Political scandals can have profound effects on politicians’ reputations and public support. They may lead to resignations, other formal reactions or to public debate and criticism. They also affect citizens’ satisfaction with democracy (Kumlin & Esaiasson, 2012) and their trust in the political process (Bowler et al., 2004). Despite a lack of consensus about the precise nature of political scandals, international research agrees on two general lessons: scandals require the mediation of news media and that the actions or types of behaviours that are deemed scandalous may vary over time.
In the modern media era, scandals are often mediated through social media. This personalization can shape how the transgressions are interpreted and discussed by audience members and, as such, influence the nature of scandal discussion. This special issue aims to investigate the ways in which journalists and news organizations solicit audience engagement with the scandal narrative, and whether this participation meaningfully contributes to the construction of a shared political scandal discourse.
The articles in this special section address a wide range of issues related to political scandals, ranging from the influence of partisanship on how misbehavior is defined and reported to the effect of corruption on voters’ decision-making. In the context of political scandal, the word “corruption” is often used in a very broad sense to encompass all kinds of nefarious conduct by politicians, from petty embezzlement to the abuse of office for private gain. This sloppy definition has contributed to the current decline of public confidence in the political system and to the growing polarization between voters.