Personalization, Aestheticization and Depoliticization of Politics in Czech Media: Media Coverage of Party Congresses of Main Czech Parties ČSSD and ODS between 1994 and 2011 in dailies Právo and Mladá fronta Dnes
Abstract
Literature which engages in the transformation of relationship between politicians, media and the public often describes new trends in media coverage of the world of politics through theoretical concepts like personalization, aestheticization or depoliticization. Since the Velvet Revolution in 1989 Czech political communication has gone through substantial changes - similar to the development in postwar Western democracies.
Therefore it is supposed that the new trends would prove in Czech conditions as well. This paper monitors how Czech serious press covered congresses of the two main political parties (ČSSD, ODS) between 1994 and 2011.
It tries to describe if there are any tendencies towards new trends of political communication, especially these mentioned above. Surprisingly, it finds out that Czech press paid most attention to political issues connected with the congresses and voting tactics of their participants.
There is no evidence for aestheticization and only weak tendency towards personalization of political communication.