Why the “Independent state legislature doctrine” is latest fringe theory designed to dismantle democracy
By Henry L. Chambers Jr., Professor of Law, University of Richmond In a case of Moore v. Harper, the U.S. Supreme Court could decide that state legislatures have control over congressional elections, including the ability to draw voting districts for partisan...
A year after omicron: The ever-morphing coronavirus mutant continues its assault on families
A year after omicron began its assault on humanity, the ever-morphing coronavirus mutant drove COVID-19 case counts higher in many places just as Americans gathered for the holidays. It was a prelude to a wave that experts expect to soon wash over the United States....
A triple threat: Children vulnerable to seasonal flu, RSV, and COVID-19 are straining health care systems
By Rebecca S.B. Fischer, Assistant Professor of Epidemiology, Texas A&M University; and Annette Regan, Assistant Professor of Epidemiology, University of San Francisco Every fall and winter, viral respiratory illnesses like the common cold and seasonal flu keep...
Third White House bid will not shield Trump as Justice Department’s criminal investigations proceed
Donald Trump’s early announcement of his third White House bid will not shield the former president from the criminal investigations already confronting him as an ordinary citizen, leaving him legally and politically exposed as he seeks the 2024 Republican...
A process not an event: Genocide still persists decades after the Holocaust
By Kerry Whigham, Assistant Professor of Genocide and Mass Atrocity Prevention, Binghamton University, State University of New York The newly formed United Nations passed its first international treaty on December 9, 1948, just three years after the Holocaust ended....
Reggie Jackson: The ugly path from hateful speech to America’s style of pervasive violence
In the past several years in this country we have witnessed an alarming rise in hateful words turn into violent actions. This is not a novel occurrence as some speculate. America has been here before. Americans seem to have less of a reaction to hate speech towards...
Old tropes never die: How White Nationalists use conspiracy theories to promote anti-Jewish racism
By Dov Waxman, Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Foundation Professor of Israel Studies, University of California, Los Angeles Antisemitism has been in the news a lot lately. Hip-hop megastar Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, tweeted October 8, 2022 that he would “go death...
How rightwing Christians forced the judiciary to impose a regressive religious vision across America
The Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which reverses the constitutional abortion rights that American women have enjoyed over the past 50 years, has come as a surprise to many voters. A majority, after all, support reproductive...
Ukraine is Here: Immersive virtual platform allows anyone to experience Ukraine’s culture from anywhere
Google and the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine launched “Ukraine is Here” on November 24, a new online-space featuring Ukrainian culture hosted virtually on the Google Arts & Culture platform. The project was implemented with the...
Digital Privacy: Federal bill aims to give users control over what personal data companies can collect
By Anne Toomey McKenna, Visiting Professor of Law, University of Richmond Data privacy in the U.S. is, in many ways, a legal void. While there are limited protections for health and financial data, the cradle of the world’s largest tech companies, like Apple, Amazon,...
Bad Browsers: How cookie notifications are used online to create friction and influence user behavior
By Elizabeth Stoycheff, Associate Professor of Communication, Wayne State University Website cookies are online surveillance tools, and the commercial and government entities that use them would prefer people not read those notifications too closely. People who do...
Cinema as a surrogate parent: Outgrowing the shared experience for entertainment in a fragmented culture
Legendary film director Martin Scorsese has invited a lot of controversy in recent years over the definition of cinema, particularly with his view of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. That opinion has a lot to do with the art of how motion pictures are made, and then...