Media Contact: Dolores Davies, (619) 534-5994 or ddavies@ucsd.edu

UC SAN DIEGO POLITICAL EXPERTS AVAILABLE TO COMMENT ON AMERICAN POLITICS, NOVEMBER ELECTIONS

Political experts from the University of California, San Diego are available to provide commentary to the news media on political issues and the upcoming elections in November.

• Gary Jacobson, a nationally known authority on electoral politics, the U.S. Congress, and campaign financing, can discuss the possible outcomes of the congressional races this fall and how they may be impacted by President Clinton’s current crisis. He can also comment on the California Senate race. The author of numerous books and scholarly articles on congressional elections, Jacobson, a professor of political science, holds a Ph.D. from Yale University. Jacobson has completed recent research papers on the electoral politics of budget and deficits from 1980-1996, the declining salience of U.S. House candidates from 1958-1994, and the transformation of U.S. House elections in the 1990s. Books include The Electoral Origins of Divided Government, The Politics of Congressional Elections, and the award-winning Money in Congressional Elections. Jacobson can be reached at (619) 534-4295/ (619) 456-8630 (home)/ gjacobson@ucsd.edu

• Steve Erie, an associate professor of political science, is an expert on California politics. He can provide commentary on the California gubernatorial election, the state legislative races, and some of the bond issues, especially the water bond issue. He can also discuss San Diego races and certain local issues such as the proposed Padres ballpark. Erie is an authority on local and regional growth and development issues, and is nearing completion on a book on the political history of Los Angeles. He has completed a major research project on the political impacts of trade and infrastructure investment in Southern California, and frequently lectures to public groups on the politics of water and growth in Southern California. Erie, who holds a Ph.D. from UCLA, is the author of the award-winning book, Rainbow’s End: Irish-Americans and the Dilemmas of Urban Machine Politics. Erie can be reached at (619) 563-6995 (home)/(619) 534-3083 (office)/ serie@ucsd.edu
   
• Samuel Kernell is a noted scholar on the American presidency. He has written widely on the history of the presidency, the evolution of presidential leadership, and the increasing use of public relations and public opinion polls in determining appropriate strategies. He can provide commentary on President Clinton’s current "crisis in moral leadership" as well as the Clinton team’s use of public opinion polls for political guidance. Kernell has recently completed research on the impact of cable TV on the presidential use of prime-time television to promote new policies and programs as well as to positively position the president. Kernell, a professor of political science who received his Ph.D. from UC Berkeley, is the author of the top-selling textbook Going Public: New Strategies of Presidential Leadership, Chief of Staff: Twenty-five Years of Managing the Presidency (with Samuel Popkin), and Strategy and Choice in Congressional Elections (with Gary Jacobson), which changed scholarly thinking about congressional elections. Kernell can be contacted at (619) 534-4988/(619) 792-5122 (home) / skernell@ucsd.edu
   
• Arthur Lupia is an expert on the initiative process, the dynamics of voter decision making, and electoral systems. A professor of political science, he can provide commentary on ballot initiatives and voter behavior relative to the November elections. Lupia, who holds a Ph.D. from the California Institute of Technology, is the author (with Mathew McCubbins) of the recent book, The Democratic Dilemma: Can Citizens Learn What They Need to Know, which combines insights from various social science disciplines to explain how citizens gather and use information when making political decisions. Lupia’s research has been published in top law, economics, and political science journals, and earlier this year was honored by the National Academy of Sciences as a recipient of the NAS’s Award for Initiatives in Research. Lupia can be reached at (619) 534-5799/(619) 642-7662 (home) / alupia@ucsd.edu
   
• Elizabeth Gerber, an associate professor of political science, is an expert on the electoral process, voter behavior, and political institutions. Her research interests have included the impacts of voter initiatives on the California budgetary process, the results of term limits, minority coalitions, and most recently, open primary elections and their effects on voting patterns. She can provide commentary on the impact of California’s open primary on the November election, ballot initiatives, and the effects of ‘big money’ on initiative campaigns. Her work has been published in the American Political Science Review, Political Research Quarterly, and other top academic journals. Gerber holds a Ph.D. from the University of Michigan. Gerber can be reached at (619) 534-2022/(619) 642-7662 (home) / egerber@ucsd.edu
• 
   
• Neil Beck, a professor of political science, specializes in the politics of U.S. economic policy, the politics of comparative monetary policy, andpolitical methodology. Beck can provide commentary on the political implications of activity in the financial markets, including how fluctuations in the economy can impact presidential elections. He teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in methodology, political economy, and public policy, and last year was awarded the Gosnell Prize for the best paper in political methodology. Beck is the author of numerous scholarly articles that have appeared in the American Political Science Review, American Journal of Political Science, Journal of Politics, and Political Analysis. He received his Ph.D. from Yale University. Beck can be reached at (619) 534-4296/(619) 625-8350 (home) / nbeck@ucsd.edu
• 
   
• Dan Hallin, a professor of political science and an adjunct professor of communication, is an authority on political communications and the role of the news media in democratic politics. Hallin is well known for his research on media coverage during war time, and has written numerous publications on the role of the news media in Vietnam, Central America, and the Gulf War. He also studies television coverage of elections and other political activities, and was the first scholar to trace the evolution of the shrinking "sound bite." Hallin, who holds a Ph.D. from UC Berkeley, can discuss political communications, media coverage of politics, and political rhetoric and speechmaking. He is the author of The Uncensored War: The Media and Vietnam and We Keep America on Top of the World: Television Journalism and the Public Sphere. Hallin can be contacted at (619) 534-9981/(619) 282-7286 (home) / dhallin@ucsd.edu
   
• Michael Schudson is a nationally known scholar on the news media and journalism, political communication, voter behavior, and the impact of politics and contemporary media coverage on American culture. The winner of a 1990 MacArthur Foundation "genius award," Schudson, a professor or communication and sociology, has just recently completed the book The Good Citizen: A History of American Public Life. He can provide commentary on the history of voter behavior and turnout, the declining role of political parties, and news coverage of the November elections. Schudson is the author of several books on politics and the mass media, including: The Power of News, Watergate in American Memory, Advertising: The Uneasy Persuasion, and Discovering the News. Schudson has a Ph.D. from Harvard University. Schudson can be reached at (619) 534-2370/(619) 481-0362 (home) / mschudson@ucsd.edu