Politics as cultural practice

This essay reflects on the notion of politics and political communication a s a form of cultural practice. This requires locating political practice in both space and time and paying close attention to empirical details-"drawi ng what you see." These precepts are illustrated in a discussion of differe nt practices of voting in American history. The author argues that the stud y of political communication should include finding and observing people do ing, and not just expressing or thinking about, politics.