AI interference: Chatbots are invading online groups where people try to make human connections
By Casey Fiesler, Associate Professor of Information Science, University of Colorado Boulder A parent asked a question in a private Facebook group in April 2024: Does anyone with a child who is both gifted and disabled have any experience with New York City public...
Keeping the republic: Why the Founding Fathers were unsure if the experiment of democracy could survive
By Thomas Coens, Research Associate Professor of History, University of Tennessee From the time of the founding era to the present day, one of the more common things said about American democracy is that it is an “experiment.” Most people can readily intuit what the...
Transgressive jokes: How Trump promotes the use of abusive humor to make hate acceptable
By Nick Butler, Associate Professor, Stockholm University Fox News anchor Sean Hannity interviewed Donald Trump in front of a studio audience in Iowa in December 2023. Hannity asked Trump to guarantee he would not abuse his power or seek retribution if he was...
The little people: Preying on White fears worked for Lester Maddox in the 1960s and for Trump today
By David Cason, Associate Professor in Honors, University of North Dakota In January 1967, after a gubernatorial election that saw neither candidate gain enough votes to win, the Georgia Legislature was faced with a vital decision: the selection of the state’s 75th...
Lost faith: Why supporting democracy is hard for some Americans who feel the economy fails them
By Matthew Wilson, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of South Carolina Americans, it seems, can both value the idea of democracy and not support it in practice. Since 2016, academics and journalists have expressed concerns that formerly secure...
Boots on the ground: What international law says about British troops operating in Ukraine
By Christoph Bluth, Professor of International Relations and Security, University of Bradford Leaked communications involving high-level German government and military figures appear to confirm that British army personnel are engaged on the ground in Ukraine. An...
Cost of not investing: Why rebuilding Ukraine becomes more expensive each day of Russia’s occupation
By Jeffrey Kucik, Associate Professor at the University of Arizona, University of Arizona U.S. military assistance is finally on its way to Ukraine after months of being held up in Congress. Reactions to the US$61 billion spending package, signed into law by President...
Emancipation Memorial: What the statue of a kneeling enslaved man from 1876 says about U.S. history
By Virginia Raguin, Distinguished Professor of Humanities Emerita, Visual Arts, College of the Holy Cross The striking Emancipation Memorial statue in Washington DC, shows Abraham Lincoln standing, while a man wearing only a loincloth is appearing to rise from a...
Constitutional Oath: Why U.S. military personnel swear allegiance to serve the American people
By Joseph G. Amoroso, Assistant Professor of American Politics, United States Military Academy West Point; Lee Robinson, American Politics Program Director, United States Military Academy West Point In general, Americans do not trust their government institutions as...
Vicious Cycle: Survivors of domestic violence often seek shelter from a system that leaves them homeless
By Nkiru Nnawulezi, Associate Professor of Community Psychology, University of Maryland, Baltimore County; Lauren Cattaneo, Associate Professor of Clinical Psychology, George Mason University About 1 in every 3 women, and 1 in 4 men, will experience domestic violence...
Grief tourism: The growing popularity of visiting Normandy beaches and spending holidays in hell
By Liz Sharples, Senior Teaching Fellow (Tourism), University of Portsmouth As Europe commemorates the 80th anniversary of D-Day on June 6, visitors have traveled in large numbers to pay their respects at the Normandy beach landing sites. The event in 2024 takes place...
Relics from the battlefield of Omaha Beach are still telling the story of D-Day 80 years later
By Frank A. Blazich Jr., Curator of Military History, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution Between the villages of Vierville-sur-Mer and Sainte-Honorine-des-Pertes in Normandy, France, is a 5-mile stretch of beach that was once called Côte...
