Olympic Dreams: The Impact of Mega-Events on Local Politics »

"What drives cities to pursue large-scale, high-profile events like the Olympic games? What are the consequences for citizens and local governments? Investigating local politics in three U.S. cities - Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Salt Lake City - as they vied for the role of Olympic host, this book provides a compelling narrative of the evolving political economy of modern mega-events." "The authors reveal how the mega-event strategy typically is initiated by a coalition of public and private elites; how citizen involvement is managed and often curtailed; and how latent development agendas are revived and refocused to leverage Olympic opportunities. In assessing the impact of mega-event-driven growth, they look beyond the tax revenues and stadium costs to offer a nuanced examination of the ways Olympic dreams affect local governance and social conditions in urban economics."--BOOK JACKET.

Booknews

The cities of Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Salt Lake City provide the test cases for this volume on the local political response to hosting the Olympic Games. The centrality of growth in American politics is discussed as background in a chapter on the contemporary context of American cities and the influence of globalization on economic strategies. Employing regime theory for their study, the authors (two are political scientists, one teaches urban studies) show that the mega-event strategy is initiated by a coalition of public and private elites, and that citizen involvement is kept to a minimum as latent development agendas are revived. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)