COURSE DESCRIPTION

In my judgment American politics is undergoing a major transformation because of major economic, demographic, cultural and global/political changes.  Because the most important elements of these changes are structural Americans do not necessarily understand their impact on a day-to-day basis. This has resulted in confusion, anger, and cynicism toward the perceived lack of responsiveness of political leaders as well as increased gridlock within and between political institutions.  Key elements of the transformation of American politics concern the political relationships among public opinion, elections and the mass media. This course seeks to understand these changes by focusing on recent developments in political science that model contemporary public opinion and electoral processes. We will be reading discussing and writing about some of contemporary work in the field in an effort to assess its relevance for making sense out of the bumbling confusion of everyday political life.