Blackwell Reference Online

Extract

Lobbying is a strategic process through which groups and organizations carry out activities intended to influence policymakers and the formation of laws and regulations. In the nineteenth century, the term described how agents of interest groups gathered in the lobbies and hallways of the US Capitol in Washington and US state capitols to advocate with legislators during meeting breaks. This kind of face-to-face advocacy between representatives of interest groups and policymakers constituted the act of lobbying. Today, lobbying is often seen to include many other communication strategies and tactics, ranging from presentations of research reports and committee testimony, to media relations activities, issue advertisements, grassroots campaigns, and even litigation. Groups that engage in lobbying represent diverse types of organizations, ideologies, and levels of political resources. They include businesses, labor unions, nongovernmental organizations, social movements, single interest groups, trade groups, think tanks, professional associations, religious groups, foreign governments, and specialized institutional agencies like health-care and education (→  Social Movements and Communication ). Such political actors are collectively referred to here as interest groups , though they are often categorized somewhat differently in the literature as firms and economic organizations, ... log in or subscribe to read full text