Who Rules America?

Who Rules America?

Cover of first edition
Author G. William Domhoff
Country United States
Publisher Prentice Hall
Publication date
2009 sixth edition
Pages 288 pp
ISBN ISBN 0-07-811156-0

Who Rules America? is a book by psychologist and sociologist G. William Domhoff, first published in 1967 and updated in 2009, that argues against the concentration of power and wealth in the American upper class.[1] The 2010 edition brings the discussion up to date and also includes the rise of Barack Obama, his campaign finance supporters, and the nature of his administration.

Domhoff argues in the book that a power elite wields power in America through its support of think-tanks, foundations, commissions, and academic departments.[2] Additionally, he argues that the elite control institutions through overt authority, not covert influence.[3]

In his introduction, Domhoff writes that the book was inspired by the work of four men: sociologists E. Digby Baltzell, C. Wright Mills, economist Paul Sweezy, and political scientist Robert A. Dahl.[4]

References

  1. "WhoRulesAmerica.net".
  2. World of Sociology. Gale. November 2000. ISBN 978-0-7876-4965-4.
  3. Kenneth E. Miller (1967). "Who Rules America? By G. William Domhoff". The Journal of Politics 31: 565–567.
  4. G.William Domhoff (1967). Who Rules America?. p. 1. ISBN 0-13-958363-7.