Uncivil Wars: Political Campaigns in a Media Age

by Thomas A. Hollihan

Book Overview

"Uncivil Wars: Political Campaigns in a Media Age "engages and motivates students by showing how modern political campaigns work and discussing the complex issues surrounding them. Hollihan walks... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312478836
• ISBN13: 9780312478834
• Release Date: May 2008
• Publisher: Bedford Books
• Length: 432 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.9" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

A great read, accurate and well put-together

... but then I'm biased, as a graduate communication student of Prof Hollihan's at USC. so I declare my interest (and just think of my grades if I gave him a rating of 1). But this book does deserve its plaudits.Hollihan's a passionate, witty rhetorician of politics. He describes the political process of campaign communication in a way which will keep you reading it. He teaches a course on it every semester or two, and I have it on good authority that he's one of the top commentators in this area.The book isn't theory-oriented. In other words, if you want a long list of theories and how they apply to political communication then take your Roubles elsewhere. The book is well-grounded in theories and sound understanding of the processes, but, Hollihan being a pragmatist, he structures the book in ways which keep it readable rather than filing-cabinet-structured. In other words, this is a book rooted in the application of theory to actual media in the context of political campaigns. If you want to know about them and then talk intelligently or aademically about them (depending on your predilictions) then this is a fine book for you.

I read this book for a class....so here's my review

I really enjoyed this book. Hollihan does a great job explaining the current state of politics and campaigning in the U.S. He uses very current examples to illustrate communication and political science theories, in a manner that is both informative and fun to read. I especially liked the chapters on communication technologies and campaign financing. This book is a real eye opener for people who want to know how politics has developed into a media strategy game. If you liked the Hardball book by Chris Matthews, you'll probably like this book as well.