Keith Reeves, Voting Hopes or Fears? White Voters, Black Candidates & Racial Politics in America.
Why does Reeves argue that black candidates cannot win election in white majority districts? What prevents black candidates from winning white support according to Reeves?
What methods does Reeves use to measure the extent of racial prejudice against black candidates? Specifically, you should be able to explain how Reeves uses:
(1) content analysis of print news,
(2) a social science experiment involving the manipulation of campaign news stories, and
(3) an assessment the racial attitudes of study participants.
What are the strengths and weaknesses of each method? Do you think Reeves proves his case?
Nayda Terkildsen, When White Voters Evaluate Black Candidates: The Processing Implications of Candidate Skin Color, Prejudice, and Self-Monitoring."
Describe how Terkildsen’s social science experiment? How is it different from the experiment conducted by Reeves?
Do white voters rate light-skinned black candidates more highly than dark-skinned black candidates? What about if you control for "self-monitoring" by prejudiced whites?
Barbara C. Burrell, A Woman's Place is in the House: Campaigning for Congress in the Feminist Era, Chapter 8 (pp. 151-82).
How do women fare as candidates compared to their mail counterparts? What differences, if any, are there between male and female candidates (other than the obvious)?
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