Generation Gap: Why the Baby Boomers Still Dominate American Politics and Culture

The Baby Boomers are the largest and most powerful generation in American history-and they aren't going away any time soon. They are, on average, whiter, wealthier, and more conservative than younger generations. They dominate cultural and political institutions and make up the largest slice of the electorate. Generational conflict, with Millennials and Generation Z pitted against the aging Boomer cohort, has become a media staple. Older and younger voters are increasingly at odds: Republicans as a whole skew gray-haired, and within the Democratic Party, the left-leaning youth vote propels primary challengers. The generation gap is widening into a political fault line. Kevin Munger marshals novel data and survey evidence to argue that generational conflict will define the politics of the next decade. He examines the historical trends that made the Baby Boomers so consequential and traces the emergence of age-based political and cultural divisions. Boomers continue to prefer the media culture of their youth, but Millennials and Gen Z are using the internet to render legacy institutions irrelevant. These divergent media habits have led more people than ever to identify with their generation. Munger shows that a common "cohort consciousness" binds aging Boomer voters into a bloc-but a shared identity and purpose among Millennials and Gen Z could topple Boomer power. Bringing together expertise in data analysis and digital culture with keen insight into contemporary politics, Generation Gap explains why the Baby Boomers remain so dominant and how quickly that might change.

Table of Contents:
Introduction 1. The Problem of Generations 2. The Birth of the Boom 3. Boomer Ballast in American Politics 4. Demographic Trends in Politics 5. Dreaming of a Boomer Christmas 6. Where Does Identity Come From? 7. The Emergence of Cohort Consciousness 8. The Issues: Zero-Sum Competition 9. Technology and Alienation Conclusion Notes References Index

About the Author :
Kevin Munger is an assistant professor of political science and social data analytics at Penn State University. His work has appeared in Nature, the American Journal of Political Science, the British Journal of Political Science, and the Journal of Communication. He is the founder and coeditor of the Journal of Quantitative Description: Digital Media.

Review :
In this fast-paced book, Kevin Munger sets up a colossal collision between outnumbered but tech-savvy Millennials and the Boomers who vote in droves but lack social media literacy. Can Boomers get away with warming the planet and passing on huge debts to the next generations? It may depend on whether Millennials develop unprecedented cohort consciousness. In this deeply learned, far-ranging, and unapologetic tour of contemporary generational politics, Munger traces the causes and consequences of today’s age-based divisions. Like the Boomer generation, the influence of this already powerful book is sure to grow over time as political events reinforce the fundamental insights it brings to the foreground. In this pioneering book, Munger provides a fascinating new account of America’s political malaise: gerontocracy. The growing cleavage between the old and young—driven by unprecedented demographic changes that allow Baby Boomers to control the political and cultural landscape—threatens the fabric of our democracy. One of the most original, incisive, and well-written reflections on American politics I’ve read in many years. Generation Gap is timely, important, well-organized, and approachable. Readers will learn much from Munger's compelling analysis. A fascinating look at why the Baby Boomer generation still holds sway in American politics and culture.