Research
Red, White, and Anti-Black: Nationalism and Group Boundaries in American Politics (dissertation)
To what extent do nationalist rhetorical strategies used by elites activate latent white racial attitudes, and how do white Americans respond to nationalism as a coded racial cue? This dissertation unpacks the content and contours of American nationalism expressed by both political elites and the mass public through the rhetoric of traditional American values to understand the political implications of such discourse. Although many have suggested that the United States is the archetypal example of the civic nation, this dissertation investigates the extent to which these seemingly civic roots are inherently ethnic. Furthermore, I analyze the extent to which nationalism activates politicized whiteness based on feelings of group threat and vulnerability, strong sense of white racial identity, apprehension about racial ordering, or perhaps genuine national and patriotic sentiments. Using qualitative evidence in the form of in-depth and semi-structured interviews, content analysis, and quantitative survey data, I argue that for some constituencies, the rhetoric of nationalism is an effective tool for activating latent racist sentiments which have important implications for group boundaries and political behavior, especially under conditions of polarization and increasing multiculturalism.
Different Strokes for Different Folks: How Russia Today Influences Americans on YouTube with Evgenia Olimpieva and Ipek Cinar
Following the concerns of Russia's intervention in the 2016 US Presidential election, there has been growing interest in ways that information is distributed and consumed in online communities. In this paper, we analyze the role of Russia Today America on YouTube, paying close attention to the different strategies deployed across a range of target audiences . Russia Today is an international broadcaster sponsored by the Russian state which has an extensive online presence and has been argued to promote Russia's foreign policy interests. Despite the growing number of studies of Russia Today and its influence, scholars know very little about its strategies and its audiences. Using a unique dataset of all the videos published by the international broadcaster on YouTube between 2015 and 2018 and a combination of content analysis of videos and machine learning techniques, we seek to understand how and why certain groups in American society are targeted by the channel. Does Russia Today target mostly the American ideological left or right or, as preliminary research demonstrates, both? We further explore the ways that RT America on YouTube frames issues to target minority communities, specifically African Americans. By analyzing the different strategies used across different audiences by RT America, we are better able to understand the objectives and repercussions of Russian media influence in the United States.
What's in an Ideology? Mass Incorporation of Elite Ideological Shifts in American Politics with Stephanie Ternullo
Political scientists have long studied how group and issue incorporation amongst elites in the two major political parties cue responses among the mass public. According to elite-focused accounts, politicians take stances on new political issues based on the trade-offs associated with incorporating new interest groups into their electoral coalition. Meanwhile, ideological entrepreneurs creatively bundle together previously disparate ideas, seeking a party that will adopt them. Scholars have shown that, as the issue stances of the parties evolve from these concomitant processes, the responses of the mass electorate are stratified according to their levels of political awareness and partisan identification. But how do mass publics respond differently when the processes of political incorporation at the elite level are themselves different? To answer this question, we assess the mass response to three models of elite behavior: coalition maintenance, coalition expansion, and coalition group incorporation (Karol, 2009). Using public opinion data from the GSS and ANES, we trace mass incorporation of ideological views on abortion, gun control, national defense, and immigration through the mid- to late-twentieth century amongst different mass publics. We find that ideological incorporation by the mass public varies temporally based on the processes of issue incorporation at the elite level and the public’s level of awareness of those processes.
To what extent do nationalist rhetorical strategies used by elites activate latent white racial attitudes, and how do white Americans respond to nationalism as a coded racial cue? This dissertation unpacks the content and contours of American nationalism expressed by both political elites and the mass public through the rhetoric of traditional American values to understand the political implications of such discourse. Although many have suggested that the United States is the archetypal example of the civic nation, this dissertation investigates the extent to which these seemingly civic roots are inherently ethnic. Furthermore, I analyze the extent to which nationalism activates politicized whiteness based on feelings of group threat and vulnerability, strong sense of white racial identity, apprehension about racial ordering, or perhaps genuine national and patriotic sentiments. Using qualitative evidence in the form of in-depth and semi-structured interviews, content analysis, and quantitative survey data, I argue that for some constituencies, the rhetoric of nationalism is an effective tool for activating latent racist sentiments which have important implications for group boundaries and political behavior, especially under conditions of polarization and increasing multiculturalism.
Different Strokes for Different Folks: How Russia Today Influences Americans on YouTube with Evgenia Olimpieva and Ipek Cinar
Following the concerns of Russia's intervention in the 2016 US Presidential election, there has been growing interest in ways that information is distributed and consumed in online communities. In this paper, we analyze the role of Russia Today America on YouTube, paying close attention to the different strategies deployed across a range of target audiences . Russia Today is an international broadcaster sponsored by the Russian state which has an extensive online presence and has been argued to promote Russia's foreign policy interests. Despite the growing number of studies of Russia Today and its influence, scholars know very little about its strategies and its audiences. Using a unique dataset of all the videos published by the international broadcaster on YouTube between 2015 and 2018 and a combination of content analysis of videos and machine learning techniques, we seek to understand how and why certain groups in American society are targeted by the channel. Does Russia Today target mostly the American ideological left or right or, as preliminary research demonstrates, both? We further explore the ways that RT America on YouTube frames issues to target minority communities, specifically African Americans. By analyzing the different strategies used across different audiences by RT America, we are better able to understand the objectives and repercussions of Russian media influence in the United States.
What's in an Ideology? Mass Incorporation of Elite Ideological Shifts in American Politics with Stephanie Ternullo
Political scientists have long studied how group and issue incorporation amongst elites in the two major political parties cue responses among the mass public. According to elite-focused accounts, politicians take stances on new political issues based on the trade-offs associated with incorporating new interest groups into their electoral coalition. Meanwhile, ideological entrepreneurs creatively bundle together previously disparate ideas, seeking a party that will adopt them. Scholars have shown that, as the issue stances of the parties evolve from these concomitant processes, the responses of the mass electorate are stratified according to their levels of political awareness and partisan identification. But how do mass publics respond differently when the processes of political incorporation at the elite level are themselves different? To answer this question, we assess the mass response to three models of elite behavior: coalition maintenance, coalition expansion, and coalition group incorporation (Karol, 2009). Using public opinion data from the GSS and ANES, we trace mass incorporation of ideological views on abortion, gun control, national defense, and immigration through the mid- to late-twentieth century amongst different mass publics. We find that ideological incorporation by the mass public varies temporally based on the processes of issue incorporation at the elite level and the public’s level of awareness of those processes.
