From the iconic study of Yankee City parades by W. Lloyd Warner, examining festivals has been influential in understanding how communities define themselves in space and time. By detailing how two Mississippi River towns celebrate their past and present, Michael Johnston provides an insightful contribution to local sociology. Tug Fest, a friendly tug-of-war between two cross-river settlements, powerfully demonstrates how sporting competition builds meaning for residents and visitors. A most welcome contribution to cultural sociology and environmental studies.

Gary Alan Fine, Northwestern University

“Clearly written and engaging, Community Media Representations of Place and Identity at Tug Fest by Michael Johnston skillfully investigates how a tug-of-war festival on the banks of the Mississippi river both draws from and shapes a place, its local and international identity, historical path, and economic and tourist prospects."

Pepper Glass, author of Misplacing Ogden, Utah: Race, Class, Immigration, and the Construction of Urban Reputations

Every summer, two Midwestern American towns separated by the Mississippi River are connected by a half-mile-long rope and a rich symbolic world. In Community Media Representations of Place and Identity at Tug Fest: Reconstructing the Mississippi River, Michael O. Johnston does a deep sociological dive into the Great River Tug Fest: equal parts tug-of-war competition, booze-soaked party, and all-around celebration of life on America’s most storied river. More than just a good party, however, Johnston draws on a range of sociological thought to present Tug Fest as a ritual of postindustrial rebirth and collective effervescence—an account that will be valuable to anyone interested in tourism, community media, and the sociology of sport.

Aaron Shapiro, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

The book provides more than just an invitation to learn about a unique set of communities. Tug Fest presents an opportunity to consider how individuals continue to renew communities amidst shifting socioecological conditions by creatively reimaging their relationships with each other and the environments in which they live. In an era characterized by socioecological disruptions associated with shifting economic production processes and climate change, such analyses are invaluable.

Men and Masculinities