Word: civics
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...choice is still met with negative responses. People who focus on the right to vote as the foundation upon which political participation is built are making a mistake. They claim that I forfeit my right to be critical of future administrations. And they misunderstand the concept of a civic society. It has to be argued that voting in the current presidential election may not produce any worthwhile results and that other forms of political participation would allow us to avoid having to choose between the lesser of two evils. Most Americans want to choose between the greater of two goods...
...media cause many to believe that voter turnout percentages in the low thirties mean that democracy cannot or does not work. They are right. However, low voter turnout is not bad in itself and is only symptomatic of a greater problem. I am asserting that not participating in the civic society creates a vicious cycle. If citizens do not or cannot participate, then they will not vote because they do not see positive results from their elected representatives. And, of course, they will not see positive results unless they participate in the civic society regularly as civic society was designed...
Even though voting is as sacred as a civic action could possibly be, protest, volunteer work, editorial writing and contributions to parties and candidates are more individual and personal than merely checking a box on the ballot. These acts, more so than voting, tend to promote the interests of the people because good public servants listen to effective citizens who work year-round to keep important issues visible. Imagine the problems of the election year. Common sense legislation gets lost and many politicians do their best to cater to polls of likely voters. If our aim is to be able...
...Bill Moyers is a very different kind of believer from Steve Fintel or, for that matter, Burton Visotzky. For one thing, Moyers' belief has an extremely well-exercised civic aspect. "What I have sought for 25 years to put on television is the conversation of democracy," he says. Although that conversation has been eclectic, with shows ranging from the cia to the black family, Moyers is convinced that "nonsectarian, nonseparationist" religious talk is an essential component. Repeatedly, while promoting the new series, he tells audiences, "We have to decide all over again our identity as a people. Religion belongs...
...Today is also seen as a bad influence on many big-city newsrooms. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, for example, now bans front-page stories that jump to another page, which means major news events must be covered in a paltry 150 words or so. Many papers have shifted to civic, or public, journalism, an increasingly popular but controversial editorial policy in which newspapers attempt to respond more closely to the needs and interests of the communities they cover, using focus groups and reader polls. "To the extent that public journalism weans reporters from political insiders and forces them to talk...