Wonks and Warriors: Depictions of Government Professionals in Popular Film

Public Voices ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 61 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beth A. Wielde ◽  
David Schultz
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Popular Culture ◽  
Public Service ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
Government Officials ◽  
Public Servants ◽  
Popular Film ◽  
Feature Films ◽  
Perceived Reality ◽  
Recent Government

The importance of studying public service portrayals in popular film lies in theimportance of popular culture itself. Popular culture defines generations, both creating and reflecting trends. It provides a window to worlds that may otherwise be a mystery. Popular film messages merge with other media and environmental factors to form a perceived reality for many (Kelly and Elliott 2000).This article examines the depiction of non-elected public servants in movies. It seeks to identify how these individuals are depicted in film and to determine if there are any specific stereotypes or patterns that emerge regarding how Hollywood describes nonelected government officials. It will do this by undertaking a content analysis of a small sample of recent government-themed feature films, ones that have entered into the popular culture mainstream since the late 1980s and early 1990s, as well as certain earlier films that have entrenched themselves into the popular culture vernacular.

Capturing the Art of Public Service: The Government’s Perspective

Public Voices ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 55
Author(s):  
Tony Carrizales
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Content Analysis ◽  
Popular Culture ◽  
Public Service ◽  
Public Art ◽  
The United States ◽  
Virtual Museum ◽  
Film And Television ◽  
Government Institutions ◽  
Art Forms

Public Service, in popular culture, can be viewed through many artistic lenses. Although there has been a consistent negative portrayal of government through art forms such as film and television, this research looks to review how government institutions in the United States have used art to provide a positive portrayal of public service. Eight forms of public service art are outlined through a content analysis of the holdings at the Virtual Museum of Public Service. The findings show that government and public entities have historically and continually engaged in promoting public service through art. Many of these public art examples are accessible year round, without limitations, such as buildings, statues, and public structures.

Public Service Motivation in Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Public Voices ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sharon Mastracci
Keyword(s):  
Popular Culture ◽  
Public Service ◽  
Public Service Motivation ◽  
Public Servants ◽  
Buffy The Vampire Slayer ◽  
The Public ◽  
American Popular Culture ◽  
Public Servant ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
The Individual

In this paper, the author examines public service as depicted in the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer (BtVS). First, she shows how slaying meets the economist’s definition of a public good, using the BtVS episode “Flooded” (6.04). Second, she discusses public service motivation (PSM) to determine whether or not Buffy, a public servant, operates from a public service ethic. Relying on established measures and evidence from shooting scripts and episode transcripts, the author concludes Buffy is a public servant motivated by a public service ethic. In this way, BtVS informs scholarship on public service by broadening the concept of PSM beyond the public sector; prompting one to wonder whether it is located in a sector, an occupation, or in the individual. These conclusions allow the author to situate Buffy alongside other idealized public servants in American popular culture.

scholarly journals To what extend do governments effectively use social media? Understanding government and user interactions on immigration agencies' social media

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Gintova
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Content Analysis ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
Public Service ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Public Servants ◽  
Public Service Delivery ◽  
Secondary Sources ◽  
Use Of Social Media ◽  
Effective Use

Since 2011, Canada like many other countries, has been formally using social media as part of its open government policy. In the past few years, many federal and provincial departments and agencies in Canada have invested significant resources in social media initiatives and begun to build up their presence on social media platforms. This research examines if the use of social media makes a difference and adds value in public service delivery. The study focuses on immigration agencies in Canada – the federal government’s Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and the Province of Ontario’s Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration (MCI) – and comparison with Australia and New Zealand as two other jurisdictions using social media in immigration related matters. It is aimed at capturing and analysing the perspectives of both public servants and users of government social media, therefore, filling existing gaps in the literature related to how government immigration agencies are using social media and how that use relates to social media users’ expectations and needs. The methodology used in this study includes qualitative methods: document analysis, content analysis and semi-structured interviews. Content analysis of social media data is supplemented by analysis of government documents and interview data offering insights into the meaning of effective use of social media for government and social media users. Using existing secondary sources from the scholarly and practitioner literature, the study also defines and examines effective use of social media by government and includes recommendations for practitioners. Findings of this study add value to existing scholarship on public policy and administration and for policy makers and public servants responsible for the use of social media in government to improve existing policy and public service delivery.

scholarly journals To what extend do governments effectively use social media? Understanding government and user interactions on immigration agencies' social media

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Gintova
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Content Analysis ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
Public Service ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Public Servants ◽  
Public Service Delivery ◽  
Secondary Sources ◽  
Use Of Social Media ◽  
Effective Use

Since 2011, Canada like many other countries, has been formally using social media as part of its open government policy. In the past few years, many federal and provincial departments and agencies in Canada have invested significant resources in social media initiatives and begun to build up their presence on social media platforms. This research examines if the use of social media makes a difference and adds value in public service delivery. The study focuses on immigration agencies in Canada – the federal government’s Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and the Province of Ontario’s Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration (MCI) – and comparison with Australia and New Zealand as two other jurisdictions using social media in immigration related matters. It is aimed at capturing and analysing the perspectives of both public servants and users of government social media, therefore, filling existing gaps in the literature related to how government immigration agencies are using social media and how that use relates to social media users’ expectations and needs. The methodology used in this study includes qualitative methods: document analysis, content analysis and semi-structured interviews. Content analysis of social media data is supplemented by analysis of government documents and interview data offering insights into the meaning of effective use of social media for government and social media users. Using existing secondary sources from the scholarly and practitioner literature, the study also defines and examines effective use of social media by government and includes recommendations for practitioners. Findings of this study add value to existing scholarship on public policy and administration and for policy makers and public servants responsible for the use of social media in government to improve existing policy and public service delivery.

Public service in popular culture: the administrative discretion of commissioner gordon and harvey dent

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 367-388 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sharon Mastracci
Keyword(s):  
Popular Culture ◽  
Public Administration ◽  
Public Service ◽  
District Attorney ◽  
Administrative Discretion ◽  
Public Servants ◽  
Public Servant ◽  
Changes Over Time ◽  
Over Time ◽  
Better Than

To examine how public servants are depicted in film, I discuss the changes over time of Batmanʼs Commissioner Gordon, particularly his character arc in the contemporary The Dark Knight trilogy. An important aspect of Gordonʼs evolution is in contrast to the filmsʼ other prominent public servant, District Attorney Harvey Dent. The Gordon-Dent contrast illustrates aspects of the Friedrich-Finer debate over administrative discretion, a classic debate in public administration. The trilogyʼs verdict on public service is mixed: the flawed, rule-bending, expedient public servant survives while the fabricated hero is a sham. Commissioner Gordon is far more interesting than he had been for decades, but is he just an expedient bureaucrat ultimately pursuing self preservation? In contrast, the (pre-villain) Harvey Dent, who refuses to compromise his principles, is ultimately undone by his absolutism. For the complexity of his character and its centrality to the plot, I judge the depiction of Commissioner Gordon-warts and all-to be better than simplistic caricatures of bureaucrats and promising for future public servants in film.

PREPARING PUBLIC SERVANTS IN EUROPEAN COUNTRIES: ARCHETYPAL APPROACH

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (14) ◽  
pp. 255-263
Author(s):  
Oleh Ivanovich Rohulskyi
Keyword(s):  
Public Administration ◽  
Public Service ◽  
Professional Training ◽  
European Countries ◽  
Anglo Saxon ◽  
Public Servants ◽  
German Model ◽  
Managerial Positions ◽  
A Chain ◽  
The Individual

The article describes the main components of the institutional framework of an archetypical approach to public administration. It is determined that the system of preparation of public servants is based on a chain of universal foundations of archetype, in particular, it is influenced by the principle of formation of personnel in the public service, formed on the basis of public opinion. Based on two basic principles relating to admission to public service, three basic models of training civil servants in the European country are defined: German. French and Anglo-Saxon. We analyze each of the models and define the archetypes that influenced their formation and development. The advantages of each model are determined, in particular, the benefits are: the German model of training managers is the balancing between the theoretical knowledge and practical skills that a public servant receives during training, but as a disadvantage one can distinguish the orientation of preparation for legal orientation, which limits the ability to hold managerial positions for many employees The French model of professional training of public servants should include a well-balanced understanding of tasks, namely: decentralization and territorial organization of public services, communication, support of territorial communities, in-depth knowledge and understanding of the need for cooperation with institutions of the European Commonwealth, high-quality human resource management and orientation towards environmentally friendly innovations, such a model of training of public servants is holistic, costly and effective; The Anglo-Saxon model of training of public servants is its orientation towards the implementation of the concept of public administration and the individual approach to employee training, taking into account all the specifics of its activities, providing for the formation of personnel capable of solving specific problems. It is concluded that today in most European countries dominated by mixed models that include elements of different models.

THE ROLE OF THE CIVIL SERVICE IN THE INDUSTRIALIZATION OF NIGERIA

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chiemeka Onyema
Keyword(s):  
Public Service ◽  
Industrial Development ◽  
Industrial Revolution ◽  
National Development ◽  
Public Servants ◽  
Business Policy ◽  
Technological Base ◽  
Development Plans ◽  
Ease Of Doing Business ◽  
The Right

The goal of berthing Nigeria’s full-scale industrial revolution is yet to be achieved. All the industrial development plans have so far failed to accelerate the nation’s industrialization, hence the country’s low industrial base which has kept her in the league of developing nations. In fact, Nigeria has in recent times been experiencing deindustrialization, as several industries have collapsed and some others, such as Unilever and Michelin, have relocated to other countries. Several factors are responsible for Nigeria’s low industrial development and they include: inadequate infrastructure (particularly, energy), poor technological base, multiple taxes and levies, and, the shortage and high cost of foreign exchange. Despite a growing body of literature on industrialization in Nigeria, not much has been written about the link between Public Service Reforms and industrialization in Nigeria. This paper examines the links between the implementation of the Service Compact (SERVICOM) Charter and the achievement of Nigeria’s industrial development policies, especially the ‘Ease of Doing Business’ Policy. The paper makes the case that the goal of industrializing Nigeria will not be fully realised without an efficient Public Service. Furthermore, the paper highlights the need for Nigerian public servants to have the right work attitude, and to be morally upright and patriotic, in order to create a business-friendly environment and to build investor confidence, so as to facilitate and accelerate the country’s industrialization and overall national development. The author recommends that the Nigerian government should strengthen the implementation of the Servicom Charter and also incorporate the Charter into the industrialization plan.

Professional and Communicative Proficiency of a Mentor as a Tool of Image Building in Public Service

Communicology ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 74-88
Author(s):  
D.A. Kemenev
Keyword(s):  
Public Service ◽  
Role Models ◽  
Communicative Competence ◽  
Public Servants ◽  
Scientific Publications ◽  
Communicative Skills ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Servant ◽  
Professional Business ◽  
Image Building

The article investigates the imageological aspect of mentor’s communicative competence in public service and reveals the communicative functions of mentor’s image in relation to the mentees. The author determines the communicative skills necessary for the mentor in all processes and stages of this personnel technology. Based on the analysis of scientific publications, the author discloses and justifies the role models of mentor’s behavior in relation to the mentees from the perspective of the mentor’s image, authority, and communicative competence. The author has conducted an expert survey among public servants, which allowed identify the main professional, business, moral, psychological, and integral qualities that are the most effectively developed by the public servant in the process of performing mentor’s functions. As a result, the author suggests a structural-logical model of the communicative competence of a mentor in the public service in the process of perceiving its communicative knowledge, skills, and competencies for achieving the effectiveness of mentoring.

Servant Leaders in Public Service: Christian Spirituality in Practice

Public Voices ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 29
Author(s):  
Willa Bruce
Keyword(s):  
Servant Leadership ◽  
Public Administration ◽  
Public Service ◽  
Christian Spirituality ◽  
Servant Leaders ◽  
Public Servants ◽  
American Society

Relying on a survey of members of the American Society for Public Administration, servant leadership is examined through the lens of Christian spirituality.  Findings indicate that citizens can have confidence in the dedication and committment of public servants.

Volunteerism in Times of Crisis: An Unconventional Response to Processing Unemployment Insurance Claims

2020 ◽  
Vol 52 (3) ◽  
pp. 214-225
Author(s):  
ChiaKo Hung ◽  
Morgen S. Johansen ◽  
Jennifer Kagan ◽  
David Lee ◽  
Helen H. Yu
Keyword(s):  
Unemployment Insurance ◽  
Public Service ◽  
Public Service Motivation ◽  
Insurance Claims ◽  
Public Servants ◽  
Public Agency ◽  
The Relationship

This essay provides a reflective commentary outlining Hawai’i’s unconventional response for employing a volunteer workforce of public servants when faced with the task of processing an unprecedented backlog of unemployment insurance claims triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. Although efforts are still ongoing, this essay applies volunteerism and public service motivation as a framework to explain why public servants would serve in a voluntary capacity at another public agency. The intent of this essay is to spur conversation on how public servants are further stepping up to the frontlines during times of crisis, as well as expand knowledge on the relationship between volunteerism and public service motivation.

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