1st Edition

Teaching Public Administration with Pop Culture

By Erin L. Borry, Peter A. Jones Copyright 2025
208 Pages
by Routledge

208 Pages
by Routledge

208 Pages
by Routledge

This book offers faculty teaching in public administration and public affairs programs a playbook for using popular culture as a pedagogical tool in the classroom. Authors Erin L. Borry and Peter A. Jones build a pedagogical framework, detailing the richness and range of media through which pop culture can be accessed, and demonstrate how best to integrate different forms of pop culture to... Read more

1. Introduction  Part I: Pedagogy  2. Pop Culture as Pedagogy  3. Choosing Pop Culture for the Classroom  Part II: Traditional Pop Culture  4. Television  5. Documentaries and Docuseries  6. Movies  7. Podcasts  Part III: Nontraditional Pop Culture  8. Social Media  9. Pop Culture Potpourri  Part IV: Incorporating Pop Culture in Large-Scale Activities  10. Simulations and Cases  11. Conclusion

Biography

Erin L. Borry (she/her) is an associate professor and graduate program director in the Department of Political Science and Public Administration at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Her research interests include rules, red tape, social equity, and public administration in pop culture. She has published in journals such as Public Administration Review, Public Administration, International Public Management Journal, Public Integrity, Journal of Public Affairs Education, and American Review of Public Administration, among others.

Peter A. Jones (he/him) is an associate professor in the department of Political Science and Public Administration at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He researches the public budgeting processes and financial management practices of local and state governments, school districts, and court systems. His research work has been published in the Policy Studies Journal, American Review of Public AdministrationInternational Journal of Public Administration, International Journal of Public Sector Management, and Journal of Public Affairs Education, among others.

“This book is a gem! Borry and Jones provide a comprehensive text for any faculty member looking to innovate their teaching, using popular culture from film and television as an effective educational tool to enhance lessons in the classroom that are proven to be advantageous to student learning outcomes, as well as priming students with the tools and education needed to be effective future leaders.”

Helen H. Yu, Professor, University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, USA

“Artifacts of popular culture provide incomparable pedagogical tools for the public affairs classroom. For anyone interested in popular culture’s uses in the classroom, this exceptional work by Borry and Jones is required reading. With this book, instructors are better prepared to make classes more meaningful for students of all generations.”

Sean McCandless, Associate Professor, School of Economic, Political, and Policy Sciences, University of Texas at Dallas, USA

“Erin L. Borry and Peter A. Jones’ book provides practical, evidence-based guidance on how to use pop culture in the college classroom. An invaluable resource, this book can help any professor use pop culture in a thoughtful way that supports student learning and engagement.”

Seth J. Meyer, Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, Bridgewater State University, USA