SOCIAL SCIENTISTS AS EXPERT WITNESSES: Their Use, Misuse, and Sometimes Abuse

Upon entering the legal realm, the expert witness must begin to define his or her role and establish a working relationship with the attorneys. The authors recommend that relationships between the social scientist and the attorneys be subject to clear and explicit agreements and that the role of the expert witness be defined so that the social scientist maintains control of any needed research. Potential expert witnesses should be aware of the unique research problems they may encounter and be prepared to deal with these obstacles. Throughout the research, the expert should be cognizant of the adversarial setting in which the results will be presented, and must carefully document and substantiate the research accordingly. Finally, the social scientist should be aware of the potential consequences of participating as an expert witness.     

Newspaper Coverage of Corporate Price-Fixing

Among the reasons common corporate crimes such as price-fixing lack the "brimstone smell" of common street crimes such as burglary is that newspapers fail to provide frequent, prominent, or criminally oriented coverage of corporate crime. This certainly was true of newspaper coverage of the heavy electrical equipment antitrust cases of 1961. Replicative analysis reveals that this also was true of newspaper coverage of the folding-carton industry antitrust cases of 1976. Reasons for this continued lack of coverage are discussed, including the diffuse harm characteristic of price-fixing, the general lack of recognition that corporations are juristic persons capable of criminal deviance, and the disinclination of large organizations to link other large organizations with criminality.     

Lessons Learned

Amonth before the PRC 60th anniversary celebrations in Beijing, I traveled back to the US as part of a group fromthe Chinese media to meet with former American president George H.W. Bush, on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of Sino-U.S. diplomatic ties. The interview he granted us was for Chinese television and part of a larger series featuring various individuals recounting developments in New China that took place on their watch. Mr. Bush and the PRC have done more than just cross paths over the last 60 years. His particular story began back in the early 1970s when then President Nixon took notice of a young congressman from the State of Texas.     

Kosher Made in China？--China takes on the specialty food market

THERE is an old joke that hints at the understanding two cultures joined through food have for each other： ＂If, accordingto the Jewish calendar, the year is 5770, and, according to the Chinese calendar, the year is 4707, what did the Jews eat on Sundays for those first 1,063 years？＂     

Public Participation in Environmental Regulatory Conflicts: Treading Through the Possibilities and Pitfalls*

Based on two years of qualitative field work, this paper examines public participation in environmental regulatory disputes. Drawing on political economy critiques of environmentalism, we argue that regulation is both a political arena and a legal process that is about responsivity, competition, and bargaining. A combination of case study and Boolean algebra techniques are used to refine and apply the conceptualization. Five primary factors are identified which mediate citizens' participation: (I) information networks, (2) social resources, (3) cooperative linkages, (4) the ability to sustain linkages and levels of resource mobilization over time, and (5) agendas which fit within the narrow constitutive norms of a particular regulatory community.     

Much of Politics Is Still Local: Multi‐State Lobbying in State Interest Communities

Abstract We explore the nationalization of state lobbying communities by examining all lobbying registrations held by organizations in the 50 states in 1997, with special attention given to the frequency of multi‐state registrations. Following discussion of the meanings and sources of nationalization among state interest communities, we develop and analyze several measures of the level of localism, examining what factors drive variation in multiple state registrations across group types and states. Finally, we discuss the substantive and measurement implications of the nationalization of state interest communities. Our findings identify an interesting paradox of interest representation before state legislatures: although lobbying responses and techniques may have become more nationalized, the composition of state interest communities remains predominantly local.