Vol. 5 No. 8 (2008): American Public Folklore –History, Issues, Challenges - By Robert Baron

This overview of American public and applied folklore explores the development of ideas about public and applied folklore, along with government support for folk arts and folklife, over the past century and a half in the United States. The development of American public and applied folklore through several key periods in United States history and the shaping of an American national identity are narrated. The periods of mass interest in folk music, the formation of academic departments in the discipline and the impact of debates on Intellectual Property Rights on folklore are among the issues discussed.