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Article: Does television erode social capital? A reply to Putnam. (response to Robert A. Putnam, PS: Politics and Political Science, vol. 27, December 1995)
- Article from:
- PS: Political Science & Politics
- Article date:
- September 1, 1996
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1996 Cambridge University Press. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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During the past thirty-five years many commentators have expressed concern about declining support for the American political system, noting familiar evidence of the steady erosion in electoral turnout (Stanley and Niemi 1995, 78; Teixeira 1992), falling participation in political parties (Rosenstone and Hansen 1993), plummeting levels of political trust (Lipset and Schneider 1987), and weakening civic engagement (Putnam 1995a). Evidence for declining confidence in American government is well-established. The standard National Election Study measures show that in 1954 three-quarters of the American public trusted government in Washington to do what was right 'just about ...