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Democracy (journal)
Encyclopedia
Democracy is a quarterly journal of progressive
and liberal
politics, as well as culture, founded by Kenneth Baer
and Andrei Cherny
in 2006. While new, Democracy is intended to be the progressive/liberal answer to such prominent and influential conservative journals as The Public Interest
, Policy Review
, Commentary
, and The National Interest
. Baer and Cherny state in a message to readers in the first issue that they intend to "regenerate the strength of the progressive movement" with "big ideas." Contrasting themselves with National Review
's William F. Buckley
, Baer and Cherny proclaim their journal will "stand athwart history and yell, Forward!" The editors put forward Democracy as "a place where ideas can be developed and important debates can be spurred" at a "time when American politics has grown profoundly unserious."
Baer told The Hill
“We think that the party is rich in tactics and poor in ideas. What we really need for long-term success is deep, serious thinking about how we’re going to apply long-held progressive values to new challenges.”
Cherny added “I had started thinking about where all of the conservative ideas, for better or worse, had come from. Every big idea — Social Security privatization, supply-side economics
, preemption, faith-based initiatives — had come out of one of their journals in their intellectual infrastructure.”
In an editorial
for the Los Angeles Times
on July 10, 2006, Baer and Cherny laid out a case for making a break with what they characterized as the "ad hoc approach to politics" they claim the current Democratic Party is engaged in.
On March 3, 2009 Michael Tomasky
replaced Kenneth Baer as editor when Baer left to become associate director of the White House
Office of Management and Budget.
Progressivism
Progressivism is an umbrella term for a political ideology advocating or favoring social, political, and economic reform or changes. Progressivism is often viewed by some conservatives, constitutionalists, and libertarians to be in opposition to conservative or reactionary ideologies.The...
and liberal
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
politics, as well as culture, founded by Kenneth Baer
Kenneth Baer
Kenneth Baer is director of communications for the Obama White House's Office of Management and Budget. He is a former White House speechwriter, author, and analyst. Baer has a doctorate in Politics from Oxford University and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania, where he was elected to...
and Andrei Cherny
Andrei Cherny
Andrei Cherny is a former Arizona Assistant Attorney General, White House aide, business consultant, and the founder and President of Democracy: A Journal of Ideas...
in 2006. While new, Democracy is intended to be the progressive/liberal answer to such prominent and influential conservative journals as The Public Interest
The Public Interest
The Public Interest was a quarterly public policy journal founded by established New York intellectuals Daniel Bell and Irving Kristol in 1965. It was a leading neoconservative journal on political economy and culture, aimed at a readership of journalists, scholars, and policy makers...
, Policy Review
Policy Review
Policy Review is one of America's leading conservative journals. It was founded by the Heritage Foundation and was for many years the foundation's flagship publication. In 2001, the publication was acquired by the Stanford University-based Hoover Institution, though it maintains its office on...
, Commentary
Commentary (magazine)
Commentary is a monthly American magazine on politics, Judaism, social and cultural issues. It was founded by the American Jewish Committee in 1945. By 1960 its editor was Norman Podhoretz, a liberal at the time who moved sharply to the right in the 1970s and 1980s becoming a strong voice for the...
, and The National Interest
The National Interest
The National Interest is a prominent conservative American bi-monthly international affairs magazine published by the Center for the National Interest. It was founded in 1985 by Irving Kristol and until 2001 was edited by Anglo-Australian Owen Harries...
. Baer and Cherny state in a message to readers in the first issue that they intend to "regenerate the strength of the progressive movement" with "big ideas." Contrasting themselves with National Review
National Review
National Review is a biweekly magazine founded by the late author William F. Buckley, Jr., in 1955 and based in New York City. It describes itself as "America's most widely read and influential magazine and web site for conservative news, commentary, and opinion."Although the print version of the...
's William F. Buckley
William F. Buckley, Jr.
William Frank Buckley, Jr. was an American conservative author and commentator. He founded the political magazine National Review in 1955, hosted 1,429 episodes of the television show Firing Line from 1966 until 1999, and was a nationally syndicated newspaper columnist. His writing was noted for...
, Baer and Cherny proclaim their journal will "stand athwart history and yell, Forward!" The editors put forward Democracy as "a place where ideas can be developed and important debates can be spurred" at a "time when American politics has grown profoundly unserious."
Baer told The Hill
The Hill (newspaper)
The Hill, a subsidiary of News Communications Inc., is a newspaper published in Washington, D.C. since 1994.Its first editor was Martin Tolchin, a veteran correspondent in the Washington bureau of The New York Times....
“We think that the party is rich in tactics and poor in ideas. What we really need for long-term success is deep, serious thinking about how we’re going to apply long-held progressive values to new challenges.”
Cherny added “I had started thinking about where all of the conservative ideas, for better or worse, had come from. Every big idea — Social Security privatization, supply-side economics
Supply-side economics
Supply-side economics is a school of macroeconomic thought that argues that economic growth can be most effectively created by lowering barriers for people to produce goods and services, such as lowering income tax and capital gains tax rates, and by allowing greater flexibility by reducing...
, preemption, faith-based initiatives — had come out of one of their journals in their intellectual infrastructure.”
In an editorial
Editorial
An opinion piece is an article, published in a newspaper or magazine, that mainly reflects the author's opinion about the subject. Opinion pieces are featured in many periodicals.-Editorials:...
for the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
on July 10, 2006, Baer and Cherny laid out a case for making a break with what they characterized as the "ad hoc approach to politics" they claim the current Democratic Party is engaged in.
On March 3, 2009 Michael Tomasky
Michael Tomasky
Michael Tomasky is a liberal American columnist, journalist and author. He is the editor in chief of Democracy, a special correspondent for Newsweek / The Daily Beast, a contributing editor for The American Prospect, and a contributor to The New York Review of Books.-Biography:Tomasky was born...
replaced Kenneth Baer as editor when Baer left to become associate director of the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
Office of Management and Budget.