2020 Fiscal Year Final Research Report
Explaining Media Freedom Decline in Democracies
| Project/Area Number |
17K03565
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
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| Allocation Type | Multi-year Fund |
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| Section | 一般 |
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| Research Field |
Politics
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| Research Institution | Waseda University |
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Principal Investigator |
Kellam Marisa 早稲田大学, 政治経済学術院, 准教授 (30711866)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2017-04-01 – 2021-03-31
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| Keywords | comparative politics / media freedom / democracy / democratic backsliding / accountability |
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| Outline of Final Research Achievements |
This research project focused on declines in the level of media freedom in democratic countries. The research conceptually and empirically distinguished media freedom from other aspects of democracy to avoid making tautological arguments. Ideally, in democracies, the media reinforce independent judiciaries and legislatures against executive overreach. However,
this research project argues that the decline of press freedom leads to a reduction in the independence of these government institutions and a decline in other aspects of democratic accountability. The findings demonstrate that declines in press freedom precede increases in electoral manipulation and decreases in institutional checks on executive power. The project also finds that changes in media freedom have lasting effects on democratic accountability over the long-run.
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| Free Research Field |
Political Science
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| Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements |
This project contributes to the growing scholarly literature on democratic backsliding. Journalists, policymakers and citizens also worry about the state of democracy in their countries and around the world. This research advances our understanding of the process by which democracy deteriorates.
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