Bench Press
The Collision of Courts, Politics, and the Media
Published on 5. September 2007
Book
Hardback
240 pages
978-0-8047-5677-8 (ISBN)
Description
Federal court confirmations in the United States have become openly political affairs, with partisans lining up to support their preferred candidates. Matters in the states are not much different, with once sleepy judicial elections changing into ever more contentious political slugfests, replete with single-issue interest groups and negative campaign advertising. Once on the bench, judges at every level find themselves dogged by charges of politically motivated decision-making.
In this first-of-its-kind collection, prominent figures from the academy, the bench, and the press reflect on the state of the American judiciary. Using the results of a specially commissioned public opinion poll as a starting point, the contributors examine the complex mix of legal principle, political maneuvering, and press coverage that swirl around judicial selection and judicial decision making today. Essays examine the rise of explicitly political state judicial elections, the merits of judicial appointments, the rhetoric of federal judicial confirmation hearings, the quality of legal reporting, the portrayal of courts on the Internet, the inevitable tensions between judges and journalists, and the importance of regulating judicial appearances.
Contributors Include: Keith J. Bybee, Charles Gardner Geyh, G. Alan Tarr, Harold See, James E. Graves, Jr., John M. Walker, Jr., Joanne F. Alper, Mark Obbie, Dahlia Lithwick, Tom Goldstein, and Anthony Lewis
In this first-of-its-kind collection, prominent figures from the academy, the bench, and the press reflect on the state of the American judiciary. Using the results of a specially commissioned public opinion poll as a starting point, the contributors examine the complex mix of legal principle, political maneuvering, and press coverage that swirl around judicial selection and judicial decision making today. Essays examine the rise of explicitly political state judicial elections, the merits of judicial appointments, the rhetoric of federal judicial confirmation hearings, the quality of legal reporting, the portrayal of courts on the Internet, the inevitable tensions between judges and journalists, and the importance of regulating judicial appearances.
Contributors Include: Keith J. Bybee, Charles Gardner Geyh, G. Alan Tarr, Harold See, James E. Graves, Jr., John M. Walker, Jr., Joanne F. Alper, Mark Obbie, Dahlia Lithwick, Tom Goldstein, and Anthony Lewis
Reviews / Votes
"Articulate, erudite, focused, thoughtful and thought-provoking, each of the nine essays is expertly written and together form a fascinating body of keen observation and scholarly commentary that make Bench Press an important, timely, and strongly recommended addition." - Midwest Book Review "This erudite and often provocative book addresses one of the most important challenges to American constitutionalism-the media representations of law and saturation of civic understanding. If we do not get this under control, our long-lived democratic republic will suffer. The authors outline the nature of the threats and a range of adjustments, offering a rich collection of voices from those who are struggling to regain integrity and independence for competing professions: the media and the judiciary." - Susan S. Silbey (assachusetts Institute of Technology) "Bench Press offers a fascinating variety of perspectives on the politics of the judiciary. The essays, by first-rate judges, journalists, and scholars, take on important topics-judicial elections and appointments, judicial recusals, media coverage of courts-and in many cases break ground, moving far beyond the sound bite coverage these subjects often receive. There's no other book remotely like this one." - Tom Burke (Wellesley College) "Bench Press is a timely and provocative examination of the complex relationship among the judiciary, the media, politics and the public. In a series of essays by distinguished contributors, the book examines the conflict between the universal desire for an independent judiciary and the need for judicial accountability to ensure that judges apply the law as enacted by legislators rather than decree their personal biases and prejudices. Bench Press is a must-read for anyone interested in the role of an independent judiciary in modern society." - Jane Marum Roush, Judge (Fairfax County (Virginia) Circuit Court) "Each of them challenging in its own way, the essays treat the contemporary state of the judiciary from a variety of perspectives: judicial 'appearance,' methods of selecting judges, media treatment of the judiciary and its decisions, public conceptions, and others. The authors' approaches and conclusions are diverse, and this book promises to create fruitful discussion in judicial process, public law, and communications courses in which critical thinking is encouraged." - CHOICEMore details
Series
Edition
New edition
Language
English
Place of publication
Palo Alto
United States
Publishing group
Stanford University Press
Edition type
New edition
Product notice
Cloth
Dimensions
Height: 235 mm
Width: 161 mm
Thickness: 19 mm
Weight
458 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-8047-5677-8 (9780804756778)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Keith J. Bybee is Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science and Michael O. Sawyer Chair of Constitutional Law and Politics at Syracuse University's Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs.
Content
CONTENTS Acknowledgments 000 Introduction: The Two Faces of Judicial Power Keith J. Bybee 1 Part I: Context 000 1. Preserving Public Confidence in the Courts in an Age of Individual Rights and Public Skepticism 000 Charles Gardner Geyh 2. Politicizing the Process: The New Politics of State Judicial Elections 000 G. Alan Tarr Part II: Views From the Bench 000 3. An Essay on Judicial Selection: A Brief History 000 Harold See 4. Judicial Independence: The Courts and the Media 000 James E. Graves, Jr. 5. Politics and the Confirmation Process: Thoughts on the Roberts and Alito Hearings 000 John M. Walker, Jr. 6. Selecting the Judiciary: Who Should Be the Judge? 000 Joanne F. Alper Part III: Views From the Media 000 7. Winners and Losers 000 Mark Obbie 8. The Internet and the Judiciary: We Are All Experts Now 000 Dahlia Lithwick 9. The Distance Between Judges and Journalists 000 Tom Goldstein Afterword: The State of Judicial Independence 000 Anthony Lewis List of Contributors 000 Cited Authorities 000 Bibliography 000 Index 000