Opinions, Publics and Pressure Groups

In the late 1960s representative democracy was under fire from various directions even in countries, like Britain and America, where it had appeared to be most secure and successful. Must democracy be a sham, either because of the power of pressure groups and other established decision-makers, or because ‘the people’ are too ignorant and irrational? What, in any case, does or can representative government mean in a complex industrial society – and what does it mean to be rational in politics? It