Political Virtue And Shopping

The anti-sweatshop movement, campaigns for fair-trade coffee, anti- biotechnology activists, and many others often urge people to engage in political consumerism such as boycotts and "buycotts." Micheletti (political science, Stockholm, Sweden), after comparing historical and contemporary forms of political consumerism, explores the motivations of political consumers and examines efforts to make governments act as political consumers. She also describes and addresses the main criticisms of political consumerism, most notably the charge that it isn't effective. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR