Power Struggle: The Hundred-Year War Over Electricity

      In 1928, Pennsylvania Governor Gifford Pinchot watched the rise of regional electric power monopolies and commented, "before very many years it will not be the 'hand that rocks the cradle' but the hand that turns the electric switch that will rule the land." He urged: "The people must learn to judge intelligently of its advantages and its evils. Everything about it should be investigated fearlessly and published fully." It was a prescient warning. The years leading up to his statement, and the following decades, revealed the influence and economic might of this key industry. On-going conflicts today, related to Climate Change and choices of technology and regulation, show the continuing need to fully understand the underpinnings of this vital industry. 
     
     Power Struggle is the first book to explore the politics that have shaped a century-long battle between public and private interests over development and control of U.S. electrical systems. With the skills of a historian and an investigative journalist, authors Richard Rudolph and Scott Ridley carefully lay out the evolution of this key industrial engine. Their purpose is to unearth the rich history of how the public/private conflict has shaped and will continue to shape choices in technology, regulation and the future of the nation.
      A dramatic and thought-provoking book, Power Struggle, probes the machinations of federal and state government, the behind-the-scenes role of Wall Street and the work of environmentalists and consumer advocates. In terms of who "turns the electric switch," the book offers readers an illuminating look at the past and a sobering sense of what the future might hold.

Richard Rudolph is a historian and professor of Community Planning at the University of Massachusetts in Boston. He is an environmental and energy consultant to town governments and citizens' organizations. He has received grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Science Foundation and the United States Department of Energy.
 
Scott Ridley is a journalist and policy analyst based in Washington, D.C. He specializes in energy issues and has testified before Congressional Committees as well as state and local governments. His articles have appeared in The New Republic, The Nation, Newsday, Denver Post and many other publications. He is the recipient of grants from the Fund for Investigative Journalism, one of which became the seed for this book.