Book Review: The Politics of Identity and Managerialism

• Author: Suzanne M. Leland
• Published date: 01 June 2005
• Date: 01 June 2005
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1177/0275074005275141
• Subject Matter: Articles

10.1177/0275074005275141ARPA/June2005BOOKREVIEW

BOOK REVIEWS

THE POLITICS OF IDENTITY AND

MANAGERIALISM

Civic Culture in Dallas

Civic Cultureand Urban Change: Governing Dallas. By Royce Hanson. Detroit, MI: Wayne

State University Press. 2003. 457 pp.

DOI: 10.1177/0275074005275141

What do the assassination of JFK and the 1980s hit TV show Dallas have in common?

Both are considered substantial threats to the image of the city of Dallas. This fits into Royce

Hanson’s thesis that characterizes Dallas as being “image obsessed” in his book Civic Cul-

ture and Urban Change: Governing Dallas. Hanson contends that problems in Dallas were

traditionally framed as threats to the city’s image, and the civicelite responded by producing

public relations campaigns “to restore its luster” in response to such attacks. This image

obsession, coupled with Dallas’s cultural preference for public institutions to be governed by

amateurs and managers, has produced a rather undesirable civic culture.

Hanson argues that the civicculture in Dallas is somewhat toxic. It has produced a superfi-

cial and symbolic approach to urban problems that has led the city to resist the adaptation of

its changing environment, which still remains today. For example, if city leaders support

light-rail and new stadiums, it is not because theyare a necessity or address an urban problem

but because they strive to be a world-class city. Because world-class cities have these sub-

stantial capital investments, so should Dallas, whether or not they are the appropriate

responses to urban problems. Other contentious urban issues such as racial strife havetradi-

tionally gone unnoticed unless a leader can convince the elite that this is harmful to the city’s

image. This has not changed since the transition of regimes has taken place. In fact, Hanson

concludes that most of the solution sets Dallas has employed in the performance of its civic

functions are still inadequate.

Civic Culture and Urban Change: Governing Dallas is an insightful and normative look

into one of the most dynamic Sunbelt cities in the United States and a must read for those

interested in urban regime theory and civic culture. Hanson carefully traces the political

growth machine that has governed Dallas from its inception to its current state of dissolution.

This work highlights the important events that shaped the civic culture of Dallas during the

past 40 years such as school desegregation, the economic decline of the 1980s, racial tension,

and rapid growth. Hanson addresses the question of why it is so difficult to adapt local politi-

cal institutions to the transformations that have occurred in population, economics, institu-

tions, and technology and offers a few solutions to what can be done to enhance a city’s

capacity for effective local self-government in the face of change. He applies a policy

tools approach to answer this question. Hanson finds the city’s civic culture is much like an

organizations—a stabilizing force that is difficult to reckon with, and change is slow and

AMERICAN REVIEW OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION, Vol.35 No. 2, June 2005 186-189

© 2005 Sage Publications

186