Culture War

The term "Culture War" has been used to describe the dramatic polarization that has recently taken place in American politics. The observation is that on an increasing number of issues, from abortion to gun control to taxes, there are two definable poles in American politics, commonly referred to as the left or liberal position and right or conservative position. It In his book, Culture Wars, James Davison Hunter describes this polarity as the impulse toward Progressivism and the impulse toward Orthodoxy.

Some political scientists have suggested that America is not in the midst of a political war, but that a large majority of voters are moderates. These scholars argue that, while America is generally evenly split on most issues, it is not divisively polarized. The media plays a part in promoting the appearance of a culture war, because showing the extreme side of issues is more interesting than showing the moderate view.