The federal election campaign of 2005-06 offered the usual mix of lofty rhetoric, competing interests, and skullduggery. Nonetheless, this campaign laid the foundation for a major shift in Canadian politics, bringing the Conservative Party to power and changing the balance of opposition parties. Inside the NDP War Room takes readers behind the scenes to investigate the nature of credibility in the complex communicative game of election campaigns. James McLean considers the ways in which the idea of credibility is used to explain how messages are crafted and articulated, how journalists are implicated, and what the Canadian public needs to know about what is at stake in the competition for votes. He talks to insiders about their communication practices and strategies, and reflects upon the grand narratives and small opportunistic moments brought before the Canadian public when power is up for grabs.

A vivid, first-hand account of campaign strategizing, Inside the NDP War Room offers insights into the NDP breakthroughs of 2011, the full meaning of Quebec's "orange wave," and the future of a party preparing for a new reality.

James S. McLean is a professor of journalism at Concordia University and co-editor of Public Art in Canada: Critical Perspectives.

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