LATAR BELAKANG

Studi komunikasi politik merupakan gabungan dari beberapa disiplin ilmu. Dalam perkembangannya studi tentang komunikasi politik lebih mendapat perhatian oleh sarjana ilmu politik dibandingkan dengan sarjana ilmu komunikasi. Hal serupa juga diungkapkan Cangara dalam Al-Fatah bahwa di Indonesia pada awalnya perhatian untuk membicarakan komunikasi politik justru tumbuh di kalangan para sarjana ilmu politik daripada para sarjana ilmu komunikasi itu sendiri (Cangara dalam Al-Fatah, 2009:34). Meskipun demikian, ilmu komunikasi sudah banyak mengajarkan tentang politik meski masih belum fokus. Mark Roelofs dalam Rakhmat mengatakan bahwa politik adalah pembicaraan atau lebih tepat, kegiatan politik (berpolitik) adalah berbicara (Roelofs dalam Rakhmat, 1993:8). Sejalan dengan perkembangannya, para ilmuwan berusaha untuk memberikan definisi tentang komunikasi politik. Setiap ilmuwan dalam mengkaji dan menjelaskan tentang studi komunikasi politik mempunyai pandangan yang berbeda-beda.Menelaah beberapa pandangan diatas maka dapat dikatakan bahwa kegiatan politik melibatkan komunikasi diantara beberapa orang yang terlibat didalamnya. Berorientasi dari beberapa pandangan ilmuwan tentang komunikasi politik dapat dikatakan bahwa secara keseluruhan tidak mudah untuk mendefinisikan komunikasi politik. Berkaitan dengan semakin bertambahnya definisi komunikasi politik yang disebabkan karena perbedaan sudut pandang, maka secara sederhana dapat dikatakan bahwa komunikasi politik merupakan proses penyampaian pesan politik.

Definition of Political Communication

Dahlan (1999)Suatu bidang atau disiplin yang menelaah perilaku dan kegiatan komunikasi yang bersifat politik, mempunyai akibat politik atau berpengaruh terhadap perilaku politik. Astrid, S. Soesanto, 1980:2Komunikasi politik adalah komunikasi yang diarahkan kepada pencapaian suatu pengaruh sedemikian rupa, sehingga masalah yang dibahas oleh jenis kegiatan komunikasi ini dapat mengikat semua warganya melalui suatu sanksi yang ditentukan bersama oleh lembaga-lembaga politik. Meadow dalam Nimmo (2004) Political communication refers to any exchange of symbols or messages that to a significant extent have been shaped by or have consequances for political system. McNair (2003) Political communication as pure discussion about the allocation of public resources (revenues), official authority (who is given the power to make legal, legislative, and executive decision), and official sanctions (what the state reward or punishes). Fagen (1966)Communicative activity considered political by virtue of its consequences, actual, and potential, that it has for the functioning of political systems. Meadow (1980)Political communication refers to any exchange of symbols or messages that to a significant extent have been shaped by or have consequences for the political system.

Dalam bidang komunikasi politik terdapat beberapa bentuk-bentuk kegiatan komunikasi politik untuk mencapai tujuan politiknya. Kegiatan politik merupakan suatu interaksi atau dapat dikatakan adalah suatu kegiatan berkomunikasi antara orang-orang. Politik sangat berkaitan erat dengan apa yang disebut dengan komunikasi. Salah satu kajian penting dalam kegiatan politik yaitu bahwa semua kegiatan politik sangat berhubungan dengan komunikasi.

All political action is a reaction to communication one of kind or another. There are, however, different levels and types of communication. Face-to- face communication is the most basic (Roskin, 1997:166).Berikut adalah beberapa bentuk-bentuk kegiatan komunikasi politik disertai dengan list definition dari tokoh-tokoh ahli:A. Definition of Propaganda

Darren G. LillekerPropaganda is communication that is deliberately designed by one group in society to influence the attitudes and behaviour of others. It often uses symbolism and rhetoric and appeals to the emotional and irrational aspects of our sensibility. Propaganda is, perhaps, the oldest from of political communication that remains today. Propaganda, though more associated with totalitarian regimes, arguably underpins much government information in the 21st century. At the heart of true propaganda are three key elements: rhetoric, myth, and symbolism. Therefore we need to identified the use of rhetoric, symbolism and myth within communications, such as party press releases, before we beside that they are acting as propagandists. Propaganda, however, must follow certain rules. It:1. Seeks to draw the reader into and beyond the text, causing internal conflicts over issues or reinforcing prejudices we often like to deny we possess: racism particularly;2. Highlights that change is possible through action by the reader, comparing negative aspects of the past to a positive future as a result of the action;3. Conveys the impression of being objective truth, unsponsored and coming from the public sphere rather than attempting to influence the audience;4. Treats the audience as passive, there is no hint that the audience can use differential decoding to block out parts of a message and so not be motivated to act;5. Is overt in using visual, rhetorical and symbolic tools, but those must be long to society and be simply and universally decoded as the originator intends.

Political Propaganda By : Schulze-WechsungenWaves of propaganda hit Germany, leaving a world in confusion. We had nothing similar with which to defend ourselves. Our leaders realized too late the power and effects of this modern weapon, a weapon without limits, that thunders more loudly than cannon fire, that is more destructive than a gas attack. This weapon forced the World War on us, it forged the alliance against Germany, it brought ever new armies to the front against us, it gave them confidence, it used every methodbecause every method was at their disposal. Success proved them right,Only their military leadership found things impossible. For their propaganda general staff, everything was possible. Propaganda is the most modern of weapons. We have suffered under it, we have learned from it. Having learned from experience its necessity, we now use it. We had to destroy our airplanes, tanks, guns, and the like, but not the weapon of propaganda. How could we not have used it, who is foolish enough to underestimate its power? We owe our rise to it and will have to depend on it even more in the future. It is a powerful tool in molding the nature and the thinking of the new, the modern man.

Alexander von Humboldt Wrote that one must organize a lasting moral force, which is nothing other than a firm, systematic, coherent attempt to raise the morale of the nation, to control it.

Leonard W. Dobb Usaha sistemis yang dilakukan oleh individu-individu yang masing-masing berkepentingan untuk mengontrol sikap kelompok individu lainnya dengan cara menggunakan sugesti.

B. Definition of Broadcasting

Darren G. LillekerBroadcasting, a common feature of the communication of political actors in both pluralist, media-centred democracies as well as authoritharian regimes, is any communication which is directed towards the masses. Therefore different communication modes as diverse political advertising, campaign leaflets, speeches to the reported by media can come under the heading of broadcasting. This means that all such communication must be designed to appeal to all sigments of the electorate and cannot exclude or offend anyone group. Broadcasting is normally associated solely with the media industry, and in particular radio and television companies communication to their audience. However, we should not forget that those that create the news, in particular, organizations that use news management techniques to gain favourable coverage and the transmission of their messages, are also in the business of broadcasting. In a media-centred democracy, in which all political communication is mediated prior to reaching the public, all political communication is automatically viewed as being broadcasting.The history of political communication is necessarily a history of the mass media. While avoiding reducing the professionalization debate to technological determinism, we can see that as the mass media has evolved, increasing its reach, so politicians have had to be increasingly aware of media audiences and the way in which the media operates.

C. Definitions of Campaigns

Darren G. LillekerA campaigns is a series of events all designed to communicate to an audience and garner support from that audience. Campaigns are used by a wide range of actors, both commercial and political, and are designed to win over the audience through and political, and are designed to win over the audience through a range of increasingly sophisticated techniquees.

Rogers dan Storey (1987) (dalam Venus, 2004:7)Kampanye politik merupakan serangkaian tindakan komunikasi yang terencana dengan tujuan menciptakan efek tertentu pada sejumlah besar khalayak yang dilakukan secara berkelanjutan pada kurun waktu tertentu, sehingga berbeda dengan propaganda, dimana kampanye cirinya sumber yang melakukannya selalu jelas, waktu pelaksanaan terikat dan dibatasi, sifat gagasan terbuka untuk diperdebatkan khalayak, tujuannya tegas, variatif serta spesifik, modu penerimaan pesan sukarela dan persuasi, modus tindakannya diatur kaidah dan kode etiknya, sifat kepentingan mempertimbangkan kepentingan kedua belah pihak.

D. Definitions of Infotainment

Darren G. LillekerA constructed noun, infotainment is the combination of the words information and entertainment, suggesting a practice of the blending together of their presentation within the broadcasting of news and current affairs. Infotainment describe the way in which the modern mass audience largely receives political communication. It is argued that, with the disengagement of the public from hard news due to the fragmentation of mass media, politicians will communicate in more entertaining, media friendly, ways, while the news media will make news more entertaining and reflective of popularculture.Maurice Edelman (1995:1) argues, political communication becomes situated in frame that belong to other popular genres likes novels, painting, stories, films, dramas, television sitcoms, striking rumours, even memorable jokes.

E. Definition of Political Advertising

Darren G. LillekerAs well as advertising, a political advertisement is a purposely placed piece of communication, using a range of media, designed to garner positive feeling towards the sponsor. Political advertising, in one form or another, has been a feature of campaigning ever since groups began competing over public support.

Arthur Sanders 2004An expert in the use of advertising and the media in the US, argues that successful political advertisements should exhibit four features. They should:1. Have dramatic impact, to ensure interest and aid recall.2. Draw in familiar themes, stories, and genres to appear relevant.3. Focus on people, often real people and not politicians or actors, rather than policy.4. Be simple, so carrying one easily understood message.

Lynda Lee Kaid (University of Florida)Kaid, 1996a, 1997c, 1999As a form of political communication, political advertising is both celebrated and reviled. Over the past five decades, since its first appearance in campaigns in the 1950s, political advertising has evolved into the dominant form of communication between candidates and voters in the United States. In a variety of forms and styles, political advertising has also become a staple of communication in democracies around the world. It is not surprising, therefore, that the research on political advertising has become one of the most significant components of the political communication discipline.

In the first review of research on political advertising in the Handbook of Political Communication in 1981Political advertising as the communication process by which a source (usually a political candidate or party) purchases the opportunity to expose receivers through mass channels to political messages with the intended effect of influencing their political attitudes, beliefs, and/ or behaviors. (Kaid, 1981, p. 250).

Ied Kaid and Holtz-Bacha (1995)The defining characteristics of modern political advertising are:1. Control of the message.2. Use of mass communication channels for message distribution.

F. Definition of Political Marketing

Darren G. LillekerPolitical marketing refers to the use of marketing tools, concepts and philosophies within the field of policy development, campaigning and internal relations by political parties and organizations. It is seen as a reaction to the rise of political consumerism, and the collapse of partisanship, in western democratic societies as well as emergent democratic.

Kotler and Levy (1969)Noted the fact that political candidates are markered as well as soap; however, more recent work has progressed to focus on the role of marketing in the stages of policy desaign and applying what are known as the 4Ps of marketing: product, promotion, place, and price.

G. Definition of Rhetoric

Darren G. LillekerRhetoric is the use of symbolism and language to ensure that a message is encoded in the way desired by the communicator. Rhetorical communication is intentionally persuasive, is central to propaganda, and is used to encourage a change in an audience members behaviour. The use of rhetoric is as age-old as political communication and was seen by Aristotle in his discourses on ancient Greek democratic politics as a necessary means of bending the will of the people. Rhetorical speech is used in all our daily lives, as a means of persuading others, as much as it is a tool common in political communication. It is concerned with ensuring that the interpretation of our message is uniform, at least among a majority. It is central to campaigning, underpins propaganda and spin and is a central form of discourse within the soundbite culture of designer politics. To be succesfull, rhetoric must be designed with a complex understanding of the audience, their social norm, values and fears, and will speak to these directly. Designer of rhetorical communication thus proceed through a five stage process. They:1. Identify and define the problem.2. Identify the audience required to solve the problem.3. Identify or infer that audiences interpretive system: their norms, fears and values.4. Translate the problem into the audience interpretive system: create the message.5. Deliver the message for optimal audience acceptance.

MachiavelliElegantly defended the politics of rhetorically constructed appearances of rhetorically constructed, positively valued public personae as the tools needed to rule populations that could never be subjugated by force alone. Rhetorical discourses were fear and worship inspiring, and there in lay their political values.

The 18th-century empirical philosophers and rhetoricians from Jhon Locke (1632-1704) to Richard Whately (1787-1863)The rhetorical reliance on systems of topoi or belief structures as the bases of argument opened the discipline to human error and hence could affect outcomes in the arenas of talk, including politics.

George Campbell (1719-1796) in this The Philosophy of Rhetoric (1776/1963)Rhetoric was to be faced with a scientistically inspired set of tests for those arguments, that is, tests based largely on factual investigations and other forms of empirical research.

I.A. Richards (1893-1979)Rhetoric as the study of misunderstanding and its remedies. Richard then sought to teach students the functions of language (expressions of sense, feeling, tone, and intention) as well as the seven human activities accomplished in language use (indicating, characterizing, valuing, influencing, controlling, and purposing), to make them sensitive to the ways in which human comprehension can go awry.

GronbeckRetorika politik dapat dipahami sebagai sebuah seni menggungakan bahasa untuk mempengaruhi orang lain dengan adanya suatu tujuan-tujuan politik. The good man speaking well. Kalimat ini menjadi dasar bagi Gronbeck dalam memformulasikan teorinya mengenai retorika politik. Menurut Gronbeck, retorika adalah kemampuan berbicara di muka publik dengan berbagai teknik untuk bukan saja menyampaikan pesan, melainkan juga menanamkan pengaruh. Pada dasarnya, menurut Gronbeck, tanpa memasukkan kata politik pun retorika merupakan sebuah wacana yang sepenuhnya politis karena mengandung kepentingan politik.

Dan Nimmo Mendefinisikan retorika sebagai komunikasi dua arah, satu-kepada-satu, dalam arti satu orang atau lebih, yang saling berusaha untuk mempengaruhi pandangan satu sama lain melalui tindakan timbal balik.

AristotelesSambil mengutip Aristoteles, Dan Nimmo mengklasifikasikan retorika menjadi tiga jenis, yakni retorika deliberatif, retorika forensik dan retorika demonstratif:1. Retorika deliberative dirancang untuk mempengaruhi orang-orang dalam urusan kebijakan pemerintah dengan menggambarkan keuntungan dan kerugian relatif dari cara-cara alternatif. Fokusnya adalah pada apa yang akan terjadi di masa depan jika suatu kebijakan tertentu diambil atau tidak diambil.2. Retorika forensi menyangkut ruang yuridis. Fokusnya pada apa yang terjadi di masa lalu untuk menunjukan bersalah atau tidak bersalah, pertanggungjawaban, atau hukuman dan ganjaran. Setting-nya biasanya dilakukan di ruang sidang, meskipun terjadinya di tempat lain.3. Retorika demonstrative merupakan pidato epideiktik, wacana yang memuji dan menjatuhkan. Tujuannya adalah untuk memperkuat sifat baik dan sifat buruk seseorang, suatu lembaga atau gagasan. Kampanye politik biasanya menggunakan retorika demonstratif.

H. Definition of Political Socialization

American Government/Public OpinionPolitical socialization is a lifelong process by which people form their ideas about politics and acquire political values. The family, educational system, peer groups, and the mass media all play a role. While family and school are important early in life, what our peers think and what we read in the newspaper and see on television have more influence on our political attitudes as adults. People acquire political culture through a process known as political socialization. Although the bulk of political socialization occurs during childhood, adults continue to be socialized. Political socialization occurs in many ways: 1. FamilyOur first political ideas are shaped within the family. Parents seldom "talk politics" with their young children directly, but casual remarks made around the dinner table or while helping with homework can have an impact. Family tradition is particularly a factor in party identification, as indicated by the phrases lifelong Republican and lifelong Democrat. The family may be losing its power as an agent of socialization, however, as institutions take over more of child care and parents perform less of it. Young children usually spend far more time with their families than with anyone else and thus tend to acquire the familys habits, beliefs, behaviors, and attitudes. For this reason, family tends to be the most important source of political socialization. Families mostly impart political culture unintentionally by acting as examples for the children. Very often, people end up with political beliefs similar to those of their parents. 2. SchoolChildren are introduced to elections and voting when they choose class officers, and the more sophisticated elections in high school and college teach the rudiments of campaigning. Political facts are learned through courses in American history and government, and schools, at their best, encourage students to critically examine government institutions.Schools themselves are involved in politics; issues such as curriculum reform, funding, and government support for private schools often spark a debate that involves students, teachers, parents, and the larger community. Most children learn about their country at school, usually through a curriculum known as civic education. This curriculum trains young people to be good citizens, often via history, government, and social studies. Although these lessons are usually basic, many of the key ideas and values of a society are imparted through school. Example: Most students learn about U.S. history at a young age, but textbooks and teachers tend to simplify the history and present it in a positive light. For example, the end of racial segregation is usually discussed as a sign of the progress America has made toward equality and liberty.3. Peer GroupsAt all ages, friends and acquaintances will influence ones beliefs. Although peer pressure certainly affects teenagers' lifestyles, it is less evident in developing their political values. Exceptions are issues that directly affect them, such as the Vietnam War during the 1960s. Later, if peers are defined in terms of occupation, then the group does exert an influence on how its members think politically. For example, professionals such as teachers or bankers often have similar political opinions, particularly on matters related to their careers. 4. ReligionDifferent religious traditions have very different values, and ones faith often significantly influences ones political views. Example: Roman Catholicism has a well-defined set of positions on many political issues, ranging from abortion to capital punishment to social justice. Although not all Catholics oppose abortion or favor more welfare programs, many do as a result of their religious beliefs.5. Minority statusMembers of a minority group sometimes feel like outsiders, and this feeling of isolation and alienation affects their attitudes toward society and government. This is particularly true when the minority group is treated either better or worse than others in society. 6. MediaMuch of our political information comes from the mass media: newspapers, magazines, radio, television, and the Internet. The amount of time the average American family watches TV makes it the dominant information source, particularly with the expansion of 24-hour all-news cable channels. Not only does television help shape public opinion by providing news and analysis, but its entertainment programming addresses important contemporary issues that are in the political arena, such as drug use, abortion, and crime. The growth of the Internet is also significant; not only do essentially all-news outlets have their own Web sites, but online bloggers present a broad range of political opinion, information, and analysis. The power of media is increasing with the spread of 24-hour cable news networks, talk radio, the Internet, and the seeming omnipresence of personal audio and video devices, so the influence of the media on political socialization is no longer confined to the young. 7. Key eventsA major political event can shape an entire generations attitudes toward its nation and government. Example: World War II defined the attitudes of many Americans, especially those who served in it. Many veterans became dedicated to living up to the ideals professed in the war. Twenty years later, the Vietnam War would have a similarly important impact, fostering skepticism of foreign military operations. In the 1970s, the Watergate scandal instilled a profound mistrust of government in many people.

I. Definition of Political Education

Darren G. LillekerOur friends at Media Mobilizing Project have great insight about how to talk about Political and Popular education. Here's a snapshot of what they have to say about political education:"By 'political education' we mean the collective process of study, research, and analysis that we need to engage in together in order to do this work.To be effective, we must understand the situation we are in and the forces we are up against. Dumb forces do not defeat smart forces. The ruling class is a smart force, with massive think tanks, top universities, and a deep interest in poor and working people not understanding history, philosophy, economics or politics. Neither schools nor the mass media teach us the truth, much less the tools we need to change society. We must actively seek out and work for our understanding. MMP prioritizes process that support our network and members doing this, both individually and together." Definisi mengenai pendidikan politik yang dikutip oleh Kartini Kartono (1996: 64) sebagai berikut :1. Pendidikan politik adalah bentuk pendidikan orang dewasa dengan menyiapkan kader-kader untukpertarungan politik dan mendapatkan penyelesaian agar menadang dalam perjuangan politik.2. Pendidikan politik adalah upaya edukatif yang internasional, di sengaja dan sistematis untukmembentuk inividu sadar politik, dan mampu menjadi pelaku politik yang bertanggung jawab secara etisatau moril dalam mencapai tujuan-tujuan politik.

R. Hayer Pendidikan politik adalah usaha membentuk manusia menjadi partisipasi yang bertanggungjawab dalam politik. J. Definition of Political LobyingThe process of influencing public and government policy at all levels: federal, state, and local. Dalam dunia politik lobi dapat diartikan sebagai suatu upaya persuasi dan pendekatan yang dilakukan oleh satu pihak yang memiliki kepentingan tertentu untuk memperoleh dukungan dari pihak lain yang dianggap memiliki pengaruh atau wewenang dalam upaya pencapaian tujuan yang ingin dicapai.

K. Definition of Public Relations

Darren G. LillekerPublic relation democracy is a term used to describe a pluralist society with a free media and where much of the communication that comes out of the political system is designed to persuade the public that policies are correct, that laws and procedure are legitimate and that one organization is better at representing groups of voters than its competitors.

Davis (2002) and Franklin (2004)The core aim of public relations is to present an individual or organization in a positive light, to enhance the publics perception of that individual or organization and, perhaps but not always, to get the public to do something for that individual or organization. This means that public relations is about image creation and branding, news management and campaigning, it is not necessarily about legitimizing a political system.

By the PRSA National AssemblyIn 2011/12, PRSA led aninternational effort to modernize the definition ofpublic relations and replace a definition adopted in 1982 by the PRSA National Assembly. PRSA initiated campaign and produced the following definition: Public relations is a strategic communication process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their publics. Ivy Lee and Edward Louis Bernays Definition of public relations in the early 1900s as follows: "a management function, which tabulates public attitudes, defines the policies, procedures, and interests of an organization followed by executing a program of action to earn public understanding and acceptance." Edward BernaysThe public relations counsel is the agent working with both modern media of communications and group formations of society in order to provide ideas to the publics consciousness.

L. Definition of AgitationAgitasi Politik, dari bahasa Agitare artinya bergerak atau menggerakan, dalam bahasa inggris agitation. Harbert Blumer Agitasi beroperasi untuk membangkitkan rakyat kepada suatu gerakan politik, baik lisan maupun tulisan dengan merangsang dan membangkitkan emosi khalayak. Dimulai dengan cara membuat kontradiksi dalam masyarakat dan menggerakan khalayak untuk menentang kenyataan hidup yang dialami selama ini (penuh ketidakpastian dan penuh penderitaan) dengan tujuan menimbulkan kegelisahan dikalangan massa. Nepheus SmithOrang yang melakukan agitasi disebut agitator, yaitu orang yang berusaha menimbulkan ketidakpuasan, kegelisahan atau pemberontakan orang lain. Ada agitator yang sikapnya selalu gelisah dan agresif, ada juga yang lebih tenang, cenderung pendiam tetapi mampu menggerakan khalayak dengan ucapan dan tulisannya.

The Evolution of Political Communication Under The New Order in IndonesiaMenurut Lucian dan Karl (1978, 284) ada beberapa bentuk komunikasi politik pada masa Orde Baru di Indonesia. Bentuk-bentuk komunikasi tersebut antara lain : direct speech, symbolic speech, cartoons, dan monumen. 1. Direct SpeechDirect speech in reality forms the overwhelming bulk of political communication in any society: gossip, rumors, discussions, arguments, interrogations, and intrigues. In the process, the live ephemeral communication is transmuted into an illustration or symbolic representation. 2. Symbolic SpeechIf direct speech often eludes the academic eye because of its fluid and ephemeral nature, symbolic speech escapes attention for rather different reasons. For example, on August 17, 1945, a new-made Red-White national flag was flown at Sukarnos side as he read the historic proclamation of Indonesian independence. Tweenty-three years later, on August 17, 1968 , the same flag was flown again for the last time. In the meantime, it had become a pusaka (heirloom). The red had faded to the color of dried blood, the white to ashen grey. On all sides there fluttered hundreds of new-made flags, brilliant in the morning sun.3. CartoonsOf all the forms of visual political communication, cartoons are perhaps the most readily decipherable. As they frequently make use of written words, they seem closest to conventional printed documents. As they are usually responses to particular historical events, they can, on one level at least, be mined for their factual content.4. MonumentsFew observers have recognized that monuments are a type of speech, or tried to discern concretely what is being said, why form and content are specifically what they are.

Pers dan Kampanye PemiluKampanye Pemilihan Umum idealnya merupakan proses penyampaian pesan-pesan politik yang salah satu fungsinya memberikan pendidikan politik bagi masyarakat. Melalui kampanye, partai-partai politik berusaha meyakinkan massa pemilih dengan mengangkat berbagai agenda yang dinilainya akan memberikan keuntungan bagi masyarakat. Karena itu, setiap partai politik selalu berusaha menemukan cara-cara paling efektif untuk merekrut sebanyak-banyaknya massa. Dalam proses rekrutmen, pers memiliki tingkat efektifitas yang relatif tinggi. Pada dua kali Pemilu pasca Orde Baru, pers tampak semakin mendapat porsi peran yang lebih besar. Cara-cara kampanye konvensional mulai banyak ditinggalkan. Partai-partai politik terus melirik peluang-peluang yang biasa diperankan pers. Penyajian pesan-pesan politik oleh para kandidat pun tampak semakin hidup dan bervariasi. Pers kemudian menjadi alat komunikasi partai-partai politik untuk merekrut massa.Pendekatan-pendekatan kampanye inilah yang kemudian telah melahirkan kesan politik yang relatif berbeda bila dibanding dengan suasana pada beberapa Pemilu sebelumnya. Meskipun Pemilu diikuti banyak partai, tetapi setiap partai tetap tidak kehilangan kesempatan untuk mengemukakan agenda-agenda politiknya secara lebih bebas. Sehingga banyaknya partai peserta Pemilu bukan lagi menjadi hambatan, tetapi justru merupakan potensi yang akan lebih menguntungkan pihak pemilih.

KESIMPULAN

Dari beberapa definisi mengenai komunikasi politik dan bentuk-bentuk kegiatan komunikasi poltik menurut para tokoh ahli yang telah dijelaskan sebelumnya, maka dapat disimpulkan bahwa komunikasi politik merupakan sebuah aktifitas dimana terdapat penyampaian pesan atau informasi oleh aktor-aktor tertentu yang berkaitan dengan politik. Jadi, yang membedakan antara komunikasi politik biasa dengan komunikasi politik adalah pesan yang disampaikan, dimana dalam komunikasi politik pesan yang disampaikan adalah yang berkaitan dengan pesan politik. Selain itu, komunikator politik juga tidak dapat dibatasi oleh aktor-aktor politik saja, melainkan aktor non-politik juga dapat menyampaikan pesan politik. Jadi, komunikasi politik dapat dikatakan bahwa komunikasi politik merupakan proses penyampaian pesan politik.Selanjutnya, pada komunikasi politik terdapat beberapa bentuk-bentuk kegiatan komunikasi politik untuk mencapai tujuan politiknya. Ada beberapa bentuk kegiatan komunikasi politik. Dengan adanya berbagai bentuk kegiatan komunikasi politik ini, tujuan yang ingin disampaikan kepada masyarakat dapat tersampaikan dan mendapat respon yang baik. Oleh karena itu, ada banyak sekali cara menyampaikan pesan politik tersebut melalui bentuk-bentuk kegiatan komunikasi politik, masing-masing bentuk kegiatan memiliki teknik tersendiri dalam menyampaikan pesan politiknya. Misalnya, retorika dan propaganda. Retorika merupakan bentuk kegiatan komunikasi politik dengan cara seni penggunaan bahasa untuk berkomunikasi secara efektif dan persuasif. Selain itu, propaganda merupakan bentuk kegiatan komunikasi politik secara lebih luas yaitu dengan teknik mempengaruhi tindakan manusia dengan memanipulasi representasi (penyajian) yang berbentuk lisan, tulisan, gambar atau musik. Serta masih banyak lagi cara atau teknik lain dari bentuk kegiatan komunikasi politik dalam penyampaian pesan politiknya, seperti yang sudah dijelaskan melalui pendapat para tokoh ahli sebelumnya.

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