Rude Democracy: Civility and Incivility in American Politics

by Susan Herbst

"Rude Democracy is must reading for anyone trying to make sense of the current incivility in partisan politics and its implications for democracy in the United States. Herbst offers a fresh perspective that lays out the downside of incivility but also shows that there are opportunities to use it to move policy debates forward in a positive way that will benefit citizenship and democratic politics. The book provides a starting point for those seeking to do this."-Robert Shapiro Columbia University" "Susan Herbst's keen analysis of political rhetoric during the Obama years defuses prevailing alarmist warnings about the grim consequences of heated dialogue. She presents persuasive arguments that demonstrate the usefulness of civility while still acknowledging its serious drawbacks. Rude Democracy also features important proposals for improving the U.S. political climate. It deserves wide attention from political leaders, their staffs, and their publics."-Doris A. Graber University of Illinois at Chicago" "Rude Democracy is a smart and thoughtful discussion of a thorny problem. Herbst's focus on the 'strategic' uses of civility and incivility makes good theoretical and empirical sense. Further, her call for educating Americans about how to debate is worthy and something she may well be able to implement. That Herbst does not add to the many shrill claims that civility is on the decline is refreshing. Her book is not trying to put old wine in a new bottle. Instead, she gets people to think about this topic in new ways. Herbst's engaging conclusion provides a compelling capstone to the general argument. In short, I am a fan of this book. Herbst's voice will become a valued one in this important debate."-John Geer Vanderbilt University" "Democracy is, by its very nature, often rude. But there are limits to how uncivil we should be. In this timely and important book, Susan Herbst explores how we discuss public policy, how we treat each other as we do, and how we can create a more civil national culture." "Herbst uses Sarah Palin and Barack Obama to illustrate her case. She scrutinizes Palm as both victim and perpetrator of incivility, including close analysis of her speeches on the 2008 campaign trail, the tone at her rallies, and her interactions with her audience. Herbst turns to a key 2009 speech to exemplify Barack Obama's perspective on American civility as it pertains to contentious issues such as abortion, and she draws on the controversy surrounding the speech to demonstrate the nature of public opinion in the United States. She also dissects Palin's and Obama's roles in the 2009 health care debate and includes a fascinating chapter that examines how young people come to form their own attitudes about civility and political argument." In Rude Democracy, Susan Herbst contends that Americans must recognize the bad habits and trends we have developed, use new media for more effective debate, and develop a tougher and more strategic political skin. She urges the American people to boost both the intelligence and the productivity of our debates, an effort that demands a commitment to the nature of argument itself. Rude Democracy outlines a plan for moving forward to create a more civil climate for American politics.

Genres: Nonfiction, Politics

216 pages, Hardcover

First published August 20, 2010

Reviews

[Edward Champion · Rating 4 out of 5]

This far too short volume does a decent job reminding us of the political climate of 2008, which is arguably when civility in politics started to fall asunder. It is very good about examining the emotional appeal of Sarah Palin to voters, as well as exhuming memories of the angry town hall meetings that arrived with the Obamacare debates. But it is too short. It really demanded more rigor, particularly given the direction that American politics moved in less than a decade after this book was published.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

The one dominant word I'd use to describe this book is fair. Herbst makes every effort to be a fair-minded critic and observer of the politics of civility, focusing on the 2008 US presidential race. I can quibble with some of the edges of some of her points and examples, but most often, I found myself nodding in agreement. An argument for political dialogue based on facts, respect for varying viewpoints and civility, Rude Democracy is at its best when Herbst argues that political observers today need a thicker skin than I believe our culture seems to be able to produce.