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Rhetoric and Democracy in a Post-Truth Era

Joshua J. Frye and Steven R. Goldzwig

Rhetoric and Democracy in a Post-Truth Era offers a timely examination of public communication and political culture in the United States and the systemic feedback loops that have amplified democratic dysfunction and violence. Informed by both deductive and inductive analysis of four key perils (post-truth; polarization; [social media] platform; and populism) in the interplay of complex systems, Joshua J. Frye and Steven R. Goldzwig examine rhetorical traditions and trajectories to synoptically explain both how we got to this point and how we can fix it. Exploring salient and increasingly important issues affecting the public life and culture of American democracy and democracies worldwide, this work expands public understanding of the current political landscape, reveals what effective democratic citizenship requires, and identifies communication practices that can be used to better engage with these contemporary challenges. Scholars of communication, rhetoric, and political science will find this book of particular interest.

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Lexington Books
Pages: 280 • Trim: 6¼ x 9¼
978-1-66690-280-8 • Hardback • August 2024 • $120.00 • (£92.00)
978-1-66690-281-5 • eBook • August 2024 • $50.00 • (£38.00)
Subjects: Language Arts & Disciplines / Rhetoric, Language Arts & Disciplines / Communication Studies, Language Arts & Disciplines / Political Communication

Joshua J. Frye is professor of communication at California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt.

Steven R. Goldzwig is professor emeritus, Department of Communication Studies at Marquette University.

Preface

Acknowledgments

Introduction: Facing Democracy’s Dilemma

Chapter 1: The 1st Peril–Post-Truth and The Spectacle

Chapter 2: The 2nd Peril–Polarization, Self-Righteousness, and Echo Chambers

Chapter 3: The 3rd Peril–Platform and the Abuses of [Social] Media

Chapter 4: The 4th Peril–Populism and the Rhetorical Presidency

Chapter 5: The 4 Perils, Public Persuasion, and the Destabilization of Democracy

Conclusion: The Promise of Rhetoric and Democracy

Bibliography

About the Authors

How do democracies die? How do functioning civil societies slide toward populist demagoguery, perhaps even rotting into authoritarian quagmires of ill-will and spectacular ignorance? In Rhetoric and Democracy in a Post-Truth Era, Joshua J. Frye and Steven R. Goldzwig answer these questions by focusing on post-truth communication, the production of polarization, the abuse of social media platforms, and the rise of rightwing populism. By tracking what they call “the almost invisible lines connecting reason, speech, and action to truth, trust, and virtue,” and by diagnosing how Trump-era charlatans have shredded that delicate fabric, Frye and Goldzwig offer readers a roadmap for reclaiming democracy.


— Stephen J. Hartnett, University of Colorado Denver


A trenchant, impassioned, and deeply unsettling examination of what ails American democracy. Impeccably researched, Frye and Goldzwig offer the most comprehensive account of the matrix of vicious communication loops that both enable and constitute Trumpism and the virtuous loops that must be its antidote.


— Randall A. Lake, University of Southern California


Readers of Rhetoric and Democracy in a Post-Truth Era, utilize the free Citizenship Communication Action Guide.

VIEW AND DOWNLOAD



Rhetoric and Democracy in a Post-Truth Era

Cover Image
Hardback
eBook
Summary
Summary
  • Rhetoric and Democracy in a Post-Truth Era offers a timely examination of public communication and political culture in the United States and the systemic feedback loops that have amplified democratic dysfunction and violence. Informed by both deductive and inductive analysis of four key perils (post-truth; polarization; [social media] platform; and populism) in the interplay of complex systems, Joshua J. Frye and Steven R. Goldzwig examine rhetorical traditions and trajectories to synoptically explain both how we got to this point and how we can fix it. Exploring salient and increasingly important issues affecting the public life and culture of American democracy and democracies worldwide, this work expands public understanding of the current political landscape, reveals what effective democratic citizenship requires, and identifies communication practices that can be used to better engage with these contemporary challenges. Scholars of communication, rhetoric, and political science will find this book of particular interest.

Details
Details
  • Lexington Books
    Pages: 280 • Trim: 6¼ x 9¼
    978-1-66690-280-8 • Hardback • August 2024 • $120.00 • (£92.00)
    978-1-66690-281-5 • eBook • August 2024 • $50.00 • (£38.00)
    Subjects: Language Arts & Disciplines / Rhetoric, Language Arts & Disciplines / Communication Studies, Language Arts & Disciplines / Political Communication
Author
Author
  • Joshua J. Frye is professor of communication at California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt.

    Steven R. Goldzwig is professor emeritus, Department of Communication Studies at Marquette University.

Table of Contents
Table of Contents
  • Preface

    Acknowledgments

    Introduction: Facing Democracy’s Dilemma

    Chapter 1: The 1st Peril–Post-Truth and The Spectacle

    Chapter 2: The 2nd Peril–Polarization, Self-Righteousness, and Echo Chambers

    Chapter 3: The 3rd Peril–Platform and the Abuses of [Social] Media

    Chapter 4: The 4th Peril–Populism and the Rhetorical Presidency

    Chapter 5: The 4 Perils, Public Persuasion, and the Destabilization of Democracy

    Conclusion: The Promise of Rhetoric and Democracy

    Bibliography

    About the Authors

Reviews
Reviews
  • How do democracies die? How do functioning civil societies slide toward populist demagoguery, perhaps even rotting into authoritarian quagmires of ill-will and spectacular ignorance? In Rhetoric and Democracy in a Post-Truth Era, Joshua J. Frye and Steven R. Goldzwig answer these questions by focusing on post-truth communication, the production of polarization, the abuse of social media platforms, and the rise of rightwing populism. By tracking what they call “the almost invisible lines connecting reason, speech, and action to truth, trust, and virtue,” and by diagnosing how Trump-era charlatans have shredded that delicate fabric, Frye and Goldzwig offer readers a roadmap for reclaiming democracy.


    — Stephen J. Hartnett, University of Colorado Denver


    A trenchant, impassioned, and deeply unsettling examination of what ails American democracy. Impeccably researched, Frye and Goldzwig offer the most comprehensive account of the matrix of vicious communication loops that both enable and constitute Trumpism and the virtuous loops that must be its antidote.


    — Randall A. Lake, University of Southern California


Features
Features
  • Readers of Rhetoric and Democracy in a Post-Truth Era, utilize the free Citizenship Communication Action Guide.

    VIEW AND DOWNLOAD



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