James Stanyer is senior lecturer in Media and Communication Studies at Loughborough University.

'An extremely useful book for those who are interested in the world beyond the level of bar-room gossip.'http://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/news/content/view/full/126534"Morning Star'Stanyer has delivered a highly persuasive evidence-based study, creatively developed and carried out, drawing on a range of data sets inventively designed to compare how far the private lives of politicians are reported in seven countries. In my view, Intimate Politics has genuine international relevance and should be considered the benchmark study for future scholarship.'Journalism Studies'Stanyer's treatment of the phenomenon of “intimization” is data-rich, conceptually mature and several-sided. He systematically examines it by genre, over an extended time span and, in a revealing comparative analysis, across seven advanced democracies. Intimate Politics is likely to be the definitive treatment of its subject for years to come.'Jay Blumler, University of Leeds'For the first time, intimization and popularization are dealt with using hard data, showing that they are not just in the minds of scholars but that they represent tendencies that have emerged in several countries worldwide. Our democracies are facing at the same time new strategies on the part of politicians and also already well-rooted journalistic routines.'Paolo Mancini, Università di Perugia

• ContentsList of figures and tablesAcknowledgementsIntroduction: Politicians’ Personal Lives in the Media Spotlight1. Soft Focus: Leaders’ Personal Lives Close-up2. Digging for Dirt: Publicizing Politicians’ Sex Lives3. Changing Exposure: Critical Moments and the Uncovering of Politicians’ Infidelity4. Transnational Revelations: Flows, Access and Control in a Global News Environment5. Drawing Conclusions: Intimization and Democratic PoliticsAppendix: Notes on Research Methods and IndicatorsReferencesEndnotes

James Stanyer is senior lecturer in Media and Communication Studies at Loughborough University.

'An extremely useful book for those who are interested in the world beyond the level of bar-room gossip.'http://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/news/content/view/full/126534"Morning Star'Stanyer has delivered a highly persuasive evidence-based study, creatively developed and carried out, drawing on a range of data sets inventively designed to compare how far the private lives of politicians are reported in seven countries. In my view, Intimate Politics has genuine international relevance and should be considered the benchmark study for future scholarship.'Journalism Studies'Stanyer's treatment of the phenomenon of “intimization” is data-rich, conceptually mature and several-sided. He systematically examines it by genre, over an extended time span and, in a revealing comparative analysis, across seven advanced democracies. Intimate Politics is likely to be the definitive treatment of its subject for years to come.'Jay Blumler, University of Leeds'For the first time, intimization and popularization are dealt with using hard data, showing that they are not just in the minds of scholars but that they represent tendencies that have emerged in several countries worldwide. Our democracies are facing at the same time new strategies on the part of politicians and also already well-rooted journalistic routines.'Paolo Mancini, Università di Perugia

• ContentsList of figures and tablesAcknowledgementsIntroduction: Politicians’ Personal Lives in the Media Spotlight1. Soft Focus: Leaders’ Personal Lives Close-up2. Digging for Dirt: Publicizing Politicians’ Sex Lives3. Changing Exposure: Critical Moments and the Uncovering of Politicians’ Infidelity4. Transnational Revelations: Flows, Access and Control in a Global News Environment5. Drawing Conclusions: Intimization and Democratic PoliticsAppendix: Notes on Research Methods and IndicatorsReferencesEndnotes

James Stanyer is senior lecturer in Media and Communication Studies at Loughborough University.

'An extremely useful book for those who are interested in the world beyond the level of bar-room gossip.'http://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/news/content/view/full/126534"Morning Star'Stanyer has delivered a highly persuasive evidence-based study, creatively developed and carried out, drawing on a range of data sets inventively designed to compare how far the private lives of politicians are reported in seven countries. In my view, Intimate Politics has genuine international relevance and should be considered the benchmark study for future scholarship.'Journalism Studies'Stanyer's treatment of the phenomenon of “intimization” is data-rich, conceptually mature and several-sided. He systematically examines it by genre, over an extended time span and, in a revealing comparative analysis, across seven advanced democracies. Intimate Politics is likely to be the definitive treatment of its subject for years to come.'Jay Blumler, University of Leeds'For the first time, intimization and popularization are dealt with using hard data, showing that they are not just in the minds of scholars but that they represent tendencies that have emerged in several countries worldwide. Our democracies are facing at the same time new strategies on the part of politicians and also already well-rooted journalistic routines.'Paolo Mancini, Università di Perugia

• ContentsList of figures and tablesAcknowledgementsIntroduction: Politicians’ Personal Lives in the Media Spotlight1. Soft Focus: Leaders’ Personal Lives Close-up2. Digging for Dirt: Publicizing Politicians’ Sex Lives3. Changing Exposure: Critical Moments and the Uncovering of Politicians’ Infidelity4. Transnational Revelations: Flows, Access and Control in a Global News Environment5. Drawing Conclusions: Intimization and Democratic PoliticsAppendix: Notes on Research Methods and IndicatorsReferencesEndnotes