How numbers rule the world : the use and abuse of statistics in global politics / Lorenzo Fioramonti.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Fioramonti, Lorenzo, author.

Series:

Economic controversies

Economic Controversies

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Political statistics.

Economic indicators.

Social indicators.

Government information.

Statistics--Social aspects.

Statistics.

Communication in politics.

Social aspects.

Physical Description:

vii, 271 pages ; 22 cm.

Place of Publication:

London : Zed Books, 2014.

Summary:

Numbers dominate global politics and, as a result, our everyday lives. Credit ratings steer financial markets and can make or break the future of entire nations. GDP drives our economies. Stock market indices flood our media and national debates. Statistical calculations define how we deal with climate change, poverty and sustainability. But what is behind these numbers? In How Numbers Rule the World, Lorenzo Fioramonti reveals the hidden agendas underpinning the use of statistics and those who control them. Most worryingly, he shows how numbers have been used as a means to reinforce the grip of markets on our social and political life, curtailing public participation and rational debate. An innovative and timely exposé of the politics, power and contestation of numbers. Book jacket.

Contents:

Chapter 1 The power of numbers 10

Chapter 2 New global rulers: the untameable power of credit rating 39

Chapter 3 Fiddling while the planet burns: the marketization of climate change 68

Chapter 4 Measuring the unmeasurable: the financialization of nature 104

Chapter 5 Numbers for good? The quest for aid effectiveness and social impact 144.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781780322674

1780322674

1780322682

9781780322681

OCLC:

862092552