A conversation with researcher A.J. Bauer and Berkeley Center for Right-Wing Studies Chair Lawrence Rosenthal
Drawing from his new book “Making the Liberal Media: How Conservatives Built a Movement Against the Press” (Columbia University Press, 2026), A.J. Bauer shares research on the rise of right-wing media and criticisms of mainstream media as too liberal. He takes a deep and fascinating dive into this history and gives us a sense of how got to a place of media misinformation, demonization and polarization in the press.
Join us at 5:30 for a reception with book sales and signing.
A.J. Bauer
A.J. Bauer is an Assistant Professor of Journalism and Creative Media at the University of Alabama. Bauer is a historian, ethnographer, and former journalist who researches historical and contemporary right-wing movements in the United States and beyond. His work focuses on the role of media activism, press criticism, and ideological journalism in the formation of political movements and identities. In addition to scholarly publications, he has contributed essays and commentary to Bloomberg, Politico Magazine, The Philadelphia Inquirer, TV Guide, Columbia Journalism Review, The Guardian, and elsewhere. He holds a PhD in American Studies from New York University. He is co-editor of News on the Right: Studying Conservative News Cultures (Oxford, 2019) and author of Making the Liberal Media: How Conservatives Built a Movement Against the Press (Columbia, 2026).
Dr. Lawrence Rosenthal
Dr. Lawrence Rosenthal is Chair and Lead Researcher of the Berkeley Center for Right-Wing Studies, which he founded in 2009. He has taught at UC Berkeley in the Sociology and Italian Studies Departments and was a Fulbright Professor at the University of Naples in Italy. He has studied the Right in the United States and in Italy and is currently working on a study of the contemporary American Right in comparison to movements of the Right in 20th century Europe. He co-edited Steep: The Precipitous Rise of the Tea Party and The New Nationalism and the First World War. His work has appeared in numerous publications including the Nation, the International New York Times, The San Francisco Chronicle, Foreign Policy and many others. Some of his commentary can be found on HuffPost(link is external). He is author of Empire of Resentment: Populism’s Toxic Embrace of Nationalism (New Press 2020).
SPONSORED BY
The Institute for the Study of Societal Issues (ISSI)LOCATION
North Gate Hall
SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS
This event is free and open to the public. If you require an accommodation for effective communication (ASL interpreting/CART captioning, alternative media formats, etc.) in order to fully participate in this virtual event, please contact us with as much advance notice as possible and at least 7-10 days in advance of the event.
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