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College of Central Florida -Michelle Kudelka
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Subjects: Controversial Issues
Types of Resources
Nonpartisan Websites for Voting Information
Books
For physical books about political parties and political history, you can browse the Ocala Campus and Citrus Campus libraries' shelves using the call numbers on the book spines in sections JC through JK.
Other subjects that might be helpful: media and misinformation, specific voting issues, i.e. gun control or abortion, and the history of voting rights and the democratic process.
See below for some example titles. Click the link to visit the book's record in the catalog and request it.
The Vanishing Voter by
The disputed presidential election of 2000 highlighted a range of flaws in the American voting system, from ballot procedures to alleged voter intimidation to questions about the fairness of the Electoral College. But as Harvard University political scientist Thomas E. Patterson shows, one problem dwarfs all of these, a predicament that has been increasing since the 1960s and threatens the very foundations of our democracy: fewer and fewer Americans participate in elections. They are less likely to vote, less likely to contribute money to campaigns, and less likely to talk about candidates. They even are less likely to tune in the televised presidential debates. In 1960, 63 percent of Americans voted in the presidential election; in 2000, only 51 percent did. In 1996, more Americans abstained than voted. This decline is surprising not only in itself--America, as our politicians never tire of telling us, is a standard-bearer for democracy--but also because it contradicts the received wisdom about voting patterns: the number of college graduates has risen, racial bars to voting have fallen, and registration laws have been simplified. Yet, even as the United States has made balloting easier and has produced more citizens who, judged by their educational achievements, should vote, the percentage of voters has decreased. Patterson, whose landmark study Out of Order examined the effects of media saturation on the democratic process, takes a clear-eyed look at this situation. Based on more than 80,000 interviews conducted during the 2000 presidential campaign, The Vanishing Voter reveals the political sources of voter discontent. Patterson explains the parts that changes in partisan politics, media coverage, candidate strategy, and electoral reform have played in discouraging voters from going to the polls. And he suggests specific remedies for repairing the process. Thoughtful and timely, The Vanishing Voter contains a crucial message for all who care about democracy.
Call Number: JK1967 .P375 2002ISBN: 0375414061Publication Date: 2002
Gaming the Vote by
Gaming the Vote is a must-read for anyone interested in the process and outcomes of voting. Poundstone gives a clear and remarkably accurate account of the rich theoretical literature.2. . . His examples of voting anomalies in real elections are both lively and revealing. --Kenneth J. Arrow, 1972 Nobel Prize winner in Economic Science.
Call Number: JK1976 .P68 2008ISBN: 9780809048939Publication Date: 2008
Becoming Right by
How divergent campus cultures affect conservative college students Conservative pundits allege that the pervasive liberalism of America's colleges and universities has detrimental effects on undergraduates, most particularly right-leaning ones. Yet not enough attention has actually been paid to young conservatives to test these claims--until now. In Becoming Right, Amy Binder and Kate Wood carefully explore who conservative students are, and how their beliefs and political activism relate to their university experiences. Rich in interviews and insight, Becoming Right illustrates that the diverse conservative movement evolving among today's college students holds important implications for the direction of American politics.
Call Number: JC573.2 .U6 B53 2013ISBN: 9780691145372Publication Date: 2013
Liberalism and Its Discontents by
A short book about the challenges to liberalism from the right and the left by the bestselling author of The Origins of Political Order. Classical liberalism is in a state of crisis. Developed in the wake of Europe's wars over religion and nationalism, liberalism is a system for governing diverse societies, which is grounded in fundamental principles of equality and the rule of law. It emphasizes the rights of individuals to pursue their own forms of happiness free from encroachment by government. It's no secret that liberalism didn't always live up to its own ideals. In America, many people were denied equality before the law. Who counted as full human beings worthy of universal rights was contested for centuries, and only recently has this circle expanded to include women, African Americans, LGBTQ+ people, and others. Conservatives complain that liberalism empties the common life of meaning. As the renowned political philosopher Francis Fukuyama shows in Liberalism and Its Discontents, the principles of liberalism have also, in recent decades, been pushed to new extremes by both the right and the left: neoliberals made a cult of economic freedom, and progressives focused on identity over human universality as central to their political vision. The result, Fukuyama argues, has been a fracturing of our civil society and an increasing peril to our democracy. In this short, clear account of our current political discontents, Fukuyama offers an essential defense of a revitalized liberalism for the twenty-first century.
Call Number: JC574 .F85 2022ISBN: 9780374606718Publication Date: 2022
Misbelief by
"In this thoughtful, moving, and well-written book, Dan Ariely narrates his personal and professional journey to understand the world of misbelievers and conspiracy theories, and offers insights and tips that will hopefully help all of us protect our fragile social fabric from being torn apart by disinformation and distrust."--Yuval Harari, bestselling author of Sapiens "Misbelief is an urgent examination of the human attraction to misinformation. This timely book can provide a crucial foundation for building a more empathetic and informed society."--Daniel H. Pink, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Power of Regret The renowned social scientist, professor, and bestselling author of Predictably Irrational delivers his most urgent and compelling book--an eye-opening exploration of the human side of the misinformation crisis--examining what drives otherwise rational people to adopt deeply irrational beliefs. Misinformation affects all of us on a daily basis--from social media to larger political challenges, from casual conversations in supermarkets, to even our closest relationships. While we recognize the dangers that misinformation poses, the problem is complex--far beyond what policing social media alone can achieve--and too often our limited solutions are shaped by partisan politics and individual interpretations of truth. In Misbelief, preeminent social scientist Dan Ariely argues that to understand the irrational appeal of misinformation, we must first understand the behavior of "misbelief"--the psychological and social journey that leads people to mistrust accepted truths, entertain alternative facts, and even embrace full-blown conspiracy theories. Misinformation, it turns out, appeals to something innate in all of us--on the right and the left--and it is only by understanding this psychology that we can blunt its effects. Grounded in years of study as well as Ariely's own experience as a target of disinformation, Misbelief is an eye-opening and comprehensive analysis of the psychological drivers that cause otherwise rational people to adopt deeply irrational beliefs. Utilizing the latest research, Ariely reveals the key elements--emotional, cognitive, personality, and social--that drive people down the funnel of false information and mistrust, showing how under the right circumstances, anyone can become a misbeliever. Yet Ariely also offers hope. Even as advanced artificial intelligence has become capable of generating convincing fake news stories at an unprecedented scale, he shows that awareness of these forces fueling misbelief make us, as individuals and as a society, more resilient to its allure. Combating misbelief requires a strategy rooted not in conflict, but in empathy. The sooner we recognize that misbelief is above all else a human problem, the sooner we can become the solution ourselves.
Call Number: BF773 .A75 2023ISBN: 9780063280427Publication Date: 2023
eBooks
You can access eBooks in the library catalog. Here is an example search. eBooks can be partially or fully downloaded, and have accessibility options for reading and listening.
The slides below are a sampling of relevant eBooks. Click to access.
