecker & Wilke, 2015;Plasser, Pallaver, & Lengauer, 2009;Zeh & Schulz, 2015). These country-specific variations can, in large part, be explained by the differences in both the political and media systems of each country (Adam & Maier, 2010;Hallin & Mancini, 2004;Holtz-Bacha et al, 2014).…”