Stigma Cities: Birmingham, Alabama and Las Vegas, Nevada in the National Media, 1945-2000

Authors

Jonathan Foster, University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Keywords

Alabama – Birmingham; Cities and towns in mass media; Nevada – Las Vegas; Public opinion; Stigma (Social psychology)

Disciplines

American Studies | Cultural History | History | Social History | United States History

Abstract

Early in 1994 Time magazine proclaimed Las Vegas, Nevada “The New All American City,” a “city so freakishly democratic” that Americans just could not resist. Twenty-three years earlier, Look magazine had conferred the same title upon Birmingham, Alabama, stressing its progress in race relations. Such media castings of normality must have surprised the American public in both instances. By the time of each city’s designation as “All-American,” the public had long been subjected to stories of their seemingly abnormal internal actions and qualities. Both cities suffered from stigmatized identities in the wider American perception that were fully formed by the mid-1960s. Las Vegas symbolized the abnormalities of legalized gambling, sexual promiscuity, and organized crime. Mention of Birmingham evoked associations with the deviance of racial intolerance and violent resistance to progressive change. A survey of the two cities’ national media representation provides insight into key aspects of these images’ development and endurance from 1945 to 2000.

Recommended Citation

Foster, Jonathan (2005) "Stigma Cities: Birmingham, Alabama and Las Vegas, Nevada in the National Media, 1945-2000," Psi Sigma Siren: Vol. 3: Iss. 1, Article 3.
Available at: https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/psi_sigma_siren/vol3/iss1/3