Political Consultants and Campaigns

Book excerpt: Political Consultants and Campaigns: One Day to Sell examines the differences between how political science theory suggests campaigns should be run and how political consultants actually run campaigns. In the wake of consultants who effortlessly move from campaigners to policymakers, the dearth of knowledge about the attitudes, beliefs, and strategies of the consultants themselves is still a glaring absence in the analysis of American politics. How can we purport to know what is happening in American political campaigns if we don't know what is on the minds of the men and women who run them? This book provides a clearer understanding of modern-day political campaigns by revealing what is on the minds of the people who run them. With original data from consultants, campaign managers, and professional campaign schools, author Jason Johnson examines consultant behavior on message formation, policy positioning, candidate recruitment, Internet strategy, and negative advertising and compares these practices to existing political science theory. This groundbreaking research makes Political Consultants and Campaigns: One Day to Sell a must-have resource for all students of American politics, campaign managers, or anyone interested in how political campaigns in America are run.