Unger, Wayne, How Disinformation Campaigns Exploit the Poor Data Privacy Regime to Erode Democracy (December 14, 2020). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3762609 “The U.S. is under attack. It is an information war, and disinformation is the weapon. Foreign and domestic actors have launched information operations and coordinated campaigns against western democracies using dis/misinformation. While the U.S.… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: Congress
Economy and COVID-19 Top the Public’s Policy Agenda for 2021
“As the United States faces twin crises of high unemployment and a global pandemic, large majorities of Americans want Joe Biden and Congress to prioritize strengthening the economy and addressing the coronavirus outbreak in the coming year. Yet there are wide partisan gaps over most of the 19 items asked about in a new Pew… Continue Reading
How America Changed During Donald Trump’s Presidency
Pew – “Donald Trump stunned the political world in 2016 when he became the first person without government or military experience ever to be elected president of the United States. His four-year tenure in the White House revealed extraordinary fissures in American society but left little doubt that he is a figure unlike any other… Continue Reading
GW Program on Extremism – Capitol Hill Siege
“In keeping with our tradition of providing primary source documents to the research community and the public at large, The Program on Extremism has launched a project to create a central database of court records related to the events of January 6, 2021. This page will be updated as additional individuals are charged with criminal… Continue Reading
Trust in the media is down, and this chart does not help
RollCall – “Good data is only part of the challenge; using it correctly is important too. I’m under no illusion that trust in the media is waning, but a recent chart on the topic was one of the most ridiculous visuals I’ve seen in a long time. Trashing the media is obligatory for conservatives, Republicans… Continue Reading
Tracking COVID-19 Vaccines: U.S. Data Systems and Related Issues
CRS Insight – Tracking COVID-19 Vaccines: U.S. Data Systems and Related Issues, January 28, 2021: “The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Emergency Use Authorizations (EUAs) for two Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines, sponsored by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, and millions of vaccine doses are being distributed nationwide. Both vaccines require two doses,which are… Continue Reading
Social Media: Misinformation and Content Moderation Issues for Congress
CRS Report. Social Media: Misinformation and Content Moderation Issues for Congress, January 27, 2021: “Social media platforms disseminate information quickly to billions of global users. The Pew Research Center estimates that in 2019, 72% of U.S. adults used at least one social media site and that the majority of users visited the site at least… Continue Reading
Cable-bill transparency laws haven’t killed sneaky fees
Tech Hive: “Back in 2019, a notoriously gridlocked Congress managed to agree on at least one thing: Hidden cable TV fees had gotten out of control. They passed a law, called the Television Viewer Protection Act, that requires pay TV services to disclose all of their extra fees before you finish signing up. The law… Continue Reading
Lawmakers are scrambling to figure out how to rein in social media platforms
Fast Company – “In the days after the insurrection at the Capitol building, security was tighter than usual. On the phone with Senator Mark Warner, I could hear his driver trying to explain to a guard that he had the senator with him. Yeah, tell him he’s good, the guard told the driver as he… Continue Reading
Democracy cannot be defended by force; it is enforced through accountability
The Center for Systemic Peace: “The USA has dropped below the “democracy threshold” (+6) on the POLITY scale in 2020 and and is now considered an anocracy (+5). It has also lost its designation as the world’s oldest, continuous democracy; that designation now belongs to Switzerland (171 years), followed by New Zealand (142) and the… Continue Reading
The Impeachment and Trial of a Former President
CRS Legal Sidebar – The Impeachment and Trial of a Former President, January 15, 2021: “For the second time in just over a year, the House of Representatives has voted to impeach President Donald J. Trump. The House previously voted to impeach President Trump on December 18, 2019, and the Senate voted to acquit the… Continue Reading
Trust in federal government increases following President Biden’s inauguration
Axios-Ipsos poll: Nearly half of Americans intend to get the vaccine as soon as it’s available to them: “In the latest installment of the Axios-Ipsos Coronavirus Index 61% percent of Americans report they are likely to get the first generation COVID-19 vaccine, up 1 point from last week. This week, more Americans say they plan… Continue Reading
