On the Policy Reflex in Canadian Communication Studies

Abstract

This commentary notes the existence of a “policy reflex” in Canadian communication studies. The author suggests that many scholars engage in issues having to do with policy even if “policy analysis” is not the goal of scholarship. This tendency is in part due to a limited understanding of policy or a tendency among some scholars to see their work as “critical” over other possible characterizations. In many cases a turn to policy has a symbolic function, marking absence rather than presence. In a research field characterized by major gaps in research and in the face of convoluted or missing data, what we call “policy analysis” often emerges largely by default. The article discusses consequences of this reflex on policy scholarship and public discourses of culture.