Cyberspace is no longer a mystery. It has become irrevocably intertwined with everyday life, facilitating everything from reading the news and paying the bills to ordering birthday presents. We are in the midst of a revolution in mass communication, and there now exists the technology for creating new forms of community, empowering citizens, and challenging existing power structures. But will such changes occur? In this fascinating book Michael Margolis and David Resnick ponder the effects of cyberspace on American Politics. Our political system tends to normalize political activity, and thus, the Internet′s vast potential could be lost, rendering it just another purveyor of ignored information. This broad examination begins with a history of cyberspace and moves through discussions of parties, political interest groups, candidates, mass media, information dissemination, and commercial uses of the Internet. Politics as Usual offers an innovative and exciting look into previously ignored aspects of the Internet and American politics.

In many elections, candidates frame their appeals in gendered ways--they compete, for instance, over who is more "masculine." This is the case for male and female candidates alike. In the 2016 presidential election, however, the stark choice between the first major-party female candidate and a man who exhibited a persistent pattern of misogyny made the use of gender more prominent than in any previous election in the United States. Presidential campaigns often have an impact on downballot Congressional races, but the 2016 election provided a new opportunity to see the effects of misogyny. While much has been written about the 2016 election--and the shadow of 2016 clearly affected the pool of candidates in the 2018 midterms--this book looks at how the Trump and Clinton campaigns actually changed the behavior of more conventional candidates for Congress in 2016 and 2018. Over the past decade, those who study political parties have sought to understand changes in the relationship between groups and parties and how these changes have affected the ability of parties to develop coherent campaign strategies. The clear need for rapid adjustments in party strategy in the 2016 election provides an ideal means of testing whether today's political parties are more able or less able to respond to unexpected events. This book argues that Donald Trump's candidacy radically altered the nature of the 2016 congressional campaigns in two ways. First, it changed the issues of contention in many of these races. Trump's provocative calls for building a wall along the Mexican border and temporarily prohibiting immigration from Muslim countries inserted issues of race and ethnicity into elections and forced candidates to respond to his proposals. Most consequentially, however, Trump's attacks on women--including television personalities, politicians, and, at times, private citizens--alienated numerous potential supporters and placed many of his supporters (and downballot Republican candidates in particular) on the defensive. Second, expectations that Trump would lose the election influenced how candidates for lower office campaigned and how willing they were to connect their fortunes to those of their party's nominee. The fact that Trump was expected to lose--and was expected to lose in large part because of his misogyny--caused both major parties to direct more of their resources toward congressional races, and led many Republican candidates, especially women, to distance themselves from Trump. This book explores how the Trump and Clinton campaigns used gender as a political weapon, and how the presidential race changed the ways in which House and Senate campaigns were waged in 2016 and 2018.

Mary Ellen was born in Bonner Ferry, Idaho. Her family moved to Montana when her father, a section Foreman on the Great Northern Railroad, was transferred. She attended local schools and graduated from Whitefish High School. She completed a series of courses and worked as a Real Estate Appraiser before her election to the Montana House of Representatives in 1982. She served five terms on the power Appropriations Committee and chair of the Long-range Planning Subcommittee. Appointed to the Western Regional Economic Council, as the Montana Representative. Charged with economic development and regional oversight, the member were Montana, Idaho, Washington, Oregon, Alaska and Alberta, Canada. Mary Ellen also served on the Montana drug and alcohol abuse council. She served as chair, four years on the Montana Vo-tech school board. Asked to chair the United Way of the county, she raised the most substantial amount ever donated. She was selected “Woman of the Year” for Flathead County and received other honors and awards. Mary Ellen currently lives on an acre and a half on the Calaveras River in California.

In several countries, political parties are stepping up their digital presence in the online world. This creates opportunities for political parties to reach a wider potential audience or membership base. Digitalization has been an ongoing process in political parties across the globe, and the current pandemic is likely to accelerate this process. This Primer highlights some of the mechanisms that are being widely used and can be adopted by political parties to allow them to continue to function or operate in times of social distancing and other contexts where restrictions on social gatherings are being enforced. It also presents practical options for digitalization and developing an online presence that parties in different contexts can adapt and optimize to respond to such restrictions, and ideas to support the transformation efforts that parties are undertaking.

Even before the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, political scientists were assessing changes and continuities in the principles and practices of American democracy. Recent events, including the passage of the U.S. Patriot Act and the current debates about civil liberties versus homeland security, intensify the need to examine the long-term viability of democracy. In this book, fifteen major scholars assess the current state of American democracy, offering a spirited dialogue on the future of democratic politics. Contributors focus on three principles fundamental to democracy—equality, liberty, and participation. They examine these principles within the context of the basic institutions of American democracy: Congress and the state legislatures, the president, political parties, interest groups, and the Supreme Court. They raise questions regarding the checks and balances among formal governmental institutions (with the contributors sharing concern over the fading power of the legislature and the increased power of the executive and judiciary) as well as the role of political parties and interest groups. Topics discussed include: the incomplete mobilization of the electorate, the debates over campaign finance reform and term limits, the Supreme Court’s activist role in the Florida recount, the dangers of teledemocracy and state initiatives, the separation of political participation from residential location, “identity politics,” the clash of "negative" and "positive" liberty, and the prospects for personal freedom in an era of terrorist threats. This timely collection covers the issues relevant to the future of American democracy today not only for lawmakers, students, and historians, but for any concerned citizen.

March 2015 should have been a time of celebration for Brazil, as it marked thirty years of democracy, a newfound global prominence, over a decade of rising economic prosperity, and stable party politics under the rule of the widely admired PT (Workers' Party). Instead, the country descended into protest, economic crisis, impeachment, and deep political division. Democratic Brazil Divided offers a comprehensive and nuanced portrayal of long-standing problems that contributed to the emergence of crisis and offers insights into the ways Brazilian democracy has performed well, despite the explosion of crisis. The volume, the third in a series from editors Kingstone and Power, brings together noted scholars to assess the state of Brazilian democracy through analysis of key processes and themes. These include party politics, corruption, the new "middle classes," human rights, economic policymaking, the origins of protest, education and accountability, and social and environmental policy. Overall, the essays argue that democratic politics in Brazil form a complex mosaic where improvements stand alongside stagnation and regression.

Offers a comprehensive survey and interpretation of contemporary Christian political theology in a newly revised and expanded edition This book presents the latest thinking on the topic of contemporary Christian political theology, with original and constructive essays that represent a range of opinions on various topics. With contributions from expert scholars in the field, it reflects a broad range of methodologies, ecclesial traditions, and geographic and social locations, and provides a sense of the diversity of political theologies. It also addresses the primary resources of the Christian tradition, which theologians draw on when constructing political theologies, and surveys some of the most important figures and movements in political theology. This revised and expanded edition provides the most comprehensive and accessible introduction to this lively and growing area of Christian theology. Organized into five sections, Wiley Blackwell Companion to Political Theology, Second Edition addresses the many changes that have occurred over the last 15 years within the field of political theology. It features new essays that address social developments and movements, such as Anglican Social Thought, John Milbank, Anabaptist Political Theologies, African Political Theologies, Postcolonialism, Political Economy, Technology and Virtuality, and Grass-roots Movements. The book also includes a new essay on the reception of Liberation Theology. Offers essays on topics such as the Trinity, atonement, and eschatology Features contributions from leading voices in the field of political theology Includes all-new entries covering fresh developments and movements like the urgency of climate change, virtuality and the digital age, the economic crisis of 2008, the discourse of religion and violence, and new modalities of war Addresses some important social movements from a theological point of view including postmodernism, grass-roots movements, and more Provides both Islamic and Jewish responses to political theology Written for academics and students of political theology, Wiley Blackwell Companion to Political Theology, 2nd Edition is an enlightening read that offers a wide range of authoritative essays from some of the most notable scholars in the field.

Praise for the first edition: This collection of essays comes mainly from academics but nobody should bridle at theorists lecturing practitioners. They properly challenge the way September 11th was reported - in a way that's both an endorsement of the role of the media and a wake-up call on its failures . . . anyone interested in our trade should read it.' - Roger Mosey, Ariel 'A thoughtful and engaging examination of the effects of 9/11 on the field of journalism. Its unique aim is to discuss the impact of the attack as a personal trauma and its current and future effects on journalism and the reporting of the news. . . highly recommended.' - Library Journal Journalism After September 11 examines how the traumatic attacks of that day continue to transform the nature of journalism, particularly in the United States and Britain. Familiar notions of what it means to be a journalist, how best to practice journalism, and what the public can reasonably expect of journalists in the name of democracy, were shaken to their foundations. Ten years on, however, new questions arise regarding the lasting implications of that tragic day and its aftermath. Bringing together an internationally respected collection of scholars and media commentators, Journalism After September 11 addresses topics such as: journalism and public life at a time of crisis; broadsheet and tabloid newspaper coverage of the attacks; the role of sources in shaping the news; reporting by global news media such as CNN; Western representations of Islam; current affairs broadcasting; news photography and trauma; the emotional well-being of reporters; online journalism; as well as a host of pertinent issues around news, democracy and citizenship. This second edition includes four new chapters – examining Arabic newspaper reporting of the attacks, the perceptions of television audiences, national magazine coverage of the ensuing crisis, and the media politics of ‘othering’ – as well as revised chapters from the first edition and an updated Introduction by the co-editors. A foreword is provided by Victor Navasky and an afterword by Phillip Knightley.