Culture Wars Research Articles

Who is responsible for fixing the food system? A framing analysis of media reactions to the UK's National Food Strategy

PurposeHigh levels of child obesity alongside rising stunting and the absence of a coherent food policy have deemed UK’s food system to be broken. The National Food Strategy (NFS) was debated intensely in media, with discussions on how and who should fix the food system.Design/methodology/approachUsing a mixed methods approach, the authors conduct framing analysis on traditional media and sentiment analysis of twitter reactions to the NFS to identify frames used to shape food system policy interventions.FindingsThe study finds evidence that the media coverage of the NFS often utilised the tropes of “culture wars” shaping the debate of who is responsible to fix the food system – the government, the public or the industry. NFS recommendations were portrayed as issues of free choice to shift the debate away from government action correcting for market failure. In contrast, the industry was showcased as equipped to intervene on its own accord. Dietary recommendations made by the NFS were depicted as hurting the poor, painting a picture of helplessness and loss of control, while their voices were omitted and not represented in traditional media.Social implicationsBritish media’s alignment with free market economic thinking has implications for food systems reform, as it deters the government from acting and relies on the invisible hand of the market to fix the system. Media firms should move beyond tropes of culture wars to discuss interventions that reform the structural causes of the UK’s broken food systems.Originality/valueAs traditional media coverage struggles to capture the diversity of public perception; the authors supplement framing analysis with sentiment analysis of Twitter data. To the best of our knowledge, no such media (and social media) analysis of the NFS has been conducted. The paper is also original as it extends our understanding of how media alignment with free market economic thinking has implications for food systems reform, as it deters the government from acting and relies on the invisible hand of the market to fix the system.

The 'Courant Hilton': building the mathematical sciences at New York University.

This essay explores how mid-twentieth-century mathematicians at New York University envisioned their discipline, cultural identities and social roles, and how these self-constructed identities materialized in the planning of their new academic building, Warren Weaver Hall. These mathematicians considered their research to be a 'living part of the stream of science', requiring a mathematics research library which they equated to a scientific laboratory and a complex of computing rooms which served as an interdisciplinary research centre. Identifying as 'scientists', they understood their societal value to be that of researchers, outputting mathematics research valuable to the natural sciences, the emerging field of computer science and the United States government and military, as well as educators. When the building opened in 1965, it was touted by the university administration as an 'example of excellence'; it later, in 1970, became the site of heated negotiations when university student and faculty protestors staged a sit-in rebuking the Atomic Energy Commission's Computing Center housed on the second floor. A close study of the correspondence between the mathematicians and their peers in the university's administration, private foundations, government agencies and an architectural firm not only illuminates the day-to-day work practices of this eminent group of mathematicians, but also sheds light on their own self-constructed academic and social identities within their contemporaneous Cold War culture.

Extended commentary—Keeping the republic: A vision for America

AbstractThe United States is enduring an identity crisis characterized by a polarized political climate precipitating an American culture war. In this battle the Republican Party has been overtaken by “Anti‐wokeism” allied with antidemocratic “states' rights” beliefs claiming an exclusive, antipluralist definition of republic. The extremist right in America insists that America is not a democracy, but a “republic” built to respect the status of a minority characterized as white, nationalist and Christian. “Anti‐wokeism” is an extension of Trumpism and MAGA (Make America Great Again), gathering together antidemocratic forces, fueled by resentment and theories of racial displacement known as the Great Replacement Theory. These forces are overwhelming the modern Republican Party, inspiring homophobia, misogyny, racism, book bans, and violence. This essay addresses the following four elements of this crisis with an eye to a renewed vision of America: (1) the difference between an 18th Century and 21st Century definition of a republic; (2) the antidemocratic states' rights movement; (3) the nature of strongman populism in American politics; and (4) a vision of diversity as the core principle of the American Republic.

Public Health in the Crosshairs of Culture Wars

This JAMA Forum discusses the topics of reproductive rights, transgender care, firearm safety, and COVID-19 vaccines in the context of public health and the political climate in the US.

The Cultural Erosion: Post-Colonial Discourse in Achebe's Things Fall Apart

The purpose of this research is to examine the erosion of cultural identity of Igbo society as a result of British colonization. It also looks at the colonial hegemony enforced by institutions of the church, judiciary, medical system, and education in Igbo society. The peaceful Igbo village descends into chaos as the protagonist's son disobeys his father and mocks the idea of brotherhood by converting himself into Christianity. The impact of colonialism and the supremacy of European culture destroys the social harmony of Igbo society. As a result, despite the struggle and sacrifice of true lover of original culture, the rich cultural legacy continues to collapse. A post-colonial social narrative raises questions to the aboriginal Igbo culture that was originally shaped by a variety of cultural ethos. The community experiences a significant transformation while the true followers original culture struggle with the shifting dynamics of relationships. The traditional lifestyle of the Igbo people is disrupted and challenged by European civilization. As they resist the changes imposed by the colonizers, the indigenous people's identity changes.

Post-Colonial Discourse in Achebe's Things Fall Apart

This study aims at revealing Igbo society and the decline of its cultural identity as a result of British colonialism and the hegemony imposed through judicial, medical, educational, and church-missionary institutions. When the protagonist's son betrays his father and the brothers ridicule the concept of brotherhood by becoming Christians, the peaceful Igbo community gets turned into anarchy. The harmony of the Igbo community was destroyed by the effects of colonialism and the supremacy of European culture. Consequently, the rich cultural heritage collapses and crumbles despite constant resistance and sacrifice of a sincere lover of native culture. Post-colonial social narrative, a narration of society, postulates the issues of presentation, expression and evocation of a community which is preliminarily structured by a number of cultural ethos, now it has been contaminated by colonial power. The community experiences a significant transformation while the true followers original culture struggle with the shifting dynamics of relationships. European civilization interferes and challenges the traditional way of life of the Igbo people. Identity of the indigenous people gets reshaped as they fight against the changes imposed by the colonists.

From unity in diversity to culture wars? Aceh women's mastery over Adat, Islam, and the state inheritance laws

This article explores “Asian values” and conflicts purported by normative pluralism in Asia from an anthropological approach. Instead of a zero-sum narrative of culture wars, this article proposes a narrative of social order through public reasoning that takes value plurality into account. This article contextualizes the concept of value in a specific social and cultural context as a query to the abstract, homogenizing nature of the concept itself. What happens when religious and state civil laws prescribe certain family values and behaviors, but the same values and behaviors are nonetheless culturally unjustified? This article is based on an anthropological analysis of Muslim women's perspectives in Banda Aceh. The study of inheritance law aims to provide a forum for evaluating legal engagements in a culture characterized by competing and contradictory values, such as in Aceh. The Acehnese hold legal pluralism: Adat, Shari'a, and state civil laws. Acehnese's choices of Adat, Shari'a, or civil laws are influenced by her social relationships and belongings. From an Acehnese standpoint, no single law has complete control over what is good and improper about inheritance. What is clear from the Aceh context is that the state is not the sole provider and protector of rights and justice. Aceh people use the state law and Shari'a law as a last resort when parties with no mutual interest have conflicting claims regarding inheritance. Further, the Acehnese promote public reasoning in which the plurality of laws are valued equally and one's coercion is consistent with one's respect for others.

Beyond the Shadow of Adults—Youth, Adultism, and Human Rights in the Contemporary Faroe Islands

This article discusses young people’s human rights situation in the Faroe Islands today by addressing youth participation issues from a cultural adultism perspective. It argues that the local cultural values and intergenerational relations in the family influence the multilayered and shifting nature of ‘Faroese adultism’. My purpose is to explore the ways through which young people are challenging adultism in their everyday life practices: what do they intend to change and what do they wish to sustain in their cultural struggle? This article is mainly based on empirical data from focus group discussions with young participants. The findings reveal that young people from the Faroe Islands—located in the Nordic Atlantic—do not consider adultism to have a negative impact on their wellbeing. This article, relying on theoretical scholarship and ideas from youth studies and island studies, contributes to a more nuanced understanding of human rights in the context of a small (family-oriented) island community in cultural and social transformation.

Faith in Science: Religion and Climate Change Attitudes in the Middle East

Abstract The Middle East is facing many challenges because of climate change: extreme heat, recurring droughts, water salinization, and more. Yet little is known about how people in the region perceive the threat of climate change or about the factors associated with perceiving it as more or less of a threat. This study utilizes the Arab Barometer surveys and examines how religion influences climate change perceptions among 13,700 people across twelve countries. Contrary to arguments in the literature, Muslims tend to be less concerned about climate change compared to Christians. Yet all Middle Easterners with a strong sense of religiosity are more concerned about climate change relative to their counterparts. Political attitudes also matter. Religious Muslims who endorse Islamist government are less concerned than secular Muslims, suggesting a “culture war” on the issue. These findings show that religion exerts a nuanced and unexpected influence on how people evaluate the climate change crisis.

云南省抗战遗址的数字化保护价值及路径

The Anti-Japanese War site in Yunnan is an important content in the history of Chinese Anti-Japanese War cultural heritage, which highlights the patriotic feelings of the Chinese nation and the great “Yunnan Anti- Japanese War spirit”. It is of great historical value and practical significance to make good use of the resources of Anti-Japanese War sites, carry forward the spirit of patriotism and keep the red blood. On the basis of understanding the value of Anti-Japanese War sites in Yunnan, strengthening the digital protection of Anti-Japanese War sites and constructing the digital memory of Anti-Japanese War culture should focus on the value orientation: the transmission of red memory; Transfer of technology: extension of cultural resources; The construction of information database: three aspects of active storage to promote, in order to realize the active heritage of Yunnan Anti-Japanese War sites.

Policy Dialogue: The Meaning and Purpose of Public Education

AbstractPublic education, at least as it has been known for the past several generations in the US, is under threat. Conservative state legislatures from Arizona to Florida have enacted sweeping voucher legislation, channeling taxpayer dollars to private schools. At the same time, a vicious culture war has engulfed the public education system in controversy, creating new political opportunities for ideologues and opponents. In this context, the editorial team at HEQ felt it important to reflect on why we have public schools in the first place. What are they good for and what should be taught? Whom should they serve, and who should govern them?For this policy dialogue, we asked Carol Burris and Johann Neem to discuss the past, present, and future of open-enrollment, taxpayer-supported public schools. Carol Burris is the executive director of the Network for Public Education Foundation and the author of several books. Prior to that role, Dr. Burris was a classroom teacher and a high school principal, earning educator of the year and principal of the year awards. Johann Neem is a professor at Western Washington University and a historian of the early American republic. The author of several books, including Democracy’s Schools: The Rise of Public Education in America, Dr. Neem is also a member of HEQ’s editorial board.HEQ policy dialogues are, by design, intended to promote an informal, free exchange of ideas between scholars. At the end of the exchange, we offer a list of references for readers who wish to follow up on sources relevant to the discussion.

Will psychedelic research and the ‘psychedelic renaissance’ create another generational divide?

Will psychedelic research and the ‘psychedelic renaissance’ create another generational divide? Erika Dyck, Canada Research Chair in History of Health & Social Justice at the University of Saskatchewan, discusses changing attitudes to psychedelics and the challenges in forming a strong evidence base from available psychedelic research. As psychedelics re-emerge in the 21st century, their storied past continues to haunt their future. Tales have circulated of their entanglement in unethical medical research and implication in violent behaviours, including suicides and homicides. Psychedelics have even been blamed for turning an entire generation of young people to question authority and the values of a post-World War culture. Are psychedelics really to blame for these social divisions? I do not think that psychedelics are the problem, but they may be a symptom.

Displacing perspectives on Renaissance: Cultural translation and the politics of Italian literature at the onset of the Cold War

ABSTRACT While the popularity achieved by several Italian cultural objects in the United States during the aftermath of World War Two has been largely acknowledged, the meanings these artefacts took on in their new cultural context are yet to be understood. To unravel the complex, multi-layered processes of cultural translation at play in transatlantic transfers at the onset of the Cold War, this article explores the U.S.-American reception of Italian culture from the vantage point of translated fiction. Retracing the public discourse around new Italian books in the United States means to recognize the emergence of a new framing narrative, that of a novel Renaissance taking place in Italy after the end of the Fascist period. Understanding the concept of a new Renaissance from a transnational perspective, at a time in which the public discourse was being reorganized across all media in response to the new geopolitical order, allows us to identify the politics of newly translated Italian fiction in the U.S. I argue that, through its framing, Italian fiction was made an ally in the cultural Cold War, coming to represent Western democracy, freedom, and creativity.

Democracy and Institutional Change in Times of Crises in Latin America

Latin American democracies have gone through a series of perfect storms over the recent years. In what ways have these challenges transformed the institutional infrastructure of democracy? How have institutional reforms impacted the democratic prospects? This review article analyzes four recent edited volumes that approach the problems of institutional change against the backdrop of the multiple crises unfolding throughout the region. It describes two modes through which the reforms of political institutions have had an ambivalent or outright negative effect on the quality of democracy, and assesses the resilience of political institutions. Arguing for a more prominent role of informal institutions and political parties in institutional analyses, the article suggests that changes in formal political institutions have had a limited impact vis-à-vis the profound changes in political cleavages, culture wars, swift changes in religious identities and the decline of political parties.

“‘We believe in education, not indoctrination’: Governor Ron DeSantis, critical race theory, and anti-intellectualism in Florida”

This article examines how Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ remarks contribute to anti-intellectualism and fuel the pushback against critical race theory (CRT) championed by like-minded conservative Republicans who view its instruction as an affront to society and authentic historical narratives. Dismissing educators and scholars who uphold the teaching of CRT as unpatriotic and denigrating to American society, DeSantis, who has presidential aspirations, has effectively used the issue (along with a number of other matters) to solidify his conservative base fearful of social and hegemonic change. Although CRT is not taught in Florida public schools, similar to other conservative-dominated states which have seized on the teaching of CRT as anathema to their civic principles, DeSantis’ thinly veiled attempt to appease right-wing voters is yet another example of Republicans stoking cultural wars designed to energize conservative constituents against what many of them perceive as liberal attacks on their beliefs and values.

The medicalization of the culture wars

ABSTRACT Communication and Critical/Cultural Studies was a product of the 9/11 era. In this article, I consider the ways the COVID-19 pandemic displaced 9/11 as the defining event of our time and, in the process, fundamentally altered the intellectual landscape for producing scholarship. The so-called culture wars provide a compelling case study for assessing this contextual transformation. Building on the writings of Paul Preciado, I engage the new-found emphasis on pharmaceutics and their role in the culture wars. I focus on three topoi cultivated from works published in CC/CS to explore these changes: those related to biopower, bureaucracy, and coalitional politics.

Durability in Inequality Discourse in the UK Public Sphere, 2008–2023

In this paper, we reflect on how the development and mutations of debates on economic inequality since 2008 reveal striking features regarding the nature and dynamics of the UK public sphere in a time of intersecting crises. We show how economic inequality is an important case study. We draw attention to the dynamic qualities of public debate in the period 2008–2015, in which there was major cross over between academic research, intellectual debate and public engagement. Even though this debate has become less vibrant since 2015 and has been substantially disrupted by “culture war” discourse, it has not been completely closed down. We argue that economic inequality issues have endured through the stabilisation by which key institutional agents have made it a central part of their field positioning. Our contribution is to offer a counterpart to pessimistic conceptions of the public sphere by drawing attention to the durability of economic inequality discussions even after the initiating crises which inspired these discussions have faded.

Introduction: about democratic discourse

ABSTRACT This essay introduces a twentieth anniversary forum reviewing the state of scholarship on communication as a critical/cultural study. It features democratic discourse as a main line of inquiry for pursuing a more just public culture, references relevant critical/cultural scholarship, and notes that forum contributors focus on matters of identity addressed in queer scholarship, including a current shift in the culture wars, and on constructions of race, articulations of whiteness, and issues of racism. Values of inclusion, rights, equality, and political agency engaged by these forum contributors are critical to the challenge of renewing democracy in a time of cultural turbulence.

Teenage Dreams: Girlhood Sexualities in the US Culture Wars by Charlie Jeffries (review)

Teenage Dreams: Girlhood Sexualities in the US Culture Wars by Charlie Jeffries (review)

Religious pressures on women's rights in Southeast Asia: Examining the right to an abortion in the Philippines, Malaysia, and Vietnam

This article aims to interrogate the “cultural wars” in Asia brought upon by rapid changes in gender roles in the world and the reactionary “return” to heteronormative families in Asia. For this article, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Vietnam were chosen for their diverse religious, cultural, and political definitions of the family and openness to global human rights discourses. As the article will show, despite the diversity of these three countries, one prevalent theme in access to abortions is the influence of religion. As one of the fastest growing regions in the world, Southeast Asia experienced a resurgence in religiosity in response to a change in economic and social relations over the past two decades. This growth took place thanks to active efforts by the state to manage population growth, often times through family planning efforts—including through providing access to abortions in some countries. But in a region where deeply entrenched stigmas are attached to abortions, nations treated abortions as a health imperative on the personal level, or a population control tool at the national level, but never as a personal right. Thus, as the role of religion in the region changes, becomes deeper and more personal, this article argues that pressures on safe abortion access becomes threatened. Through a socio-legal lens, this article will examine the legal right to an abortion in three Southeast Asian countries and argues that because abortions were primarily used as a tool for population control, and was not treated as fundamental right, the rise of religiosity in the region threatens precarious access to abortions in Southeast Asia.