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Loading... The Culture of Fear: Why Americans Are Afraid of the Wrong Things (original 2000; edition 2000)by Barry Glassner
Work InformationThe Culture of Fear: Why Americans Are Afraid of the Wrong Things by Barry Glassner (2000)
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. Started reading this as an ebook of the original edition from the Open Library, saw the new edition on my public library's shelves and grabbed it to read the updates. This is a terrifyingly clear look at the way news media (and the politicians who manipulate it) focuses our cultural fear onto the wrong things, thus preventing us from appropriately addressing the things that really are dangerous (namely driving, guns, poverty, guns, prejudice, and guns). Not terribly useful if you have ever read anything else in a similar vein. The author switches topics rapidly, citing statistics and using anecdotes which are probably just as dubious as the ones he questions. He has a thesis of sorts; that these unreal fears are frequently proxies for the real problems people don't want to face. They tend to be simpler, and easier to think about; and consequently what people want to read about. This is probably why I ignore the news, because I get disgusted by these simple-minded, tear-jerking stories. Mostly a data-dump; emblematic of the failure of American discourse in the 1990s in that it's mostly an exercise in finger-pointing at people on the other side of the political aisle. It does not provide an analysis of deep reasons the politics work the way they do... the best word to describe it is trivial, in the sense of being made up of trivia. no reviews | add a review
The bestselling book revealing why Americans are so fearful, and why we fear the wrong things-now updated for the age of Trump In the age of Trump, our society is defined by fear. Indeed, three out of four Americans say they feel more fearful today than they did only a couple decades ago. But are we living in exceptionally perilous times? In his bestselling book The Culture of Fear, sociologist Barry Glassner demonstrates that it is our perception of danger that has increased, not the actual level of risk. Glassner exposes the people and organizations that manipulate our perceptions and profit from our fears: politicians who win elections by heightening concerns about crime and drug use even as rates for both are declining; advocacy groups that raise money by exaggerating the prevalence of particular diseases; TV shows that create a new scare every week to garner ratings. Glassner spells out the prices we pay for social panics: the huge sums of money that go to waste on unnecessary programs and products as well as time and energy spent worrying about our fears. All the while, we are distracted from the true threats, from climate change to worsening inequality. In this updated edition of a modern classic, Glassner examines the current panics over vaccination and "political correctness" and reveals why Donald Trump's fearmongering is so dangerously effective. No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)302.17Social sciences Social Sciences; Sociology and anthropology Social Interaction General topics of social interaction Social dysfunctionLC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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People begin to see the things that they fear. Perhaps, we are all hypochondriacs at some level.
I have laughed at myself at this weakness, but I think we all have it. When exposed enough to an idea (fear), we will believe it.
Trust but verify.
Sex sells but fear may sell even better.
Finally, I know so much less than I thought I did after reading this book. We all really do. ( )