Jeremy Ahearne has published a new book – Government Through Culture and the Contemporary French Right (Palgrave, November 2014).

Culture, understood broadly, lay at the heart of contrasting right-wing strategies for government in France during the pivotal decade of 2002–2012. Looking at issues of political secularism, educational reform, televisual performance, public memory and nation-branding, the book analyses how Presidents Chirac and Sarkozy sought to redefine contemporary French identity. This study extends prevailing conceptions of 'cultural policy' and shows how this constitutes a core dimension, alongside economic and social policies, of modern right-wing government. It traces, over the course of the decade in question, a dramatic hardening of the attitudes and values informing these programmes for cultural hegemony. These reflect enduring transformations in the political and symbolic landscape of contemporary France.

For reviews and further details see http://www.palgrave.com/page/detail/government-through-culture-and-the-contemporary-french-right-jeremy-ahearne/?K=9781137290984