This path-breaking study looks at the nature of contemporary environmental politics, analyzing the emergence and sustenance of institutional perceptions of environmental problems. The book argues that a new perspective-- "ecological modernization," which stresses the opportunities of environmental policy for modernizing the economy and stimulating technological innovation--has come to replace the antagonistic debates of the 1970s.

The role of the media has become a central part of politics and policy in the twenty-first century. That dominance has led many to suggest a trend of 'dumbing down': the privileging of style over content. In this provocative book, Maarten Hajer takes issue with the 'dumbing down' thesis both on theoretical and empirical grounds. He aims to show how authoritative governance remains possible in crisis driven circumstances and a highly 'mediatized' world.
Authoritative Governance elaborates a communicative understanding of authority, which, the author argues, can create a new basis for...

The role of the media has become a central part of politics and policy in the twenty-first century. That dominance has led many to suggest a trend of 'dumbing down': the privileging of style over content. In this provocative book, Maarten Hajer takes issue with the 'dumbing down' thesis both on theoretical and empirical grounds. He aims to show how authoritative governance remains possible in crisis driven circumstances and a highly 'mediatized' world.
Authoritative Governance elaborates a communicative understanding of authority, which, the author argues, can create a new basis for...