Municipal Accountability in the American Age of Reform - The Gadfly at the Counter, 1870-1920

At the foundations of our modern conception of open government are a handful of disgruntled citizens in the Progressive Era who demanded accountability from their local officials, were rebuffed, and then brought their cases to court. Drawing on newspaper accounts, angry letters to editors, local histories, and court records, David Ress uncovers a number of miniature yet critical moments in the history of government accountability, tracing its decline as the gap between citizens and officials widened with the idea of the community as corporation and citizens as consumers. Together, these moments tell the story of how a nation thought about democracy and the place of the individual in an increasingly complex society, with important lessons for policy makers, journalists, and activists today.

List of contents

1. The Micropolitics of Accountability.- 2. The Street Commissioner's Records.- 3. The Right to Know Emerges.- 4. Community as Corporation.- 5. The Home Rule Idea.- 6. The Limits of the Vote.- 7. The Expert Fights Back.- 8. Conclusion.

About the author

David Ressis an Honorary Research Associate at the University of New England, Australia. 

Product details

• Authors: David Ress
• Publisher: Springer, Berlin
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 25.08.2018
• EAN: 9783319885728
• ISBN: 978-3-31-988572-8
• No. of pages: 128
• Dimensions: 148 mm x 7 mm x 210 mm
• Weight: 192 g
• Illustrations: IX, 128 p.
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History > Regional and national histories; Soziologie, C, Sozial- und Kulturgeschichte, Amerika, Städte, Stadtgemeinden, History, Sociology, History: specific events & topics, Politik und Staat, Geschichte: Ereignisse und Themen, Social History, Political Science, Social & cultural history, Politics & government, Urban History, United States of America, USA, Urban Sociology, Sociology, Urban, Urban Studies/Sociology, Urban communities, US Politics, United States—Politics and government, United States—History, US History, Cities and towns—History, American Politics