Uncivil Wars: Political Campaigns in a Media Age [Paperback]

Thomas A. Hollihan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 16, 2001 | ISBN-10: 0312150261 | ISBN-13: 978-0312150266

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 students through the development of campaign strategy, the creation of candidate images, how media cover and shape campaigns, the role of political advertising, and the use of strategic polling. After showing students the structure of campaigns, Uncivil Wars then encourages them to have meaningful participation in today’s political process.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Thomas Hollihan is a professor of communication at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Southern California. He is the author of Arguments and Arguing: The Products and Process of Human Decision Making (with Kevin Baaske) and Argument at Century's End: Reflecting on the Past and Envisioning the Future and has been published in the Quarterly Journal of Speech, Argumentation and Advocacy, Communication Quarterly, Western Journal of Communication, Southern Speech Communication Journal, Speaker and Gavel, and Debate Issues. In addition, Hollihan has served as a consultant to political candidates and elected officials and makes frequent media appearances to discuss politics and campaigns. 

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 308 pages
• Publisher: Bedford/St. Martin's (January 16, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312150261
• ISBN-13: 978-0312150266
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,383,247 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great read, accurate and well put-together, December 4, 2003

By 

Richard Hodkinson (Los Angeles, California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Uncivil Wars: Political Campaigns in a Media Age (Paperback)

... 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.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I read this book for a class....so here's my review, May 22, 2001

By 

Carlos Godoy (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Uncivil Wars: Political Campaigns in a Media Age (Paperback)

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.

6 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Mildly informative, transparently biased, January 17, 2004

By 

James Culp (Fairfax, VA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Uncivil Wars: Political Campaigns in a Media Age (Paperback)

In purchasing this book for a class, I was excited to read the two five star reviews before mine. But in reading the book itself, I have been disappointed to see how biased it is. Mr. Hollihan makes a very limited attempt to hide his contempt for the conservative side of the political spectrum. For example, in the preface, he goes to great lengths to detail the many court battles the Republicans undertook to defend the results of the 2000 Presidential vote in Florida. Yet he barely makes mention of the many court battles Gore undertook to do the same. In doing so, he attempts to paint a picture of Republicans doing nasty, political things to win elections, while the wise Democrats do all they can to stay above the fray. And so it continues for 266 pages.

Just as troublesome are his research methods. Why would anyone in a supposedly educational text cite Maureen Dowd, a fiery political commentator, as a source of information rather than opinion? Further, he cites three works by Thomas Hollihan--himself! One of the first rules of journalism I learned is if you want to maintain credibility, you cannot cite yourself.

Further irritating are the 24 pages on "cyberspace". Anyone who has a basic knowledge of the Internet and its culture will find glaring errors and oversimplifications. His definition of "netizen" as "people who use the Internet for political information and expression" is particularly laughable.

What may be worst of all, however, are inconsistencies in his basic arguments. Early in the book, he tells of the diminishing role and power of the political parties and the growing independent movement. Later, he writes on the lack of centrists, and of the increasing power of partisanship and ideological polarization.

All that having been said, there are some nuggets of information that can be seen as being of interest, but those pale in comparison to this book's glaring inconsistencies, uninformed statements, questionable writing methods, and leftist bias. I recommend this book if it is assigned as required by your professor, or if you are looking for liberal propaganda less inflammatory than "Dude, Where's My Country?" Otherwise, I would avoid this book.