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510 Revista del Instituto Español de Estudios Estratégicos Núm. 2 / 2013 Table I. - Examples of Think Tanks by type in the USA, France and Spain POLITICAL ISSUES UNIVERSITIES ADVOCACY GROUPS EXPERTS USA Center for American Progress Hoover Institution Cato Council for Foreign Policy FRANCE Terra Nova CERI IFRAP IFRI SPAIN FAES CIDOB FAES IEEE Source: L’Observatoire des think tanks The phenomenon of advocacy groups, accentuated by the unprecedented development in the area of communication in the 21st century, deserves a separate paragraph. NICTs and the growing power of the media have had a profound impact on the structure of think tanks. Without media visibility, it is extremely difficult to place thoughts on the market of ideas. In this regard, advocacy groups are a type of activist organisation with excellent communicative efficiency. When considering the huge level of competition among think tanks to gain access to sources of finance and to opportunities, the advocacy group formula seems to be the most effective as regards the ability to influence decision-making. The concept is, therefore, one further element; not just terminological but also ontological, due to its inherent influencing function. In reality, the advocacy group terminology would appear to be the most appropriate in achieving the original objective: influence, convince, justify, argue, litigate. We can quote the following elements as being the main reasons for the high level of ongoing growth of think tanks globally:10 • Information and technological revolution • End of national governments’ monopoly on information • Increasing complexity and technical nature of policy problems • Increasingly large and fragmented government • Crisis of confidence in government and elected officials • Globalization and the growth of state and non-state actors • Need for timely and concise information and analysis “in the right form at the 10  MCGANN, James, Global Go to Think Tank, 2012: http://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcon-tent. cgi?article=1006&context=think_tanks


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