Effects of the Media on the California Recall Election
What the Recall Election Means for the Presidential Election
From rags to riches, Conan to the Terminator, actor to governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger has lived a very adventurous life recently turning into the political realm. Now, as the governor of California, Schwarzenegger has a tremendous task on his hands. California is currently experiencing a crisis in its budget and economy as well as an energy problem. These issues and others were the reason Republicans pushed for a vote to have an election to possibly recall the former governor Gray Davis. Many factors contributed to the way Californians voted. Some of these factors were the media, name recognition, the other candidates, the local situation, the national situation, and much more.
In this paper I will attempt to answer why and how some of these factors had such a huge effect on the recall election. I will especially look into the mechanics of the media the way this influenced the election. I will then use this examination of the California recall election to try to come to some conclusions and offer further speculation about how Americans will vote in the 2004 presidential election.
Reasons For Recall
Some people will say that the special recall election was a populist uprising against a leader who was ineffective. They say that the recall is an example of democracy at its best, proof that government works for the people and that the ultimate power rests in the hands of the citizens. Other people do not believe the recall was anything so noble. They see it as a dirty tactic waged by a few political extremists, and that it actually dealt a blow to democracy in California.
The true reason for the recall was in fact probably somewhere in between. The recall was pioneered by a handful of conservatives that decided to take a chance and try to use the large power given to the California electorate to their advantage. They believed that even though Gray Davis had been re-elected just a few months before, there was enough dissatisfaction with his job performance to potentially remove him from office. They started collecting signatures. By the early summer of 2003, it became clear that they were going to succeed in getting the necessary signatures to mandate a special election and give voters the opportunity to recall the sitting governor.
James J. Rawls perspective of the California Dream consists of promise and paradox. People from all over move to California in hopes of finding opportunity and success. However California cannot fulfill people’s expectations.
Lewis Carroll demonstrates paradoxes within Alice and Wonderland as Alice is tossed within an entirely different world. Yet one of the greatest paradoxes is the transformation of Alice over the course of the novel as well as the transformation of the duchess. Alice begins as an ignorant child; she has difficulties in morphing to the logic and needs of Wonder...
The Victorian Age was the time period named after England’s Queen Victoria, who ruled from 1837 to 1901. Her attitude was a severely dull and strict one, which rapidly spread over the rest of Britain. The British were afraid to talk about anything close to being unsuitable, and they treasured childhood as a time where there were no worries or responsibilities. Although the youthful period was valued, children were better left to be seen, and not heard. They were encouraged to grow up as fast as possible and taught to mind their manners with extremely strict discipline.Besides the obvious, the way and language Alice was written in, Victorian culture appears in almost every turn of the page. Alice is shaped because of the use of her manners in the book toward elder strangers. Despite the fact, as she gets deeper into wonderland, she seems to become frustrated and forgets to be polite. The ever so popular tea party appears when Alice, the M...
The author provides a couple of interesting evidences about land and liberty in California. The first thing that I found interesting is a story about Governor Echeandia and his administration. He arrived in California and formed study groups back in 1825. This actually got some young men involved and excited about the ideas of liberty and equality. An ironic fact is that male children born to original settlers and presidial soldiers maintained control over the concerns in California, which in today’s society is hard to believe.
...gainst his appeal. Unlike four years earlier, Brown was competing against a polished figure not like the dark tragic Nixon. He was unable to show voters he was the man for the challenges California faced in 1966 and beyond specifically with the civil unrest and violence on campuses throughout the state. On November 8, 1966 voters spoke loudly giving Reagan a margin of victory of more than a million votes.
This project's purpose of this project, not only united the Californians who had been otherwise
Peter Schrag presents the ills of California?fs current politics in an angry and persuasive tone. He says California used to be ?gboth model and magnet for the nation—in its economic opportunities, its social outlook, and its high-quality public services and institutes?h; however, California started to fade after the passage of Proposition 13, the initiative of tax limits (7). Schrag?fs work clearly shows what is the problem in today?fs California, and it is easy to understand even for those who have little knowledge of politics. By focusing on issues of ?gneopopulism?h which is easy to find in California?fs diversity, he succeeds in giving his readers the sense of crisis not only about California?fs politics, but also the national wide politics because California is the place ?gwhere the new American society is first coming into full view?h (23). Schrag says, about California politics, that: For nearly a generation, there has been increasing focus among scholars, politicians, and journalists on the growing gaps in California—ethic, social, economic—between those who exercise political power and the larger population, and particularly those who are the most immediate users of its public services. What has gotten little discussion is the dynamic of the plebiscitary process itself. While it?fs ad hoc in nature—each measure is decided by voters on its own apparent merits without much reference to the wider context—it has a larger cumulative effect through which statewide majorities restrict the powers of local political majorities, which are often nonwhite. Almost by definition, it is also a device of impulse that tends to be only marginally respectful of minority rights or interests, and that lends itself to demagogic wedge campaigns designed to boost voter turnout for other political purpose. (21) Schrag divides his project into five sections. The middle sections, ?gThe Spirit of 13,?h and ?gMarch of the Plebiscites,?h in which he carefully discusses each important measure in the last two decades, show why so many issues rose. In the first section, ?gGolden Moment,?h Schrag describes ?gCalifornia?fs heyday of post-World War ‡U optimism?h and how it crumbled. Citations from magazines prove that California was a really paradise even from the nationwide view. Schrag also notices that the demographic change deeply relates to California?fs politics in the last t...
..., Kevin. “Public Education Devastated by California”. World Socialist Web Site. 05. June. 2009. http://www.wsws.org/articles/2009/jun2009/cali-j05.shtml
California was one of the states that were mostly hit hard by the economic collapse of the 1930s where its economy had grown considerably in the 1920s. The 1920s represented a period in California that was punctuated by massive economic growth and a period of boom and bust where people were employed and lived better lives. It came as great shock when these good times were followed by the great depression which represented an economic decline which shook not only California but also the world as well. The period of the 1920s represented an economic boom in California represented by industries expanding and new ones being created. This meant that jobs were created hence the overall rate of unemployment in the state was low as compared to other states in America. Despite the growth in its economy, there was the unequal distribution of wealth whereby the economy concentrated too much of its wealth on profits and too little on wages. This meant that people could not afford the very products they were producing and the large unsold products weakened the economy and made it
SparkNotes Editors. “SparkNote on Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.” SparkNotes.com. SparkNotes LLC. 2005. Web. 30 Oct. 2013.
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is a story that has been loved and read by different age groups. Lewis Carroll wrote the book in such a way that the reader, young or old, could be trapped into Alice’s world of adventure. The illustrations by John Tenniel help portray the story beautifully. Tenniel put pictures to Carroll’s thoughts exactly. When a student reads Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland for the first time, it is always great if he or she could be introduced to his illustrations. However, it is a good idea for teachers to bring in different portals of Alice to help show how other people may view this little girl’s world. In addition, it will show that even though Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland has been written many years ago, people are still relating to Alice’s character. Overall, it is amazing to see how many different illustrators have portrayed Alice in a totally new and modern way, such Greg Hildebrandt. I decided to use Greg Hildebrandt’s illustrations to assist me in teaching about Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland because he portrays Alice as a much older looking girl. I believe this will help students understand how Alice’s character seemed older than seven years of age. He also depicts some of the characters as more humanlike than cartoon. I believe this will help students picture themselves into Alice’s world. In addition, Hildebrandt helps portray the bizarre story line that many people have come to love.
The story of the curious little girl named Alice was a late arrival to the fairy tale scene; yet many still consider this strange tale a classic. The beloved classic story of Alice in Wonderland has a place in many childhoods, and some adults’ lives. As many other fairy tales, Alice in Wonderland has been re-imagined time and time again. Disney has made sure this will be a story to be remembered for years to come. Nevertheless, I will be discussing two of the more obscure re-imaginings of this story; one from the comic world of DC’s Batman, and the other from music world. But first, before those can be explored, some history must be shed on this story.
When the story of Alice’s Adventure in Wonderland began Alice seemed very childlike as she was distracted easily and acted very curiously as most children tend to. These characteristics led her
Although the novel is notorious for its satire and parodies, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland main theme is the transition between childhood and adulthood. Moreover, Alice’s adventures illustrate the perplexing struggle between child and adult mentalities as she explores the curious world of development know as Wonderland. From the beginning in the hallway of doors, Alice stands at an awkward disposition. The hallway contains dozens of doors that are all locked. Alice’s pre-adolescent stage parallels with her position in the hallway. Alice’s position in the hallway represents that she is at a stage stuck between being a child and a young woman. She posses a small golden key to ...
Tomato is one of the most popular homegrown fruit plant; it goes by many names such as wolf apple, tamata, love apple, among others. Their exist many varieties and classifications of tomatoes among them are Roma, Cherokee purples, and Creole, and varieties such as heirloom, red tomatoes and cherry and grape tomatoes. Tomatoes typically take between 75 and 95 days to mature; a healthy tomato yield requires the plantation of a variety of the plant. Homegrown tomato fruits are usually just as fresh as the ones grown in the garden.