Kathryn Cramer Brownell
Dr. Kathryn Cramer Brownell is an author and assistant professor of history at Purdue University in West Lafayette, IN where she teaches courses in 20th century American history. She received her B.A. from University of Michigan and her Ph.D. from Boston University. Her research and teaching focus on American political history, the American presidency, and intersections of media, politics and popular culture in modern America.
Conventional wisdom holds that John F. Kennedy was the first celebrity president, in no small part because of his innate television savvy. But, as Kathryn Brownell shows, Kennedy capitalized on a tradition and style rooted in California politics and the Hollywood studio system. Since the 1920s, politicians and professional showmen have developed relationships and built organizations, institutionalizing Hollywood styles, structures, and personalities in the American political process.
About
Dr. Kathryn Cramer Brownell is an author and assistant professor of history at Purdue University in West Lafayette, IN where she teaches courses in 20th century American history. She received her B.A. from University of Michigan and her Ph.D. from Boston University. Her research and teaching focus on American political history, the American presidency, and intersections of media, politics and popular culture in modern America. Her most recent book, Showbiz Politics: Hollywood in American Political Life, examines the institutionalization of entertainment in American politics.
Recent Tweets
- RT @ModAmHist : #OTD in 1969, Apollo 11 landed on the moon. Revisit MAH’s Take Three on The Moon Landing for drastically different interpret… 2 days ago
- @marthasjones_ reminds us why we need the real history of the 14th Amendment now more than ever: https://t.co/8wFWtANP2c 2 days ago
- Really interesting piece on why calling France’s World Cup victory an immigrant win is so problematic for… https://t.co/eb8gvr05g7 2 days ago