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9781349572717

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Jacobs and Spierings are the first ones to provide a comprehensive account of the role social media play in politics. With their multi-method, comparative approach they debunk the common wisdom of massive social media effects, but also show in a nuanced way when and how these media actually matter. The book is a must-read for everyone wanting to understand how politics has changed due to the rise of new media. - Rens Vliegenthart, Professor of Communication Science and Chair in Media and Society, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands This book makes an important contribution to the literature on the internet and politics. In looking comparatively at elites' use of Twitter and Facebook it extends our understanding of how far social media are affecting political practice in campaigns and elections worldwide. The authors update the standard normalization-equalization debate that has characterized the study of this topic by presenting a more nuanced understanding of party competition online. - Rachel Gibson, Professor of Politics, University of Manchester, UK

'Jacobs and Spierings are the first ones to provide a comprehensive account of the role social media play in politics. With their multi-method, comparative approach they debunk the common wisdom of massive social media effects, but also show in a nuanced way when and how these media actually matter. The book is a must-read for everyone wanting to understand how politics has changed due to the rise of new media.' - Rens Vliegenthart, Professor of Communication Science and Chair in Media and Society, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands 'This book makes an important contribution to the literature on the internet and politics. In looking comparatively at elites' use of Twitter and Facebook it extends our understanding of how far social media are affecting political practice in campaigns and elections worldwide. The authors update the standard normalization-equalization debate that has characterized the study of this topic by presenting a more nuanced understanding of party competition online.' - Rachel Gibson, Professor of Politics, University of Manchester, UK

Jacobs and Spierings are the first ones to provide a comprehensive account of the role social media play in politics. With their multi-method, comparative approach they debunk the common wisdom of massive social media effects, but also show in a nuanced way when and how these media actually matter. The book is a must-read for everyone wanting to understand how politics has changed due to the rise of new media. - Rens Vliegenthart, Professor of Communication Science and Chair in Media and Society, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands This book makes an important contribution to the literature on the internet and politics. In looking comparatively at elites' use of Twitter and Facebook it extends our understanding of how far social media are affecting political practice in campaigns and elections worldwide. The authors update the standard normalization-equalization debate that has characterized the study of this topic by presenting a more nuanced understanding of party competition online. - Rachel Gibson, Professor of Politics, University of Manchester, UK Transforming Party Democracy? The Impact of Social Media on Political Inequalities in Comparative Perspective General 1) In your own words, please provide a short outline of the project. The proposed book adds to the 'normalization' debate by providing a multi-method examination of the effects of political social media use in a country that has many viable political parties. Therein, the authors seek to determine whether social media provides a mere advantage to politically-strong candidates, or if it has a normalizing effect for all participants and can provide a tactical advantage for less-acknowledged candidates running for office. It also seeks to examine the role of social media in a broader sense - both in terms of global discussion and also by providing comparative analysis. I find the work of these two young scholars to be quite intriguing, and their models to be sound. It will be interesting to see what they determine, and I look forward to reading the book once it is published - hopefully by your press. Project 2) Does this proposal offer a useful and/or original contribution to the field? Is it addressing any new/emerging areas? Yes. The authors correctly note that most research in the normalization debate does not focus on countries that have many viable political parties. Rather, most studies look at the U.S. and other countries that have only two or three viable political parties. The authors persuasively argue that normalization effects are worth examining in this different electoral environment. 3) Does it adequately engage with recent scholarship? Does it take existing scholarship forward? Yes. The work engages with contemporary scholarship greatly - mostly out of need, as the landscape for research is scant at the moment. 4) What are the strengths and weaknesses of the proposal? You may wish to consider structure, organization, coherence and presentation of material; scope, coverage and breadth of appeal or degree of specialization; whether there are any obvious omissions; timeliness and likely shelf-life of the research; what proportion of the work, if any, will require substantial re-working; and whether any suggested improvements fundamental to the project's success or discretionary matters which might be addressed after the project has been accepted. The proposed book has many more strengths than weaknesses. In terms of weaknesses, the shelf-life of any social media research is likely to be only a few years. Also, the authors should make it clear that their study is not limited to The Netherlands, as this might make the book seem like the appeal is too narrow. It will be important for the authors in the early pages of the book to really make the point that the book is very global and comparative in nature. It is about the ability or inability of social media to affect measurable change in the fortunes of parties and candidates that are not currently dominant. 5) Do you feel the author/editor is suitably qualified to produce a high quality book on this topic? Yes. Though these two scholars are young, they are well-published journal authors and it is high time they produce a wider piece of scholarship. 6) If you are aware that the book is being considered for inclusion in a specific series, please comment on its suitability for that series. N/A Market and Competition 7) Is this book likely to have interdisciplinary and/or international appeal? Yes to international appeal since it takes a comparative perspective, looking at the Netherlands and the U.S. In terms of interdisciplinary, I could see professors in political science and mass communication courses requiring this book. 8) How does this proposal compare to the main competing titles in this area in terms of quality of writing and content? It compares favorably in terms of adding new perspectives to what has already been written. The quality of the writing is fine, though there are times when you can tell that English is not their native language. Recommendation 9) Would you recommend: a) we publish this book as it stands or after minor revisions Yes. d) In the event that we proceed with publication, would you be willing to provide an endorsement of the final manuscript that could be used to publicize the<book? Yes.

Author Information

Kristof Jacobs is Assistant Professor of Comparative Politics at Radboud University, Netherlands. His research focuses on elections, technological innovations, political parties and democracy. He has published on these topics in international journals such as Electoral Studies and Political Behavior. Niels Spierings is Assistant Professor of Sociology at Radboud University, Netherlands. Previously he held appointments at the London School of Economics and the University of Essex, UK. His specializations include social media, political participation, populism, gender equality, Islam, and migration. He has published in various international journals.

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