Accountability, Political Parties, and the Media

This chapter discusses political parties and the media as two crucial institutions that provide avenues for accountability, as well as the burgeoning field of ‘social accountability’, in both elected and unelected regimes. The political party system is both an opportunity and a threat for activists and their organizations. Parties can be long-term institutional homes for policies and ideas. The media route is another method of ensuring accountability, as the media can echo, amplify, or substitute for citizens’ voices. Lastly, the social accountability route is a more recent phenomenon, driven both by new technology and the need for solutions when states are weak or unresponsive. This particular route attempts to promote accountability by approaching authorities directly, instead of relying on intermediaries, such as political parties or bureaucracies. All three routes provide valuable channels for activists to hold those in power to account for their decisions.

Accountability · Bureaucracy · Business · Intermediary · Law and economics · Political science · Politics · Power (physics) · Public relations · Sociology · Finance · Law · Political Systems and Governance · Public Administration

• The origins of political order

  Francis Fukuyama•Choice Reviews Online•2011

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