In The News

The Daily Beast: Inside Twitter’s Bot Purge

Taylor Lorenz February 22, 2018
In a crackdown on mass automatic posts, Twitter has deleted thousands of accounts. “The pulldown took place quite literally in the middle of the night, without warning or explanation from the company,” explains Taylor Lorenz for the Daily Beast. “Leading right-wing trolls and conspiracy theorists, many of whom woke up this morning to discover that their follower numbers had plunged by the...

The News: The Voice of the Voiceless

Kamila Hyat February 19, 2018
The Federally Administered Tribal Areas are a semiautonomous region in Northwest Pakistan, long labeled as a source of security concerns for the entire region. Pashtun tribal people are engaging in peaceful protests, demanding more control, rights and services including schools and educators, hospitals and health providers. The compounding needs and complaints is a “dangerous trend in the current...

Reuters: Ramaphosa Elected President of South Africa

Wendell Roelf February 15, 2018
Jacob Zuma, in power since May of 2009, resigned as South Africa's president on orders from the African National Congress, the ruling party. Cyril Ramaphosa, a lawyer, former trade unionist and businessman, was nominated to become next president by the National Assembly. He will serve as president until elections in 2019. Ramaphosa’s “stated commitment to boosting growth and stamping out...

RAND Corporation: Truth Decay

Jennifer Kavanagh and Michael D. Rich February 7, 2018
Too many in US leadership and the general public rely on feelings rather than rational analysis, facts and lessons from history, and such trends explain increasing rejection of contributions to US prosperity by education, science or globlaization. Four trends mark what Jennifer Kavanagh and Michael D. Rich label as a decay in truth: disagreement over facts and data, blurred boundaries between...

BBC News: Maldives ex-President Nasheed Seeks Help From India and US

February 6, 2018
Maldives is in turmoil after the current president defied a court order and refused to release political prisoners. The government declared a state of emergency with at least two judges detained and the president suggesting a coup was being planned. The government also threatened to block television and media sites that released reports criticizing the government. Former president Mohamed Nasheed...

openDemocracy: The Origins of Populism

Seren Selvin Korkmaz and Alphan Telek February 1, 2018
Political movements focused on democracy and justice are more anti-populist than populist, argue Seren Selvin Korkmaz and Alphan Telek for Open Democracy. Deepening polarization between conservatives and progressives – the inability for governments to reach compromise – adds political uncertainty and threatens prosperity. “’The tyranny of the majority’ which is becoming the hegemonic power in...

BBC News: Kenya's Raila Odinga “Inaugurates” Himself as President

Dickens Olewe January 31, 2018
Kenyan’s government is in turmoil with two men claiming to be president. Elections were held in August 2017, and courts found irregularities and ordered a repeat election in October. Raila Odinga, an opposition leader, boycotted that October election that led to President Uhuru Kenyatta being sworn in for a second term in November 2017. Official results suggest that Kenyatta won 98 percent of the...