Issue network
Encyclopedia
Issue networks are an alliance
of various interest groups and individuals who unite in order to promote a single issue in government policy
. Issue networks can be either domestic or international in scope, and many are active solely within the domain of the Internet
. Usually, issue networks push for a change in policy within the government bureaucracy. An example includes the wide ranging network of environmental groups and individuals who push for more environmental regulation in government policy. Other issue networks revolve around such controversial issues as abortion, gun ownership rights, and drug laws. In the United States
, the various parties within an issue network include “political executives, career bureaucrats, management and policy consultants, academic researchers, journalists, foundation officers, and White House aides.”
Issue Networks differ from Iron Triangles in that they seek to support the public interests, not private ones, by seeking to benefit a wide ranging constituency that supports their side of the issue. Issue networks can be antagonistic to iron triangles as they may oppose a policy pushed by a private interest group, and carried out by a government agency. This is particularly the case in regards to environmental issue
networks that disagree with the lax environmental standards pursued by private energy companies. It is also important to note that different Issue networks also compete with one another, as in the case of proponents and opponents of abortion.
In political scientist Hugh Heclo's model, an issue network is a rather fluid, loose grouping of people and organizations who seek to influence policy formation. Thus, an issue network is not as easily identifiable or as neatly categorized as an Iron Triangle or subgovernment: "Looking for the closed triangles of control, we tend to miss the fairly open networks that increasingly impinge upon our government."
Milton C. Cummings, Jr. and David Wise. Democracy Under Pressure: An Introduction to the American Political System, Tenth Edition. Thompson- Wadsworth, 2005
Christine Barbour and Gerald C Wright. Keeping the Republic, Power and Citizenship in American Politics., Indiana University, 2009.
Alliance
An alliance is an agreement or friendship between two or more parties, made in order to advance common goals and to secure common interests.See also military alliance and business alliance.-International relations:...
of various interest groups and individuals who unite in order to promote a single issue in government policy
Policy
A policy is typically described as a principle or rule to guide decisions and achieve rational outcome. The term is not normally used to denote what is actually done, this is normally referred to as either procedure or protocol...
. Issue networks can be either domestic or international in scope, and many are active solely within the domain of the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
. Usually, issue networks push for a change in policy within the government bureaucracy. An example includes the wide ranging network of environmental groups and individuals who push for more environmental regulation in government policy. Other issue networks revolve around such controversial issues as abortion, gun ownership rights, and drug laws. In the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, the various parties within an issue network include “political executives, career bureaucrats, management and policy consultants, academic researchers, journalists, foundation officers, and White House aides.”
Iron triangles and issue networks
Iron triangles are the mutually beneficial relationships between interest groups, usually private businesses and corporations, congressional oversight committees, and federal agencies. The relationships within Iron Triangles seek only to benefit the three actors involved by pursuing a favorable policy for the interest group, at the expense of the constituencies that Congress and the Federal bureaucracy are supposed to represent, namely the general public.Issue Networks differ from Iron Triangles in that they seek to support the public interests, not private ones, by seeking to benefit a wide ranging constituency that supports their side of the issue. Issue networks can be antagonistic to iron triangles as they may oppose a policy pushed by a private interest group, and carried out by a government agency. This is particularly the case in regards to environmental issue
Environmental issue
Environmental issues are negative aspects of human activity on the biophysical environment. Environmentalism, a social and environmental movement that started in the 1960s, addresses environmental issues through advocacy, education and activism.-Types:...
networks that disagree with the lax environmental standards pursued by private energy companies. It is also important to note that different Issue networks also compete with one another, as in the case of proponents and opponents of abortion.
In political scientist Hugh Heclo's model, an issue network is a rather fluid, loose grouping of people and organizations who seek to influence policy formation. Thus, an issue network is not as easily identifiable or as neatly categorized as an Iron Triangle or subgovernment: "Looking for the closed triangles of control, we tend to miss the fairly open networks that increasingly impinge upon our government."
Sources
- Marc Landy and Sidney M. Milkis. American Government: Balancing Democracy and Rights. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2004.
Milton C. Cummings, Jr. and David Wise. Democracy Under Pressure: An Introduction to the American Political System, Tenth Edition. Thompson- Wadsworth, 2005
Christine Barbour and Gerald C Wright. Keeping the Republic, Power and Citizenship in American Politics., Indiana University, 2009.