Date on Master's Thesis/Doctoral Dissertation

5-2020

Document Type

Master's Thesis

Degree Name

M.A.

Department

History

Degree Program

History, MA

Committee Chair

Ehrick, Christine

Committee Co-Chair (if applicable)

Fleming, Tyler

Committee Member

Barnett, Kyle

Author's Keywords

David duke; invisible empire; neo-confederate; united klans of America; new Klan; radical media

Abstract

The 1970s in the United States of America ushered in transformative policies that reshaped the nation. In her landmark essay, “The Long Civil Rights Movement and the Political Uses of the Past” (2005), Dr. Jacquelyn Dowd Hall reveals how Black activists inspired “a long movement of movements.” However, often forgotten in narratives of new activism from this era is the resurgence of white reactionary social movements. This thesis argues that mass media is central to mainstreaming radical far-right ideology to a national audience. It explores the political ramifications of sensationalist coverage of the Ku Klux Klan in mass media, specifically in newspapers and on television, as well as the KKK’s media strategies. Moreover, it discusses why the 1970s was a fertile breeding ground for extremism, drawing parallels to the recent spate of white supremacist violence in America exemplified by the Unite the Right rally held in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017.

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