The big news this spring is that David Paletz has been re-appointed editor of Political Communication. The formal announcement can be found here.

Our roundtable in this issue explores the potential impact of campaign finance reform on political advertising and electoral competition more generally. Just before Christmas, the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of several key portions of the Bi-Partisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002. We asked Stephen Ansolabehere and Shanto Iyengar, Erika Falk, and Clifford Jones and Lynda Kaid to speculate on how campaigns and campaigning might change in light of the new rules.

Our featured resource is the American Newspaper Repository, an archive dedicated to preserving original paper copies of newspapers. Most of us who have an interest in photojournalism, political cartooning, or images in the news more generally know what happens to those images when newspapers and news magazines are microfilmed. What you may not realize is that these poor reproductions may eventually be all we can access as libraries dispose of bound volumes in favor of microfilm reels. Seeing original, often color images, from 19th and early 20th century newspapers laid next to the black-and-white microfilmed versions makes apparent what is being lost.

In addition to our usual grants and resources section, we have two more unusual opportunities. APSA is seeking volunteers to expand its mentoring program, and the U.S. Department of State is looking for expert advice on the content of its proposed “Principles of Democracy” primers.

It’s spring, so the meeting schedule is heating up, though there are few calls for papers with deadlines between now and August. As usual, our books list contains plenty of good reading to keep you busy.

Hope to see you at the ICA meeting in New Orleans.

Jill Edy