San Antonio College Library

In this program, the authors share their passion for politics while providing students with the foundation they need to become informed citizens in a rapidly changing democracy.

In 1996 less than half of all eligible voters even bothered to vote. Fewer citizens each year follow government and public affairs regularly or even think they should. Is popular sovereignty a failure? Not necessarily, argues Michael Schudson in this provocative and unprecedented history of citizenship in America. Measuring voter turnout or attitudes is a poor approximation of citizenship. The meaning of voting - and what counts as politics - has...

This program with Bill Moyers talks to Americans in San Antonio, Minneapolis, and Washington, D.C., about why they don't vote, and to citizens who are trying to increase voter registration and turnout. Featured in the program are Father Andrew Greeley, author, priest, and sociologist; and Michael Franti, a rap artist.

Does the current electoral system undermine the democratic process envisioned by America's founding fathers? This Fred Friendly Seminar, moderated by Stanford Law School's Kathleen Sullivan, delves into the political concerns of the fictional town of New Crossroads. Issues under scrutiny, including campaign finance reform, adherence to campaign platforms, Congressional term limits, the influence of lobbies, and the media's role in the political process,...

In America, a shadow government wields incredible influence over what gets done inside the Beltway-and who reaps the benefits. In this program, correspondent Hedrick Smith spotlights the powerful influence of the nation's special interest lobbies during the Clinton years. Majority Whip Tom DeLay; Charles Blixt, of R.J. Reynolds; Mike Pertschuk, of the Advocacy Institute; members of Congress; lobbyists; and others scrutinize how UPS paralyzed OSHA's...

This program with Bill Moyers examines what many people consider to be the scandal of American democracy-the influence of money on our political system. The 1992 Presidential election sent a strong signal: by voting for Bill Clinton or Ross Perot, both of whom ran on reform platforms, voters registered their disgust with the way laws are made, influence is bought, and an elite class of politicians control the system. This 1994 program examines the...

This program with Bill Moyers focuses on the conservative evangelical movement in the U.S., presenting an eye-opening report on the "National Affairs Briefing," a meeting of members of the religious right following the Republican National Convention in 1992. Members of the movement featured in the program include Rev. Don Wildmon, Oliver North, Pat Buchanan, and Phyllis Schlafly, who voice their opinions on Bill Clinton, "militant homosexuals," feminists,...

This documentary examines the Citizen Kane-like rise of Trump through the lens of filmmaker Robert Orlando, who was inspired by Trump proclaiming Kane his favorite film.

The remarkable true story of Donald Trump's family history--one of the most extraordinary immigration success stories ever told--and what it reveals about the United States' 45th president.