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Parliamentary Affairs Vol. 57 No. 1, 2004, 223-235
© Hansard Society for Parliamentary Government 2004; all rights reserved

The Media and the Personal Lives of Politicians in the United States

Heather Savigny

The Clinton–Lewinsky story surfaced on the internet on a Saturday evening, by Sunday morning it was the topic of a network talk show, by Monday it was front page of the Washington Post. This was the scandal that led to impeachment proceedings against the President. The personal lives of politicians are increasingly coming under media scrutiny. But why is this? This article looks at the changing structural environment of the American media together with the constraints and opportunities afforded to politicians within this structure, and seeks to understand some of the changes that may have altered the focus of the media from the political to an increase in the personal. So what is the impact of the media upon politicians? What is the impact of politicians upon the media? What impact does the free market system have on this? And what does this imply for the audience?


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