Craig Calhoun, President » President’s Question http://www.ssrc.org/calhoun Mon, 05 Oct 2009 17:41:47 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 en hourly 1 ©The Social Science Research Council http://www.ssrc.org/calhoun/?feed=podcast webmaster@ssrc.org (The Social Science Research Council) webmaster@ssrc.org(The Social Science Research Council) Social Science Commentary 1440 Social Science, Public Knowledge, Calhoun, Commentary Listen to the insights of sociologist and historian Craig Calhoun on pressing social and political questions. Societas is a podcast channel featuring the insights of leading sociologist and historian Craig Calhoun on current political and social issues in the United States and around the globe. Professor Calhoun heads the Social Science Research Council (SSRC), the world's first national organization of all the social sciences. He is also University Professor of the Social Sciences at New York University and director of its Institute of Public Knowledge. The channel features Professor Calhoun in conversation with Paul Price, the SSRC's editorial director, on the latest developments in American and world politics and society. Professor Calhoun provides perspectives not often found in mainstream media. The Social Science Research Council The Social Science Research Council webmaster@ssrc.org No no http://www.ssrc.org/calhoun/wp-content/uploads/podpress/societas_pod.jpg Craig Calhoun, President http://www.ssrc.org/calhoun 144 144 What is the future of the newspaper? http://www.ssrc.org/calhoun/2008/12/03/newspapers/ http://www.ssrc.org/calhoun/2008/12/03/newspapers/#comments Wed, 03 Dec 2008 19:14:40 +0000 Jessica Chong http://www.ssrc.org/calhoun/?p=369 The Christian Science Monitor goes digitalThe newspaper business is in crisis. The Christian Science Monitor announced last month that it would cease publishing a weekday paper, and staff lay-offs are becoming commonplace—not only at big metro newspapers, including the LA Times and New York Times, but also at many mid-sized papers.

While the situation is complex, the main issue seems to be that print journalism is no longer profitable. The crisis, in other words, may not strictly be loss of audience but vanishing advertising, particularly classified. Newspapers are responding by building online platforms that can provide information on demand and adding new (often Web 2.0) services.

Some see great possibilities in more widely dispersed Internet news media. They argue that it offers the potential of new audiences, new ways of storytelling, more immediacy and more citizen involvement. (On the last point, it’s worth noting that during the recent attacks in Mumbai, high-tech citizen journalists provided glimpses of what was taking place that transcended the news cycle.)

Others, however, see a crisis for the public sphere if we no longer have widely shared and authoritative news media. They fear that the move to the Web may lead to a general decline in the scope and quality of journalism, not because the online medium isn’t suited for news, but because it isn’t suited to the kind of profits that underwrite newsgathering.

Either way, the profession and public role of journalism seems to be in transformation. What are the implications for democratic politics, for social cohesion, for checking up on government, and for opportunities for different racial, ethnic, social movements or other constituencies to participate or be better served?

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]]> http://www.ssrc.org/calhoun/2008/12/03/newspapers/feed/ 17 What early policies can President Obama pursue to renew public spirit? http://www.ssrc.org/calhoun/2008/11/04/obamapolicies/ http://www.ssrc.org/calhoun/2008/11/04/obamapolicies/#comments Tue, 04 Nov 2008 13:41:05 +0000 Jessica Chong http://www.ssrc.org/calhoun/?p=364 A cornerstone of the Obama campaign was a call for national unity and renewal of public spirit: “Yes we can!” Yet this comes after an era of intensified inequality, amid a sharp financial crisis and growing unemployment, and during polarizing international conflicts. What early policies can President Obama pursue that will in fact renew social solidarity, a commitment to the public interest, or engagement with public service?

]]> http://www.ssrc.org/calhoun/2008/11/04/obamapolicies/feed/ 4 What do we know about bailouts? http://www.ssrc.org/calhoun/2008/09/30/bailouts/ http://www.ssrc.org/calhoun/2008/09/30/bailouts/#comments Tue, 30 Sep 2008 13:49:49 +0000 Ravi Rajakumar http://www.ssrc.org/calhoun/?p=355 What do we know about bailouts from previous experience and existing theory? How can this inform the current public discussion of government actions in the US and other countries?
Elaboration: The US government has acted in recent days to rescue some enormous firms (but not others) and to try to stabilize volatile financial markets and is considering investing billions of dollars more in bailouts for the financial industry. The British, French and other governments around the world have also invested massive public funds in trying to save firms or markets that grew initially on the principle of private risk taking. What can we learn from previous bailouts both in other industries (e.g., Chrysler), in more conventional banking (Credit Lyonnais in France, Northern Rock in Britain, or the US Savings and Loan crisis of the 1980s), and in earlier directly financial crises (Long-Term Capital Management)? Are there ways to avoid the moral hazard of making speculation seem safe? Are there ways to avoid using public funds to reward private investors who took bad risks? Are there ways for public investments to be well-managed enough to eventually return initial capital or even profits?

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