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Chiaroscuro: Social and Political Components of the Urban Process

Allen J. Scott

in Social Economy of the Metropolis: Cognitive-Cultural Capitalism and the Global Resurgence of Cities

This chapter discusses the social and political components of the urban process and how they affect urbanization and life in metropolitan areas. It presents facts and figures on how affluence, ... More

This chapter discusses the social and political components of the urban process and how they affect urbanization and life in metropolitan areas. It presents facts and figures on how affluence, poverty, citizenship, and democracy affect the lifestyle in large metropolitan areas. Because of these, social stratifications and spatial segregation emerge. These patterns of social life are explained in the chapter.Less

Afterword

Robert Wuthnow

in Small-Town America: Finding Community, Shaping the Future

This afterword argues that small towns are not characteristic of what the United States is really like. Small towns are instead what many people think the United States should be like, and indeed, ... More

This afterword argues that small towns are not characteristic of what the United States is really like. Small towns are instead what many people think the United States should be like, and indeed, what they would like it to be. Small towns are neighborly and impose high expectations on residents to be involved in the community. There is also no reason to believe that small towns are morally superior to metropolitan areas, or the reverse. Each has its advantages and disadvantages. One promotes neighborliness that sometimes becomes stifling, while the other provides opportunities that sometimes become overwhelming. The chapter suggests that small towns, even though they are changing, have a viable future, describing them as places in which the slow pace and small scale of the past is preserved. They are also communities in which leadership and innovative ideas are poised expectantly toward the future.Less

Ranking Digital Cities and Suburbs

Karen Mossberger, Caroline J. Tolbert, and William Franko

in Digital Cities: The Internet and the Geography of Opportunity

Chapter 5 ranks the nation's fifty largest central cities and suburban areas by the percent of the city population with broadband Internet at home or Internet use at any location. We estimate access ... More

Chapter 5 ranks the nation's fifty largest central cities and suburban areas by the percent of the city population with broadband Internet at home or Internet use at any location. We estimate access and use in major cities and their suburban areas, as this data has not been systematically available below the state level. Using multilevel statistical models, this chapter compares digital cities on measures that count, including disparities by race and ethnicity. There is a surprising amount of variation across cities, and across suburban regions. Some cities are digital cities and some are not; but even the most advanced cities face challenges for achieving universal access and for realizing the benefits of information technology. By identifying more technologically-inclusive places as well as those lagging behind, public policy can better address digital inequalities.Less

The Local Information Society: Spatial Dynamics, Information Technology, and Public Policy

Manuel Castells and Pekka Himanen

in The Information Society and the Welfare State: The Finnish Model

This chapter focuses on the spatial dynamics that influences the effectiveness of Finland's information society. The populations in different areas of the country and how these fluctuate over time ... More

This chapter focuses on the spatial dynamics that influences the effectiveness of Finland's information society. The populations in different areas of the country and how these fluctuate over time are discussed. The second part of the chapter deals with technological aspect in connection with geography, how the information technology businesses are distributed throughout the country and the number of internet providers available in each municipality. Analyses of the statists provided in the chapter points out that the metropolitan areas remain divided and are prioritized according to the divisions of suburbs, periphery, and centre. The numerous challenges that the public sector and policy should address are derived from the analysis of the spatial dynamics of the area. The chapter ends by briefly discussing several initiatives by the government to solve geographical constraints to the citizen's access to information technology.Less

The Resurgent City

Allen J. Scott

in Social Economy of the Metropolis: Cognitive-Cultural Capitalism and the Global Resurgence of Cities

This chapter deals with how modern cities (and large metropolitan areas) have changed over time, how they dealt with urbanization, and the discussion of issues that arose from these changes. It ... More

This chapter deals with how modern cities (and large metropolitan areas) have changed over time, how they dealt with urbanization, and the discussion of issues that arose from these changes. It discusses the socio-geographic constitution of cities, in which it explains that defining a modern society might be difficult, and might raise controversies, if concrete definitions do not really suggest the way people in metropolitan areas live. It further explores the happenings in the evolution of these areas in the 21st century: emerging new types of economies, globalization, and life and politics in these areas.Less

The Disparate Racial Neighborhood Impacts of Metropolitan Economic Restructuring

George Galster, Ronald Mincy, and Mitch Tobin

in Race, Poverty, and Domestic Policy

The economic restructuring of metropolitan areas has had disparate impacts on neighborhoods populated by minority groups. This chapter examines the impacts of the restructuring of the US economy in ... More

The economic restructuring of metropolitan areas has had disparate impacts on neighborhoods populated by minority groups. This chapter examines the impacts of the restructuring of the US economy in the 1980s and 1990s on metropolitan neighborhoods occupied by African Americans and compares this to white communities. It examines the determinants of changing poverty rates, the role played by economic restructuring, the disparate racial neighborhood impacts, and the causes of such impacts. The analysis shows that economic restructuring caused significant increases in poverty rates in black communities relative to predominant white communities.Less

Delhi: Acropolis to Metropolis and the Nature of Policing

O.P. Mishra

in Policing Delhi: Urbanization, Crime, and Law Enforcement

This chapter looks at the transition of Delhi from an acropolis to a metropolis. It studies the trend of urbanization and notes that the first indications of urbanization and expansion of Delhi ... More

This chapter looks at the transition of Delhi from an acropolis to a metropolis. It studies the trend of urbanization and notes that the first indications of urbanization and expansion of Delhi manifested after the 1857 Revolt. This section presents several graphs and tables that summarize the data on the total area size of Delhi, urbanization trend, population growth, and population variation. The discussion then proceeds to the issue of migration, specifically the forced and the normal migration. A description of the Delhi Metropolitan Area in relation to migration is also provided. The latter half of the chapter throws light on the urbanization and changing dimensions of policing. It looks at several important specialized units of the police, including the crime branch, the economic offences wing, the narcotics and crime prevention cell, the VIP security unit, and the traffic police.Less

Accessibility and Urban Form

Jonathan Levine, Joe Grengs, and Louis A. Merlin

in From Mobility to Accessibility: Transforming Urban Transportation and Land-Use Planning

This chapter assesses the relationship between urban form and accessibility by comparing accessibility across metropolitan regions in the United States. A prevalent view among urban planning ... More

This chapter assesses the relationship between urban form and accessibility by comparing accessibility across metropolitan regions in the United States. A prevalent view among urban planning researchers is that low-density, auto-oriented metropolitan regions are also low-accessibility areas. This view, if supported, would have important implications for policy reform. For metropolitan areas in the U.S. overall, there is a positive relationship between density and auto accessibility. This suggests that land-use policy can be highly relevant to accessibility outcomes. In particular, allowing metropolitan compactness by easing land-use regulations mandating low development densities can improve the effectiveness of the roadway transportation system as defined in accessibility terms. Yet the success of the strategy remains a matter for empirical accessibility evaluation. The relationship between metropolitan density and work accessibility via automobile, while positive, is hardly ironclad, and some low-density regions do offer high auto accessibility. And transportation success overall should not just consider the automobile but should consider accessibility via all travel modes, including walking, cycling, public transport, and cars.Less

Federal Legislation to Promote Metropolitan Approaches to Educational and Housing Opportunity

Elizabeth Debray and Erica Frankenberg

in Integrating Schools in a Changing Society: New Policies and Legal Options for a Multiracial Generation

Drawing on research about the Gautreaux Assisted Housing and Moving to Opportunity programs, this chapter considers the need for federal legislation to implement a pilot grant program in metropolitan ... More

Drawing on research about the Gautreaux Assisted Housing and Moving to Opportunity programs, this chapter considers the need for federal legislation to implement a pilot grant program in metropolitan areas to promote integration of housing and education. It describes the duration, scope, and cost of this proposed program and provides suggestions for program authorization, administration, and evaluation.Less

Inside the City

Allen J. Scott

in Social Economy of the Metropolis: Cognitive-Cultural Capitalism and the Global Resurgence of Cities

This chapter focuses on the internal constitution of cities, specifically on their urban policy and cultural capitalism. It starts by defining what should be taken into consideration in this kind of ... More

This chapter focuses on the internal constitution of cities, specifically on their urban policy and cultural capitalism. It starts by defining what should be taken into consideration in this kind of investigation. It continues with defining what urban areas are, and what contributions these areas make to defining social life. Urbanization and its impact on economy and society are also discussed. The chapter concentrates on public policy, and how these policies materialize in urban planning and other collective orders. Lastly, it discusses some key issues and other problems faced by implementing such urban policies.Less

The Cognitive-Cultural Economy and the Creative City

Allen J. Scott

in Social Economy of the Metropolis: Cognitive-Cultural Capitalism and the Global Resurgence of Cities

This chapter discusses in detail cognitive-cultural capitalism, and its impacts on economy and society. It starts by defining what cognitive-cultural capitalism is, and how it has made changes to the ... More

This chapter discusses in detail cognitive-cultural capitalism, and its impacts on economy and society. It starts by defining what cognitive-cultural capitalism is, and how it has made changes to the contemporary economy and in the traditional white-collar/blue-collar principle of employment. It reveals the impact of changes made (social and physical) by adapting this type of economy in metropolitan areas. It explains the typical life of cognitive-cultural workers in the creative city and beyond.Less

Neighborhood- and Metropolitan-Level Differences in Racial Attitudes

in The Paradoxes of Integration: Race, Neighborhood, and Civic Life in Multiethnic America

With respect to race and segregation in the United States, there are two incontrovertible facts. First, the country's different racial groups—whites, Asian Americans, African Americans, and ... More

With respect to race and segregation in the United States, there are two incontrovertible facts. First, the country's different racial groups—whites, Asian Americans, African Americans, and Latinos—are highly segregated from each other. Second, feelings of racial resentment and competition are not exclusive to any one racial group, each of which tends to harbor stereotypes toward the other that are less favorable than perceptions of their own groups. In other words, regardless of one's own ethnic background, race is a key indicator of self-perception and community in the United States. However, it is not clear how these two facts are related. This chapter, which looks at differences in racial attitudes across neighborhoods and metropolitan areas, shows that racial resentment is consistently higher in metropolitan areas that are more racially diverse, particularly among whites and blacks. Racial resentment is consistently lower in more racially diverse neighborhoods, a pattern that is largely similar for all four racial groups. Together, these findings shed new light on the connection between social environments and racial attitudes.Less

The Need for Urban Broadband Policy

Karen Mossberger, Caroline J. Tolbert, and William Franko

in Digital Cities: The Internet and the Geography of Opportunity

Why and how are cities important sites for national broadband policy? This chapter reviews the economic and urban research on the role of cities in the economy and society, and discusses the stimulus ... More

Why and how are cities important sites for national broadband policy? This chapter reviews the economic and urban research on the role of cities in the economy and society, and discusses the stimulus funding and the National Broadband Plan in terms of the relevance of cities for national goals. Yet, less than 8 percent of the stimulus funding was allocated to metropolitan areas, primarily for training or public access rather than home access. A history of local government efforts demonstrates that local governments took up the issue when it had dropped from federal agendas. Yet, cities alone have not had sufficient resources to solve the policy problems. The chapter closes with a discussion of the goals and perspectives of city actors based on interviews with officials from seven major cities with active broadband initiatives.Less

Culture, Economy, and the City

Allen J. Scott

in Social Economy of the Metropolis: Cognitive-Cultural Capitalism and the Global Resurgence of Cities

This chapter explores how culture affects economy and city life, and how these become sources of new urban growth. The first section shows how aesthetics relates to urbanization by including culture ... More

This chapter explores how culture affects economy and city life, and how these become sources of new urban growth. The first section shows how aesthetics relates to urbanization by including culture in its discussion. More possibilities are explained in the chapter, such as its impact on industrial production and designation of cultural-products industrial districts. Policies on culture and local economic development and the future in these types of industries are also presented.Less

Over-responsibilised and over-blamed: elected actors in media reporting on network governance. A comparative analysis in eight European metropolitan areas

Karin Hasler, Daniel Kübler, Anna Christmann, and Frank Marcinkowksi

in Media and Governance: Exploring the Role of News Media in Complex Systems of Governance

This article contributes to the study of democratic problems related to governance networks, by focusing on the role of the media. Two main rivalling hypotheses are examined. The functionalist ... More

This article contributes to the study of democratic problems related to governance networks, by focusing on the role of the media. Two main rivalling hypotheses are examined. The functionalist hypothesis postulates that the media accurately inform the public about policy actors and their responsibilities, independent of these actors' institutional status. The media-bias hypothesis postulates an attention bias towards elected policy actors, resulting in reduced public visibility of non-elected policy actors. The analysis uses standardised data on decision-making processes and newspaper content relating to public transport and economic promotion policies in eight western European metropolitan areas. Findings are that the actor mix of governance networks is quite accurately reflected in newspaper reporting. However, elected actors are more often presented as responsible for policies ('over-responsibilised'), and they are more often blamed for policy failures than other actors ('over-blamed'). The extent of this media bias depends on commercial pressure on media outlets. We also show that variations of this general pattern are linked to different types of media systems found across the cases under scrutiny.Less

Cities and a Digital Society

Karen Mossberger, Caroline J. Tolbert, and William Franko

in Digital Cities: The Internet and the Geography of Opportunity

This introductory chapter argues that cities are important venues for national broadband policy, and that federal programs have not addressed market failures in urban areas, such as slow speeds and ... More

This introductory chapter argues that cities are important venues for national broadband policy, and that federal programs have not addressed market failures in urban areas, such as slow speeds and high costs. Policymakers must consider how place matters for technology use, and the subsequent chapters explore the significance of context across multiple layers of geography; from a comparison of urban, suburban, and rural patterns of access to the neighbourhoods of Chicago. Cities are uniquely positioned to advance innovative uses of broadband in the economy and public institutions. Moreover, there are substantial disparities in access in cities and metropolitan areas, where most of the population lives. Experimenting with new applications in cities and addressing barriers such as cost would have a greater impact than reliance on rural infrastructure to close technology gaps.Less

Regional Coalitions and Educational Policy: Lessons from the Nebraska Learning Community Agreement

Jennifer Jellison Holme, Sarah L. Diem, and Katherine Cumings Mansfield

in Integrating Schools in a Changing Society: New Policies and Legal Options for a Multiracial Generation

This chapter examines the development of a regional integration plan in Omaha, Nebraska. It begins by discussing why regional agreements are important in addressing stratification and segregation ... More

This chapter examines the development of a regional integration plan in Omaha, Nebraska. It begins by discussing why regional agreements are important in addressing stratification and segregation between districts in metropolitan areas. It then describes the central elements of the agreement and examines the process by which the agreement in Omaha unfolded. The chapter ends with an analysis of the current state of the agreement, an illustration of the fragility of metropolitan solutions, and a discussion of policy recommendations.Less

Introduction: Metropolitan School Desegregation, Past and Present

Genevieve Siegel-Hawley

in When the Fences Come Down: Twenty-First-Century Lessons from Metropolitan School Desegregation

The introduction provides an overview of key legal cases and historical concepts related to metropolitan school desegregation. It also presents the rationale behind contemporary regionalism and ... More

The introduction provides an overview of key legal cases and historical concepts related to metropolitan school desegregation. It also presents the rationale behind contemporary regionalism and discusses how the two movements overlap and differ. The central argument of the book—that new evidence related to the success of metropolitan school desegregation efforts in combating both housing and school segregation must inform the regional agenda—follows. The introduction closes with a synopsis of the significance of the South and the four metro areas examined throughout the book.Less

East–West Metro in Kolkata

M. Ramachandran

in Metro Rail Projects In India: A Study In Project Planning

This chapter discusses the development of the east-west metro rail system in Kolkata. It details the various phases of the project from proposal to implementation. Kolkata is the only city in the ... More

This chapter discusses the development of the east-west metro rail system in Kolkata. It details the various phases of the project from proposal to implementation. Kolkata is the only city in the country which has all modes of transport, from a metro railway and trams to hand-pulled rickshaws, in addition to buses and all other normal vehicles. In 2006, when a DPR for an east-west metro corridor was taken up, the existing Indian Railways-run metro system was operating between Dum Dum and Tollygunge. Looking at Kolkata’s problems is essentially taking into account a larger urban agglomeration consisting of Kolkata Municipal Corporation, Howrah Municipal Corporation, Salt Lake City, and the larger Kolkata Metropolitan Development Area.Less