David Dinkins and New York City Politics , livre ebook

256

pages

English

Ebooks

2012

Écrit par
Wilbur C. Rich

Publié par
State University of New York Press

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256

pages

English

Ebooks

2012

Lire un extrait

Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne En savoir plus

Publié par

State University of New York Press

Date de parution

01 février 2012

Nombre de lectures

EAN13

9780791480793

Langue

English

Poids de l'ouvrage

1 Mo

As the first African American elected mayor of New York City, David Dinkins underwent intense scrutiny—first from the black community, then from white liberal supporters, the media, and the city's electorate. Wilbur C. Rich focuses on the critical role played by the New York City media in the perception of mayoral leadership. Using interviews and words of journalists, Rich examines media coverage as both the architect and challenger of Dinkins' image. The making and unmaking of David Dinkins not only exposes much about the agency of African American politicians, but also reveals the fragility of electoral coalitions.

List of Illustrations
Preface
Acknowledgments

1. Introduction

2. The Making of a New York Black Politician: David Dinkins

3. David Dinkins and Regime Change

4. The Staffing of Dinkins’ City Hall

5. Racial Events, Diplomacy, and Dinkins’ Image

6. Who Runs the City? Union Bosses or the Mayor?

7. Crime Coverage, Mayoral Images, and Signaling

8. The Turmoil of School Politics

9. Conclusion

Notes
Index

Voir

Publié par

State University of New York Press

Date de parution

01 février 2012

EAN13

9780791480793

Langue

English

Poids de l'ouvrage

1 Mo

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D A V I D D I N K I N S A N D N E W Y O R K C I T Y P O L I T I C S

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DAV I D D I N K I N S A N D N E W Y O R K C I T Y P O L I T I C S R AC E , I M AG E S, A N D T H E M E D I A

W I L B U R C . R I C H

S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y O F N E W YO R K P R E S S

Published by State University of New York Press, Albany

Printed in the United States of America

No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission. No part of this book may be stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means including electronic, electrostatic, magnetic tape, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior permission in writing of the publisher.

For information, address State University of New York Press, 194 Washington Avenue, Suite 305, Albany NY 12210-2384

Production by Marilyn P. Semerad Marketing by Fran Keneston

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Rich, Wilbur C. David Dinkins and New York City politics: race, images, and the media / Wilbur C. Rich. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-0-7914-6949-1 (hardcover: alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-7914-6949-2 (hardcover: alk. paper) 1. Dinkins, David N. 2. New York (N.Y.)—Politics and government—1951– 3. Press and politics—New York (State)—New York. I. Title. F128.54.D56R53 2007 974.7'044092—dc2 2006003063

1 0

C O N T E N T S

List of Illustrationsvii Prefaceix Acknowledgmentsxiii Introduction 1 1. The Making of a New York Black Politician: 2. David Dinkins 24 David Dinkins and Regime Change 63 3. The Stafﬁng of Dinkins’ City Hall 82 4. Racial Events, Diplomacy, and Dinkins’ Image 103 5. Who Runs the City? Union Bosses or the Mayor? 131 6. Crime Coverage, Mayoral Images, and Signaling 145 7. The Turmoil of School Politics 165 8. Conclusion 184 9. Notes207 Index233

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I L L U S T R AT I O N S

Photographs

David Dinkins and Percy Sutton, February 15, 1990

Ed Koch and David Dinkins

New York Democrats with David Dinkins

Fred Ferrer, David Dinkins, Jose Serrano, and George Friedman

David Dinkins on election night

David and Joyce Dinkins on election night

David Dinkins and Nelson Mandela

Raymond Flynn, Tom Bradley, Richard M. Daley, and David N. Dinkins, all mayors of U.S. cities73

Mayor David Dinkins, daily press brieﬁng, City Hall

Tables

2.1 General Election Results, 1989

7.1 Types and Rate of Crimes, 1990–1994

Figure

9.1 Media Relationship with David Dinkins

159

203

112

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P R E FA C E

Journalist Robert Turner once asserted, “Mayors are chronicled 1 by novelists but ignored by political scientists.” I am a political scientist who has spent most of his career watching and writing about mayors. Yet I do agree that mayors are “character actors of 2 politics.” They are certainly not the lead actors or stars of the American political theater. Occasionally, a city mayor appears on the political stage, attracts a large following, and is able to speak to the American people at large. Richard J. Daley of Chi-cago, Coleman Young of Detroit, Sam Yorty of Los Angeles, and Rudolph Giuliani of New York are examples of mayors who achieved national visibility. This book is about the political image of David Dinkins, the ﬁrst African American mayor of New York City. It does not at-tempt to explore all aspects of New York City politics. Politics is just part of what is happening between a political leader and constituencies. Obviously the most attentive constituency is the media. This project began as an attempt to understand the media’s interpretation of what can now be called the “Dinkins interregnum” between white mayors of the city. This research project began as an attempt to deconstruct journalists’ understandings of the politics of New York City. As I delved further into the writing process, I realized that I needed to include more contextual information about the political career of David Dinkins and the media’s reaction to him. For this I gained much insight from psychology, sociology, advertising, and so-cial construction theory scholars. So the story that is developed in this book is one of media meanings and perceptions. I have always wondered how media stories are constructed and why

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