The international relations field has recently taken a communicative
turn. Social constructivists, for instance, regularly examine frames,
persuasion, and other discursive mechanisms by which actors reach
intersubjective agreement. Critical theorists add an overtly normative
dimension by embracing the transformative potential of public
deliberation. In contrast, realists and neorealists claim that outcomes
are determined by the distribution of material power—political
communication and discursive ideals are virtually meaningless elements in
international politics. Put simply, talk is cheap. Given this view, it is
puzzling that many prominent realists participate actively in national
foreign policy debates and in that context both implicitly and explicitly
embrace views about political discourse that are remarkably consistent
with those held by constructivists and critical theorists. In the recent
Iraq debate, the realists reveal lies, political spin, and other
distortions of the debate promulgated by government elites and their
allies. They challenge the legitimacy of established policies and critique
excessive secrecy. Most importantly, these neorealists seek to transform
public and elite consciousness so as to produce social pressures for
alternative outcomes. Realists have apparently rejected their own
theoretical presuppositions about the meaning and role of political
communication, which has important implications for both policy debate and
IR theorizing.Rodger A. Payne is Professor
of Political Science at the University of Louisville and Director of the
Grawemeyer Award for Ideas Improving World Order
(r.payne@louisville.edu). He would like to thank Josh Busby,
Peter Dombrowski, Peter Howard, Jacques Hymans, Piki Ish-Shalom, Avery
Kolers, Doug Lemke, John Mearsheimer, Tom Mowle, Stan Scott, and the three
anonymous reviewers for offering valuable comments and suggestions.
Portions of this paper were previously delivered at the Annual Meetings of
the International Studies Association, at Montréal in 2004 and at
Honolulu in 2005. Financial and institutional support was provided by a
President's Research Initiative Project Initiation Grant from the
University of Louisville and by the Belfer Center for Science and
International Affairs at Harvard.