Hyperpolitics

Hyperpolitics is an appealing book in print format that is enhanced by an interactive Web version . Calise (Univ. of Naples Federico II) and Lowi (Cornell Univ.) define a hyperdictionary as a dictionary that uses a "method for unpacking a dense concept by separating out its components ... a method of concept analysis." Hyperpolitics provides an innovative way of defining political science topics. It is a dictionary, so readers can look up concepts that are organized in alphabetical order. Using the Web site, users can also, for instance, move from a definition to its "Sources"--"summaries from other dictionaries and online bibliographical sources." The 67 terms are divided into main concepts, short entries, and cross-entries. The 18 main subjects include terms like "citizen," "law," and "pluralism." The 17 short entries cover subjects such as "choice," "majority," and "participation." Finally, the 32 cross-entries feature concepts like "class," "conflict," and "democracy," with matrices linking them to other concepts. The book is very visual, which should appeal to students. However, the matrices lend themselves very naturally to the Web, where many readers will find additional value. The Web site includes a users' guide. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through researchers/faculty. Lower-division Undergraduates; Upper-division Undergraduates; Graduate Students; Researchers/Faculty. Reviewed by K. N. Djorup.

Personalisation is the most relevant political phenomenon of our time. After the decline of structural and ideological foundations of Western democracies, a radical shift from collective to individual actors and institutions has occurred in several political systems. On the one hand, political leaders have gained centrality on the democratic scene as a consequence of both a more direct, sometimes plebiscitary, relationship with citizens, and a more direct control of the executive administration. On the other hand, a process of fragmentation occurs at the mass level, where electoral volatility has strongly increased and the spread of social media enables each citizen to express their convictions in the self-referential autonomy of the digital networks. Monocratic Government: The Impact of Personalisation on Democratic Regimes analyses the consequences of personalisation of political leaders on democratic government by asking whether it is possible to keep together demos and kratos in a post-particratic context. It explores topics such as governmental decrees, Trump-governance, and includes an analysis of the coronavirus outbreak. Offering comparative insights and exploring how political leaders govern in the United States, France, Germany, Italy, and Hungary, this volume brings into focus the study of political personalisation in relation to some of the key trends – and crises – in modern politics.

Half of our eligible citizens fail to cast a presidential ballot and many more than half routinely ignore state and local elections. Does this phenomenon point to a crisis of democracy or does such behavior simply reflect indifference - or even contentment - among the public? Should we be alarmed that so many of our citizens seem disinterested and unwilling to participate in the various activities and forms of association that constitute civic life? If we are concerned by such matters, what might be done to reengage those who are seemingly disengaged? This book explores these questions and examines the well being of our civic condition at the beginning of the twenty-first century. Grounded in a communication perspective, we view the fundamental nature of a democracy as that of a civic dialogue - an ongoing conversation between our elected leaders or political candidates and the citizens they lead or wish to lead. Accordingly, the studies presented in this volume examine our civic sphere and the electoral process as a communicative interaction between elected officials, political candidates, the media, and citizens.

Working-through Collective Wounds discusses how collectives mourn and create symbols. It challenges ideas of the irrational and destructive crowd, and examines how complicated scenes of working-through traumas take place in the streets and squares of cities, in times of protest. Drawing on insights from the trauma theory of psychoanalyst Sándor Ferenczi and his idea of the ‘confusion of tongues’, the book engages the confusions between different registers of the social that entrap people in the scene of trauma and bind them in alienation and submission. Raluca Soreanu proposes a trauma theory and a theory of recognition that start from a psychoanalytic understanding of fragmented psyches and trace the social life of psychic fragments. The book builds on psychosocial vignettes from the Brazilian uprising of 2013. It will be of great interest to psychoanalysts interested in collective phenomena, psychosocial studies scholars and social theorists working on theories of recognition and theories of trauma.

In the run up to the primary races for 2008, we are witnessing a new phase in election coverage as a direct result of the expansion of actors and the widespread adoption of new technologies. The popularity of the video sharing website, YouTube, has allowed citizens to actively participate in political discourse and abandon their passive roles. This project attempts to analyze how new media technologies, particularly user-generated media, have changed traditional power structures during primary elections and established a central role for citizen participation. The interactivity and connectedness that new media tools provide enable citizens, or amateurs, to create their own generative content and have the ability to broadcast their ideas on a new virtual platform. This project suggests that certain types of user-generated content are playing an integral role in shaping the news coverage during presidential primaries and influencing the saliency of issues among voters. The focus of this study analyzes web traffic and a selection of user-generated content featured on the video-sharing website, YouTube. Using a multi-methodological approach for research, this project combines content analysis, online surveying and statistical analysis. Findings of these analyses suggest humor and effective messaging can drive web traffic to online videos. Political gaffes during the primary election became elemental to YouTube traffic and the popularization of certain user-generated videos. Through the use of peer-to-peer messaging, this analysis suggests that information created by peers can be influential and effective for reaching wide audiences. However, respondents disagreed that information for peers is a more trustworthy or accurate source then traditional media. This projects findings suggest that YouTube is still relatively new and continues to evolve as an effective source for political information.

From the outset, Silvio Berlusconi's career was expected to be short, and he has been considered finished several times, only to have reemerged victorious. This fascinating political and historical study shows that Berlusconi's success and resilience have lain in his ability to provide answers to longstanding questions in Italian history.

“[A] monumental dual biography . . . a distinguished work, combining deep research, a pleasing narrative style and an abundance of fresh insights, a rare combination.”—The Dallas Morning News The third and fourth presidents have long been considered proper gentlemen, with Thomas Jefferson’s genius overshadowing James Madison’s judgment and common sense. But in this revelatory book about their crucial partnership, both are seen as men of their times, hardboiled operatives in a gritty world of primal politics where they struggled for supremacy for more than fifty years. With a thrilling and unprecedented account of early America as its backdrop, Madison and Jefferson reveals these founding fathers as privileged young men in a land marked by tribal identities rather than a united national personality. Esteemed historians Andrew Burstein and Nancy Isenberg capture Madison’s hidden role—he acted in effect as a campaign manager—in Jefferson’s career. In riveting detail, the authors chart the courses of two very different presidencies: Jefferson’s driven by force of personality, Madison’s sustained by a militancy that history has been reluctant to ascribe to him. Supported by a wealth of original sources—newspapers, letters, diaries, pamphlets—Madison and Jefferson is a watershed account of the most important political friendship in American history. “Enough colorful characters for a miniseries, loaded with backstabbing (and frontstabbing too).”—Newsday “An important, thoughtful, and gracefully written political history.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

An examination of how the (hyper)local is the locus of real change Many of America’s downtowns, waterfronts, and innovation districts have experienced significant revitalization and reinvestment in recent years, but concentrated poverty and racial segregation remain persistent across thousands of urban, suburban, and rural neighborhoods. The coronavirus pandemic magnified this sustained and growing landscape of inequality. Uneven patterns of economic growth and investment require a shift in how communities are governed and managed. This shift must take into account the changing socioeconomic realities of regions and the pressing need to bring inclusive economic growth and prosperity to more people and places. In this context, place-based (“hyperlocal”) governance structures in the United States and around the globe have been both part of the problem and part of the solution. These organizations range from community land trusts to business improvement districts to neighborhood councils. However, very little systematic research has documented the full diversity and evolution of these organizations as part of one interrelated field. Hyperlocal helps fill that gap by describing the challenges and opportunities of “place governance.” The chapters in Hyperlocal explore both the tensions and benefits associated with governing places in an increasingly fragmented—and inequitable—economic landscape. Together they explore the potential of place governance to give stakeholders a structure through which to share ideas, voice concerns, advocate for investments, and co-design strategies with others both inside and outside their place. They also discuss how place governance can serve the interests of some stakeholders over others, in turn exacerbating wealth-based inequities within and across communities. Finally, they highlight innovative financing, organizing, and ownership models for creating and sustaining more effective and inclusive place governance structures. The authors hope to provoke new thinking among place governance practitioners, policymakers, private sector leaders, urban planners, scholars, students, and philanthropists about how, why, and for whom place governance matters. The book also provides guidance on how to improve place governance practice to benefit more people and places.

This book argues that a well-educated citizenry and freer flow of information has contributed to a state of "hyperdemocracy" which impedes itself. This book applies the idea of 'reflexive modernization' to democratic theory, setting out a new perspective on the challenges democracy faces.