Background
Gans, Herbert J. was born on May 7, 1927 in Cologne, Germany. Son of Carl M. and Elise (Plaut) Gans. came to the United States, 1940, naturalized, 1945.
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book
Democracy and the News
(American democracy was founded on the belief that ultimat...)
American democracy was founded on the belief that ultimate power rests in an informed citizenry. But that belief appears naive in an era when private corporations manipulate public policy and the individual citizen is dwarfed by agencies, special interest groups, and other organizations that have a firm grasp on real political and economic power. In Democracy and the News, one of America's most astute social critics explores the crucial link between a weakened news media and weakened democracy. Building on his 1979 classic media critique Deciding What's News, Herbert Gans shows how, with the advent of cable news networks, the internet, and a proliferation of other sources, the role of contemporary journalists has shrunk, as the audience for news moves away from major print and electronic media to smaller and smaller outlets. Gans argues that journalism also suffers from assembly-line modes of production, with the major product being publicity for the president and other top political officials, the very people citizens most distrust. In such an environment, investigative journalism--which could offer citizens the information they need to make intelligent critical choices on a range of difficult issues--cannot flourish. But Gans offers incisive suggestions about what the news media can do to recapture its role in American society and what political and economic changes might move us closer to a true citizen's democracy. Touching on questions of critical national importance, Democracy and the News sheds new light on the vital importance of a healthy news media for a healthy democracy.
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The Levittowners: Ways of Life and Politics in a New Suburban Community by Herbert J. Gans (1982) Paperback
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Making Sense of America: Sociological Analyses and Essays (Legacies of Social Thought Series)
(For four decades, Herbert J. Gans has been one of the lea...)
For four decades, Herbert J. Gans has been one of the leading sociologists in the United States. His writing on American communities, culture, and ethnicity have been widely read here and elsewhere, and his incisive analyses of antipoverty policy and other social policies have been influential in many policy analysis offices and government agencies. This new collection of Gans's scholarly and other writings, including excerpts from his most prominent ethnographic books, "The Urban Villagers", "The Levittowners", and "Deciding What's News", will be a thoughtprovoking resource for social scientists, students, and all those who care about America.
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Making Sense of America: Sociological Analyses and Essays (Legacies of Social Thought Series) by Gans, Herbert J. (1999) Paperback
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More Equality: How the United State Can Reduce Inequalities if income wealth and political power
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The Levittowners: Ways of Life and Politics in a New Suburban Community
(Sociology, Political Studies, Urban Studies)
Sociology, Political Studies, Urban Studies
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The War Against The Poor: The Underclass And Antipoverty Policy by Gans, Herbert (1996) Paperback
(New.Fast shipping. We do our best to give you high qualit...)
New.Fast shipping. We do our best to give you high quality customer service.
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The War Against The Poor: The Underclass And Antipoverty Policy
( In his withering dissection of the origins and misuse o...)
In his withering dissection of the origins and misuse of the term underclass” to stereotype and stigmatize the poor, Herbert J. Gans shows how this ubiquitous label has relegated a wide variety of peoplewelfare recipients, the working poor, teenage mothers, drug addicts, the homeless, and othersto a single condemned class, feared and despised by the rest of society. Probing the deep psychological, social, and political reasons why Americans seek to indict millions of poor citizens as undeserving,” Gans calls for a cease-fire in the undeclared war against the poor. He concludes with a set of innovative, job-centered policy proposals and a multifaceted educational plan to stop the endless flow of new recruits into America’s untouchable caste.
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More equality
(1973 HARDCOVER w/DUST JACKET)
1973 HARDCOVER w/DUST JACKET
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The Levittowners: Ways of Life and Politics in a New Suburban Community (Sociology: Lost and Found)
(In his previous books Allen Guttmann has provided incisiv...)
In his previous books Allen Guttmann has provided incisive perspectives on Avery Brundage's role in the Olympic movement and on the nature of modern sports. Now, in his latest book, the accomplished historian of sport turns his attention from the playing field to the grandstand. Sports Spectators, the first historical study of the subject from antiquity to today, is at once erudite and entertaining; comprehensive and succint.Guttmann first examines the history of sports spectators, starting with Ancient Greece and Rome. He then moves on to the Renaissance and traces three early sports -the tournament, archery, and early versions of football. The author then focuses on the emergenece of sports in post-Renaissance England, and discusses the curious spectacle of animal sports (bear- and bull-baiting and cockfighting), as well as the first appearance of combat sports such as sword fighting, stick fighting, and boxing. The book concludes its historical view by exploring contemporary baseball, football, rowing, tennis, and golf.From his chronological narrative, Guttmann shifts to detailed analysis of the economic, sociological, and psychological aspects of sports spectatorship. Who were, and are, sports spectators? What is their gender and social class? Have they normally been participants as well as fans? What are the political functions of sports-watching? What are the social dynamics of spectatorship?Guttmann provides fresh insights which will be useful to scholars and fascinating to everyone. Sports Spectators also looks at the dramatic transformations radio and television have made, and offers an incisive critique of today's sports-related violence, including the increasingly frequent incidences of spectator hooliganism. How violent (or peaceful) have spectators traditionally been? Has spectator violence increased or decreased?You needn't be a season ticket-holder to enjoy Sports Spectators. Allen Guttmann makes the history of fandom come alive for any reader interested in Western culture and what forms of entertainment reveal about us, as well as those concerned with the recent growth of spectator violence.
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Urban Villagers: Group and Class in the Life of Italian-Americans
(A sociological study of the native-born Americans of Ital...)
A sociological study of the native-born Americans of Italian parentage who lived in Boston's West End during the fifties.
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People, Plans, and Policies: Essays on Poverty, Racism, and Other National Urban Problems (Columbia History of Urban Life) Paperback June 16, 1994
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Popular Culture and High Culture: An Analysis and Evaluation Of Taste
( Is NYPD Blue a less valid form of artistic expression t...)
Is NYPD Blue a less valid form of artistic expression than a Shakespearean drama? Who is to judge and by what standards?In this new edition of Herbert Gans's brilliantly conceived and clearly argued landmark work, he builds on his critique of the universality of high cultural standards. While conceding that popular and high culture have converged to some extent over the twenty-five years since he wrote the book, Gans holds that the choices of typical Ivy League graduates, not to mention Ph.D.'s in literature, are still very different from those of high school graduates, as are the movie houses, television channels, museums, and other cultural institutions they frequent.This new edition benefits greatly from Gans's discussion of the ”politicization” of culture over the last quarter-century. Popular Culture and High Culture is a must read for anyone interested in the vicissitudes of taste in American society.
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The urban villagers: Group and class in the life of Italian-Americans
(This book is a report of participant-observation study of...)
This book is a report of participant-observation study of an inner-city Boston neighborhood called the West End, and, in particular, of the native-born Americans of Italian parentage who lived there among other ethnic groups.From the Preface
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People, Plans, and Policies by Gans, Herbert (1991) Hardcover
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Middle American Individualism: Political Participation and Liberal Democracy
(Written by one America's most eminent sociologists, this ...)
Written by one America's most eminent sociologists, this book examines the lives and ideals of today's "middle Americans"--whom the more affluent and elite have long put down as an uncultured and unthinking mass--and finds in them the individualistic creed upon which democracy thrives. Neither narcissistic, like that of the "Me Generation" yuppie, nor materialistic, like that of the capitalist, their individualism is the simple desire for personal control over one's social and, especially, economic environment. It is an individualism based on self-reliance, much like that which Alexis de Tocqueville identified as the fundamental American trait over 150 years ago. Far from being right-wing racists, greedy materialists, or uncultured "Joe Sixpacks," Herbert J. Gans describes this diverse group of Americans as the blue, pink, white, and new-collar workers who come in all colors and live modestly in suburbs, small towns, or big city ethnic neighborhoods. Numerically and culturally they make up the majority of Americans, and it is their particular vision of the American Dream to which every presidential candidate appeals. Yet, while they have often been viewed as a mass susceptible to political manipulation, the traditional distrust middle Americans feel toward big government, big business, and other bureaucratic organizations has led them to avoid politics as much as possible. As a result American society, argues Gans, is turning into an "upscale democracy," with voting and other forms of political participation becoming increasingly the province of the rich and well-organized. Current economic and political trends toward greater centralization are enlarging the gulf between middle Americans and those institutions upon which they must depend for their well-being; in Middle American Individualism Gans shows that this growing alienation is the greatest threat to democracy today. How can America reclaim this disaffected and ever more silent majority? Rejecting the usual appeals for less political apathy and more community action, Gans advocates a series of proposals that would bring political institutions to the people rather than forcing them to seek political, economic, and social guidance within the unfamiliar and intimidating surroundings they are forced to deal with now. Calling for a new understanding between liberals and middle Americans, Gans seeks nothing less than a transformation of our present system into a truly representative democracy. Middle American Individualism is the first step in that direction.
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Urban Villagers Group & Class in the Life of Italian-Americans
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People, Plans, and Policies
(The primary theme of this collection of essays is that th...)
The primary theme of this collection of essays is that the cities' basic problems are poverty and racism and until these concerns are addressed by bringing about racial equality, creating jobs, and instituting other reforms, the generally low quality of urban life will persist. Gans argues that the individual must work to alter society. He believes that not only must parents have jobs to improve their children's school performance, but that the country needs a modernized 'New Deal', a more labor-intensive economy, and a thirty-two hour work week to achieve full employment. Other controversial ideas presented in this book include Gans's opposition to the whole notion of an underclass, which he feels is the latest way for the nonpoor to unjustly label the poor as undeserving. He also believes that poverty continues to plague society because it is often useful to the nonpoor. He is critical of architecture that aims above all to be aesthetic or to make philosophical statements, is doubtful that planners can or should try to reform our social or personal lives, and thinks we should concentrate on achieving individual public policies until we learn how to properly plan as a society.
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{ MAKING SENSE OF AMERICA: SOCIOLOGICAL ANALYSES AND ESSAYS (LEGACIES OF SOCIAL THOUGHT) } Gans, Herbert ( AUTHOR ) Feb-24-1999 Paperback
(Making Sense of America: Sociological Analyses and Essays...)
Making Sense of America: Sociological Analyses and Essays (Legacies of Social Thought) Making Sense of America: Sociological Analyses and Essays (Legacies of Social Thought) by Gans, Herbert ( Author ) Paperback Feb- 1999 Paperback Feb- 24- 1999
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Middle American Individualism: The Future of Liberal Democracy 1st edition by Gans, Herbert J. (1988) Hardcover
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Middle American Individualism: Political Participation and Liberal Democracy by Gans, Herbert J. (1991) Paperback
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- The Urban Villagers: Group and Class
- Urban Villagers
- The Urban Villagers: Group and Class in the Life of Italian-Americans (Urban Villagers, The: Group and Class in the Life of Ital...)
- Urban Villagers: Group and Class in the Life of Italian-Americans by Herbert J. Gans (1982-06-01)
- The Levittowners: Ways of Life and Politics in a New Suburban Community (Sociology: Lost and Found) by Herbert J. Gans (1982-10-15)
- The Levittowners: How People Live and Politics in Suburbia
- The urban villagers;: Group and class in the life of Italian-Americans
- Making Sense of America: Sociological Analyses and Essays (Legacies of Social Thought Series) by Herbert J. Gans (1999-01-01)
- The urban villagers: Group and class in the life of Italian-Americans (A sociological study of the native-born Americans of Ital...)
- Making Sense of America: Sociological Analyses and Essays (Legacies of Social Thought Series) by Gans, Herbert J. (January 1, 1999) Hardcover
- The Levittowners: Ways of Life and Politics in a New Suburban Community (Legacy Editions) (In 1955, Levitt and Sons purchased most of Willingboro To...)
- Middle American Individualism: The Future of Liberal Democracy by Herbert J. Gans
- Making Sense of America: Sociological Analyses and Essays (Legacies of Social Thought Series) (For four decades, Herbert J. Gans has been one of the lea...)
- Middle American Individualism: The Future of Liberal Democracy by Herbert J. Gans (1988-02-03)
Herbert J. Gans
Edit ProfileEducation
Bachelor of Philosophy, University Chicago, 1947. Master of Arts, University Chicago, 1950. Doctor of Philosophy, University Pennsylvania, 1957.
Doctor of Science (honorary), University Pennsylvania, 2003.
Career
Planner private public planning agencies, Chicago and Washington, 1950—1953. From lecturer to associate professor urban studies and planning University Pennsylvania, 1953—1964. From associate professor to adjunct professor sociology Teachers College, Columbia, also senior staff scientist Center Urban Education, 1964—1969.
Professor sociology and planning Massachusetts Institute of Technology, also Massachusetts Institute of Technology-Harvard Joint Center for Urban Studies, 1969—1971. Professor sociology, Ford Foundation Urban chair Columbia University, since 1971, Robert S. Lynd professor sociology, 1985—2007, Robert S. Lynd professor emeritus, since 2007. Film critic Social Policy magazine, 1971—1978.
Senior fellow Gannett Center Media Studies, 1985—1986, Media Studies Center, 1996—1997. Visiting scholar Russell Sage Foundation, 1989—1990. Consultant Ford Foundation, Department of Health, National Advisory Commission Civil Disorders.
With United States Army, 1945-1946.
Achievements
Works
book
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Popular Culture and High Culture: An Analysis and Evaluation Of Taste
( Is NYPD Blue a less valid form of artistic expression t...)
-
Middle American Individualism: Political Participation and Liberal Democracy
(Written by one America's most eminent sociologists, this ...)
-
People, Plans, and Policies
(The primary theme of this collection of essays is that th...)
-
{ MAKING SENSE OF AMERICA: SOCIOLOGICAL ANALYSES AND ESSAYS (LEGACIES OF SOCIAL THOUGHT) } Gans, Herbert ( AUTHOR ) Feb-24-1999 Paperback
(Making Sense of America: Sociological Analyses and Essays...)
-
The urban villagers: Group and class in the life of Italian-Americans
(This book is a report of participant-observation study of...)
-
The Levittowners: Ways of Life and Politics in a New Suburban Community (Sociology: Lost and Found)
(In his previous books Allen Guttmann has provided incisiv...)
-
The War Against The Poor: The Underclass And Antipoverty Policy
( In his withering dissection of the origins and misuse o...)
-
Urban Villagers: Group and Class in the Life of Italian-Americans
(A sociological study of the native-born Americans of Ital...)
-
The urban villagers: Group and class in the life of Italian-Americans
(A sociological study of the native-born Americans of Ital...)
-
The Levittowners: Ways of Life and Politics in a New Suburban Community (Legacy Editions)
(In 1955, Levitt and Sons purchased most of Willingboro To...)
-
Democracy and the News
(American democracy was founded on the belief that ultimat...)
-
The Urban Villagers: Group and Class in the Life of Italian-Americans
(Urban Villagers, The: Group and Class in the Life of Ital...)
-
The Levittowners: Ways of Life and Politics in a New Suburban Community
(Sociology, Political Studies, Urban Studies)
-
Making Sense of America: Sociological Analyses and Essays (Legacies of Social Thought Series)
(For four decades, Herbert J. Gans has been one of the lea...)
-
More equality
(1973 HARDCOVER w/DUST JACKET)
-
Making Sense of America: Sociological Analyses and Essays (Legacies of Social Thought Series)
(For four decades, Herbert J. Gans has been one of the lea...)
-
The War Against The Poor: The Underclass And Antipoverty Policy by Gans, Herbert (1996) Paperback
(New.Fast shipping. We do our best to give you high qualit...)
- The Urban Villagers: Group and Class
- Urban Villagers
- The Levittowners: Ways of Life and Politics in a New Suburban Community by Herbert J. Gans (1982) Paperback
- Making Sense of America: Sociological Analyses and Essays (Legacies of Social Thought Series) by Gans, Herbert J. (1999) Paperback
- More Equality: How the United State Can Reduce Inequalities if income wealth and political power
- Urban Villagers: Group and Class in the Life of Italian-Americans by Herbert J. Gans (1982-06-01)
- The Levittowners: Ways of Life and Politics in a New Suburban Community (Sociology: Lost and Found) by Herbert J. Gans (1982-10-15)
- People, Plans, and Policies: Essays on Poverty, Racism, and Other National Urban Problems (Columbia History of Urban Life) Paperback June 16, 1994
- The Levittowners: How People Live and Politics in Suburbia
- The urban villagers;: Group and class in the life of Italian-Americans
- Making Sense of America: Sociological Analyses and Essays (Legacies of Social Thought Series) by Herbert J. Gans (1999-01-01)
- People, Plans, and Policies by Gans, Herbert (1991) Hardcover
- Urban Villagers Group & Class in the Life of Italian-Americans
- Making Sense of America: Sociological Analyses and Essays (Legacies of Social Thought Series) by Gans, Herbert J. (January 1, 1999) Hardcover
- Middle American Individualism: The Future of Liberal Democracy by Herbert J. Gans
- Middle American Individualism: The Future of Liberal Democracy 1st edition by Gans, Herbert J. (1988) Hardcover
- Middle American Individualism: Political Participation and Liberal Democracy by Gans, Herbert J. (1991) Paperback
- Middle American Individualism: The Future of Liberal Democracy by Herbert J. Gans (1988-02-03)
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Popular Culture and High Culture: An Analysis and Evaluation Of Taste
Membership
Board directors Americans for Democratic Action, 1969—1975, Metropolitan Action Institute (formerly Suburban Action Institute), 1974—1985, Working Today, since 1995, National Jobs for All Coalition, since 1996. Fellow: American Academy Arts and Sciences. Member: Sociological Research Association, Eastern Sociological Society (president 1972, Merit award 1995), German Sociological Association (honorary), American Sociological Association (executive council 1968-1971, president 1988, Lynd award for Lifetime Contribution to Research Community and Urban Sociology section 1992, Public Understanding Sociology award 1999, Distinguished Career award International Migration Section 2004, Career of Distinguished Scholarship award 2006).
Connections
Married Louise Gruner, March 19, 1967. 1 child David.
