NOTE:  The Day and Time have changed for this course.

New Day and Time:  Thursday  7:00 - 9:00 P.M.

Topic:  Political Parties, Organized Interests, Social Movements, and
the Media in U.S. Politics.

With regard to holding a democratic government accountable to its
citizens, elections are a pretty blunt instrument.  Other
institutions, however, work much more regularly and more explicitly
to convey information and preferences between leaders and citizens.
These intermediaries, then -- parties, organized interests, social
movements, and the media – become vitally important to the
maintenance of a democratic system.  So it's
important for us to understand their capabilities and their
behavior.  How accurately do they convey public opinion to decision-
makers?  What sorts of participatory opportunities do they provide to
citizens?   What biases exist in their functioning that affect
representation in the U.S.?  In this seminar members will write
frequent memos on the assigned readings, share their insights in
seminar, and prepare a research design that's usable for a second-
year paper (or a dissertation) on political intermediaries.