Media form and government: Democracy as an archetypal image in the electronic age

Abstract

This essay suggests that media form and government are related. From this perspective, cultural systems are defined by their dominant communication technologies which ultimately privileges some forms of government and disadvantages others. Employed as an extended example, democracy is traced through different cultural systems. The examination leads to the conclusion that participatory democracy functions as an archetypal image or ¡deal that dominates political thinking and political communication in contemporary culture. The structural features, logics, and tendencies of communication technologies explored here suggest that researchers might reasonably anticipate changes in government form and political communication.

Key concepts:

• Archetype
• community
• democracy
• electronic media
• government
• literacy
• media perspective
• orality
• participatory democracy
• political communication
• ritual