Interpreting Hashtag Politics : Policy Ideas in an Era of Social Media

Why do policy actors create branded policy ideas like Big Society and does launching them on Twitter extend or curtail their life? This book reveals how policy analysis can adapt in an increasingly mediatised to offer interpretive insights into the life and death of policy ideas in an era of hashtag politics. "Why do policy actors create branded terms like Big Society and does launching such policy ideas on Twitter extend or curtail their life? This book argues that the practice of hashtag politics has evolved in response to an increasingly congested and mediatised environment, with the recent and rapid growth of high speed internet connections, smart phones and social media. It examines how policy analysis can adapt to offer interpretive insights into the life and death of policy ideas in an era of hashtag politics. This text reveals that policy ideas can at the same time be ideas, instruments, visions, containers and brands, and advises readers on how to tell if a policy idea is dead or dying, how to map the diversity of viewpoints, how to capture the debate, when to engage and when to walk away. Each chapter showcases innovative analytic techniques, illustrated by application to contemporary policy ideas."--Publisher's website Front Matter....Pages i-xiii Policy Ideas and Hashtag Politics....Pages 1-11 Theorising Policy Ideas....Pages 12-25 The Lifecycle of Policy Ideas....Pages 26-44 Identifying Policy Viewpoints....Pages 45-67 Social Media and Policy Practices....Pages 68-84 Capturing the Digital Footprint of Policy Discussion....Pages 85-111 Interpreting Social Media Data....Pages 112-134 The Future of Hashtag Politics....Pages 135-146 Appendix....Pages 147-160 Back Matter....Pages 161-184