Political Accountability

1460 Words6 Pages
Media has always been important, for both entertainment and information purposes. However, with the advancements of science, media has now become an integral part of our daily lives. With time and technology, transmitting information from one end to another has become virtually costless and thus much more rapid. In a world of smart phones and social media, it may seem that less is left out from the public eye. Due to this dynamic transfer of information, political transparency is formed which enables the voters to make more well-informed decisions about who to vote for. In his paper on Media Coverage and Political Accountability, Strömberg explores the relationship dynamics of the information provided by the media and how it affects a voter’s…show more content…
Media acts as a medium though which information is transferred. The primary function of the media is to provide information to the voter, as the voters rely on the media to tell them about the efficacy of the public policy in action. If the voter is dissatisfied by the quality of public service, then she can hold the politician in-charge accountable by not voting for that politician in the next election. It is important to note that any politician or political party would always try their best to get re-elected in the next…show more content…
Information and Politics There is an information asymmetry between the government and the public or voters. The government has the upper hand in terms of information as politicians know very well what they are capable of and what they plan on doing once they are elected. They also have a political network that provides them access to policy advice. On the other hand, voters suffer from imperfect information. The mass media, therefore, helps to bridge this information gap by providing political news to the voters. This enhances the voters ability to analyze the governments work (Timothy Besley, 2002). How does information effect politics? Information plays a crucial role in the political setting. When the media provide the public with relevant political information, the voters use this information to make well-informed decision regarding who to vote for. As a result, political incentives and selection become better, which ultimately has an impact on public policy and welfare. The model used in this paper by Strömberg is an altered version of the model used by Prat and Strömberg (2013). The three changes are as follows: • A continuum of n homogenous voters is assumed • A parameter a is included in the model which represents the demand for public
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