Het werk van Martin Gilens onderzoekt de ingewikkelde relatie tussen economische ongelijkheid en politieke macht in Amerika. Hij onderzoekt nauwgezet hoe de publieke opinie wordt gevormd door massamedia en retorische kaders, met name met betrekking tot kwesties van sociale voorzieningen. Gilens wijdt zich aan het ontdekken van de systemische mechanismen die maatschappelijke verschillen in stand houden en de uitkomsten van overheidsbeleid beïnvloeden.
Can a country be a democracy if its government only responds to the preferences of the rich? This book explores how political inequality in the United States has evolved over the last several decades and how this growing disparity has been shaped by interest groups, parties, and elections.
Drawing on surveys of public attitudes and analyses of more than 40 years of television and news-magazine stories on poverty, this book demonstrates how public opposition to welfare is fed by a potent combination of racial stereotypes and misinformation about the true nature of America's poor. schovat popis
More democracy -- Unequal wealth distorts politics -- What has gone wrong -- Thwarting the will of the people -- The political clout of wealthy Americans -- Corporations and interest groups -- Polarized parties and gridlock -- What can be done -- Equal voice for all citizens -- Overcoming gridlock and democratizing institutions -- How to do it -- A social movement for democracy -- Signs of progress