Brian Calfano – författare

During the 1950s, amid increased attention to the problems facing cities—such as racial disparities in housing, education, and economic conditions; tense community-police relations; and underrepresentation of minority groups—local governments developed an interest in “human relations.” In the wake of the shocking 1965 Watts uprising, a new authority was created: the Los Angeles City Human Relations Commission. Today, such commissions exist all over the United States, charged with addressing such tasks as fighting racial discrimination and improving fair housing access.Brian Calfano and Valerie Martinez-Ebers examine the history and current efforts of human relations commissions in promoting positive intergroup outcomes and enforcing antidiscrimination laws. Drawing on a wide range of theories and methods from political science, social psychology, and public administration, they assess policy approaches, successes, and failures in four cities. The book sheds light on the advantages and disadvantages of different commission types and considers the stresses and expectations placed on commission staff in carrying out difficult agendas in highly charged political contexts. Calfano and Martinez-Ebers suggest that the path to full inclusion is fraught with complications but that human rights commissions provide guidance as to how disparate groups can be brought together to forge a common purpose. The first book to examine these widely occurring yet understudied political bodies, Human Relations Commissions is relevant to a range of urban policy issues of interest to both academics and practitioners.

During the 1950s, amid increased attention to the problems facing cities—such as racial disparities in housing, education, and economic conditions; tense community-police relations; and underrepresentation of minority groups—local governments developed an interest in “human relations.” In the wake of the shocking 1965 Watts uprising, a new authority was created: the Los Angeles City Human Relations Commission. Today, such commissions exist all over the United States, charged with addressing such tasks as fighting racial discrimination and improving fair housing access.Brian Calfano and Valerie Martinez-Ebers examine the history and current efforts of human relations commissions in promoting positive intergroup outcomes and enforcing antidiscrimination laws. Drawing on a wide range of theories and methods from political science, social psychology, and public administration, they assess policy approaches, successes, and failures in four cities. The book sheds light on the advantages and disadvantages of different commission types and considers the stresses and expectations placed on commission staff in carrying out difficult agendas in highly charged political contexts. Calfano and Martinez-Ebers suggest that the path to full inclusion is fraught with complications but that human rights commissions provide guidance as to how disparate groups can be brought together to forge a common purpose. The first book to examine these widely occurring yet understudied political bodies, Human Relations Commissions is relevant to a range of urban policy issues of interest to both academics and practitioners.

Though not all people are religious believers, religion has played important historic roles in developing political systems, parties, and policies—affecting believers and nonbelievers alike. This is particularly true in the United States, where scholars have devoted considerable attention to a variety of political phenomena at the intersection of religious belief and identity, including social movements, voting behavior, public opinion, and public policy. These outcomes are motivated by “identity boundary-making” among the religiously affiliated. The contributors to this volume examine two main factors that influence religious identity: the communication of religious ideas and the perceptions of people (including elites) in communicating said ideas.Exploring the Public Effects of Religious Communication on Politics examines an array of religious communication phenomena. These include the media’s role in furthering religious narratives about minority groups, religious strategies that interest groups use to advance their appeal, the variable strength of Islamophobia in cross-national contexts, what qualifies as an “evangelical” identity, and clergy representation of religious and institutional teachings. The volume also provides ways for readers to think about developing new insights into the influence religious communication has on political outcomes.

Though not all people are religious believers, religion has played important historic roles in developing political systems, parties, and policies—affecting believers and nonbelievers alike. This is particularly true in the United States, where scholars have devoted considerable attention to a variety of political phenomena at the intersection of religious belief and identity, including social movements, voting behavior, public opinion, and public policy. These outcomes are motivated by “identity boundary-making” among the religiously affiliated. The contributors to this volume examine two main factors that influence religious identity: the communication of religious ideas and the perceptions of people (including elites) in communicating said ideas.Exploring the Public Effects of Religious Communication on Politics examines an array of religious communication phenomena. These include the media’s role in furthering religious narratives about minority groups, religious strategies that interest groups use to advance their appeal, the variable strength of Islamophobia in cross-national contexts, what qualifies as an “evangelical” identity, and clergy representation of religious and institutional teachings. The volume also provides ways for readers to think about developing new insights into the influence religious communication has on political outcomes.

Calfano provides an examination of the pressures faced by Muslims, often considered political and social outsiders in western nations, especially in the United States. Identity is a complex concept, especially when considering the role that group attachments play in affecting how one sees her/his role in the political environment of their country of residence. Perhaps the greatest tension in this regard is felt by those who are often considered outsiders in their home country, despite significant ties to their nation. Though citizens and second generation residents in many cases, American Muslims face a combination of suspicion, government scrutiny, and social segregation in the United States, despite significant education and economic assimilation in America. The crux of the investigation advanced here centres on how group influence, emotions, and religious interpretation contribute to the political orientation and behaviour of a national sample of Muslims living in the American context. A compelling explanation as to how members of an ostracized political group marshal the motivation to push through suspicion to become fully engaged political actors, this book has wide relevance and will be of interest to scholars researching Muslims and political participation across the fields of political science, history, sociology, and religion.

With a particular focus on the United States, this book offers a practical guide to writing and delivering sound political TV news coverage.Beginning with a historical overview of political reporting, and contextualizing political journalism and local TV news within wider industry issues, this book goes on to offer an essential understanding of the complex decision-making inherent in this critical form of journalism today. In accessible and engaging language, Calfano introduces students to all the basics of local political TV reporting—writing, shooting, editing, and producing—touching on long-form interviewing, political "talkbacks," election coverage, using data, and investigative journalism as a means of uncovering political stories. Readers will learn about working the political beats, from the City Hall to the Statehouse and from policy to budgets, in a way which is both compelling and ethical. A chapter on local, state, and federal government acts as a quick reference primer to the US political landscape. Each chapter includes a series of reflection exercises and ideas for exploring political coverage from the perspectives introduced, and case studies help readers translate what they’ve learned into real-world practice. This book also features a list of quick hacks for political reporters and a political resource list which TV news reporters and producers can go to for sources and government information.This textbook is essential reading for anyone aspiring to become a reporter, producer, or news manager in the United States and will also be of great value to students of Political Journalism, Broadcast Journalism, and Local TV News worldwide.

With a particular focus on the United States, this book offers a practical guide to writing and delivering sound political TV news coverage.Beginning with a historical overview of political reporting, and contextualizing political journalism and local TV news within wider industry issues, this book goes on to offer an essential understanding of the complex decision-making inherent in this critical form of journalism today. In accessible and engaging language, Calfano introduces students to all the basics of local political TV reporting—writing, shooting, editing, and producing—touching on long-form interviewing, political "talkbacks," election coverage, using data, and investigative journalism as a means of uncovering political stories. Readers will learn about working the political beats, from the City Hall to the Statehouse and from policy to budgets, in a way which is both compelling and ethical. A chapter on local, state, and federal government acts as a quick reference primer to the US political landscape. Each chapter includes a series of reflection exercises and ideas for exploring political coverage from the perspectives introduced, and case studies help readers translate what they’ve learned into real-world practice. This book also features a list of quick hacks for political reporters and a political resource list which TV news reporters and producers can go to for sources and government information.This textbook is essential reading for anyone aspiring to become a reporter, producer, or news manager in the United States and will also be of great value to students of Political Journalism, Broadcast Journalism, and Local TV News worldwide.

Calfano provides an examination of the pressures faced by Muslims, often considered political and social outsiders in western nations, especially in the United States. Identity is a complex concept, especially when considering the role that group attachments play in affecting how one sees her/his role in the political environment of their country of residence. Perhaps the greatest tension in this regard is felt by those who are often considered outsiders in their home country, despite significant ties to their nation. Though citizens and second generation residents in many cases, American Muslims face a combination of suspicion, government scrutiny, and social segregation in the United States, despite significant education and economic assimilation in America. The crux of the investigation advanced here centres on how group influence, emotions, and religious interpretation contribute to the political orientation and behaviour of a national sample of Muslims living in the American context. A compelling explanation as to how members of an ostracized political group marshal the motivation to push through suspicion to become fully engaged political actors, this book has wide relevance and will be of interest to scholars researching Muslims and political participation across the fields of political science, history, sociology, and religion.

Religion’s influence on public opinion, politics, and candidates has been widely discussed in political science for a generation. God Talk isthe first volume that uses experimental methodology to establish whether and how that influence works. Paul Djupe and Brian Calfano provide an unprecedented look at how religious cues, values, and identity-driven appeals impact candidate selection, trust, interest group support, and U.S. public opinion about tolerance, the environment, foreign policy, and related issues. By situating their disparate, randomly assigned interventions within the broader framework of elite-based influence, the authors apply their new methodology to three questions: How do clergy affect congregation members? How are religious elites and groups and their public arguments evaluated? With what effect do political elites use religion? The results of their research provide a compelling framework for understanding the links between religion and politics.In the series The Social Logic of Politics, edited by Scott McClurg

Religion’s influence on public opinion, politics, and candidates has been widely discussed in political science for a generation. God Talk isthe first volume that uses experimental methodology to establish whether and how that influence works. Paul Djupe and Brian Calfano provide an unprecedented look at how religious cues, values, and identity-driven appeals impact candidate selection, trust, interest group support, and U.S. public opinion about tolerance, the environment, foreign policy, and related issues. By situating their disparate, randomly assigned interventions within the broader framework of elite-based influence, the authors apply their new methodology to three questions: How do clergy affect congregation members? How are religious elites and groups and their public arguments evaluated? With what effect do political elites use religion? The results of their research provide a compelling framework for understanding the links between religion and politics.In the series The Social Logic of Politics, edited by Scott McClurg

Media and Politics provides students with a selection of readings that help them better understand how politics affect journalism and media, and how journalism and media, in turn, impact politics. The anthology also provides insight into the basic techniques and tenets for covering new stories, especially those of a political nature.The collection begins by providing a brief history of the development of modern journalism in the United States. Later chapters address the concept of newsworthiness, core standards of journalism, the difference in news items distributed across various media platforms, and performance and script editing techniques for radio and television. Students read about how audience perception of production values can impact their impressions of news videos and the social impact of the kinds of people most featured in news reports, as well as how they are featured. Additional chapters discuss the effects of presenting news from a human interest angle and video editing. Each chapter includes questions to stimulate critical thinking and encourage further consideration of the material.An engaging and timely resource, Media and Politics is well suited for courses in journalism, media, and political science.