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Essays in the The Prettier Doll focus on the same local controversy: in 2001,a third-grade girl in Colorado submitted an experiment to the school science fair. She asked 30 adults and 30 fifth-graders which of two Barbie dolls was prettier. One doll was black, the other white, and each wore a different colored dress. All of the adults picked the Barbie in the purple dress, while nearly all of the fifth graders picked the white Barbie. When the student’s experiment was banned an uproar resulted that spread to the national media. School board meetings and other public exchanges highlighted the potent intersection of local and national social concerns: education, censorship, science, racism, and tensions in foundation values such as liberty, democracy, and free speech. For the authors of these essays, the exchanges that arose from “Barbiegate” illustrate vividly the role of rhetoric at the grassroots level, fundamental to civic judgment in a democratic state and at the core of “ordinary democracy.” Contributors: Mark A. Aakkhus Bruce E. Gronbeck Robert Hariman Kathleen Haspel Alexa Hepburn Darrin Hicks James P. McDaniel Jonathan Potter Herbert W. Simons Karen Tracy
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The Prettier Doll You are reading copyrighted material published by the University of Alabama Press. Any posting, copying, or distributing of this work beyond fair use as defined under U.S. Copyright law is illegal and injures the author and publisher. For permission to reuse this work, contact the University of Alabama Press. R h e tor i c, C u lt u r e, a n d S o c i a l C r i t i qu e Series Editor John Louis Lucaites Editorial Board Richard Bauman Barbara Biesecker Carole Blair Dilip Gaonkar Robert Hariman Steven Mailloux Raymie E. McKerrow Toby Miller Austin Sarat Janet Staiger Barbie Zelizer You are reading copyrighted material published by the University of Alabama Press. Any posting, copying, or distributing of this work beyond fair use as defined under U.S. Copyright law is illegal and injures the author and publisher. For permission to reuse this work, contact the University of Alabama Press. The Prettier Doll Rhetoric, Discourse, and Ordinary Democracy Edited by Karen Tracy, James P. McDaniel, and Bruce E. Gronbeck The U nive rsity o f Al a b a ma Pres s Tuscaloosa You are reading copyrighted material published by the University of Alabama Press. Any posting, copying, or distributing of this work beyond fair use as defined under U.S. Copyright law is illegal and injures the author and publisher. For permission to reuse this work, contact the University of Alabama Press. Copyright © 2007 The University of Alabama Press Tuscaloosa, Alabama 35487-0380 All rights reserved Manufactured in the United States of America Typeface: Perpetua ∞ The paper on which this book is printed meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences-Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI Z39.48–1984. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data The prettier doll : rhetoric, discourse, and ordinary democracy / edited by Karen Tracy, James P. McDaniel, and Bruce E. Gronbeck. p. cm. — (Rhetoric, culture and social critique) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-0-8173-1575-7 (cloth : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-8173-1575-6 ISBN-13: 978-0-8173-5439-8 (pbk. : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-8173-5439-5 1. Communication in politics—United States. 2. Rhetoric—United States. 3. Democracy—United States. I. Tracy, Karen. II. McDaniel, James P. III. Gronbeck, Bruce E. JA85.2.U6P74 2007 320.97301′4—dc22 2007004146 You are reading copyrighted material published by the University of Alabama Press. Any posting, copying, or distributing of this work beyond fair use as defined under U.S. Copyright law is illegal and injures the author a