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.