KSU professor to discuss new book on enigmatic Fox News founder

July 8, 2008 - PRLog -- Kennesaw State University political science professor Kerwin Swint will face C−SPAN cameras at 2 p.m. July 12 at the Kennesaw Barnes & Noble as the cable network tapes him for an upcoming segment of its BookTV series on C−SPAN2.

Swint will discuss and sign copies of his new book‚ “Dark Genius: The Influential Career of Legendary Political Operative and Fox News Founder Roger Ailes.” The 250−page book‚ published by Sterling Publishings Union Square Press‚ came out in June.

The first book ever written about Ailes‚ Swint’s “Dark Genius” undertakes a definitive study of the man who steered Richard Nixon through the intricacies of the nascent broadcast news era of the 1960s‚ creating made−for−TV images and mastering a “style over substance” approach to reporting the news. Ailes went on to shape the images and campaigns of other famous Republicans‚ including Ronald Reagan‚ George H.W. Bush and Rudy Giuliani.

At the same time‚ Ailes was navigating a successful media career‚ in which he rose from TV producer to director of the “Mike Douglas Show” and eventually head of CNBC‚ the first cable financial network. Rupert Murdoch hired him in the 1990s to implement his vision of a different kind of cable news channel — Fox News. In 2007‚ Ailes joined Murdoch in launching the Fox News Business Channel and still serves as its president and a top advisor to Murdoch at News Corporation‚ which owns Fox.

“Ailes was so influential and so powerful for so long — both in media and in politics — and so little was known about him‚” said Swint‚ who completed the book in a little over a year. “I call him the ‘Forrest Gump’ of politics. He has been involved in so many of the big political and media events of the last 40 years.”

“Dark Genius” launched June 5 with a reading and signing at New York City’s Rizzoli’s Bookstore. It has received wide media coverage‚ appearing in more than 30 media nationwide‚ including the New York Daily News; The New York Observer‚ Roll Call‚ Publishers’ Weekly‚ CRN National Cable Radio‚ Salon.com and Slate.com. Swint has been praised for tackling the largely overlooked subject of Aisles’ media and political influence.

Swint said he researched the book by pouring through books‚ articles‚ Web sites and anything he could read on political campaigns‚ cable news‚ and Murdoch’s media empire. He also conducted numerous interviews with Republican campaign operatives and Ailes’ co−workers from NBC and Fox News. He typically wrote three days a week and some weekends‚ while teaching political science classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

“I was deeply fascinated by the lengths to which he went to be successful and the colorfully dubious characters with which he associated to achieve it — Richard Nixon and Rupert Murdoch‚ for example‚” Swint said. “I’ve tried to write a fair‚ non−political and unbiased biography. Ailes refused to be interviewed‚ so I guess I’ll find out if he thinks I accomplished that now that the book is out.”

Swint is also the author of “Mudslingers: The Twenty−five Dirtiest Political Campaigns of All Time‚” published by Praeger in 2006.

Swint will be discussing his book and signing copies this Saturday‚ July 12 at the Kennesaw Barnes & Noble‚ located at Town Center Prado‚ 50 Barrett Parkway‚ starting at 2 p.m..

For more information on “Dark Genius: The Influential Political Operative and Fox News Founder Roger Ailes‚” visit the publisher’s Web site: http://www.sterlingpublishing.com/catalog?isbn=9781402754456

To read recent articles featuring “Dark Genius‚” visit http://www.salon.com/books/int/2008/06/17/ailes/ . and
http://www.slate.com/id/2193044/.

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A member of the 35-unit University System of Georgia, Kennesaw State University is a comprehensive, residential institution with a growing student population of more than 20,000 from 142 countries. The third-largest university in Georgia, Kennesaw State offers more than 65 graduate and undergraduate degrees, including new doctorates in education and business.