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Supreme Court ruling could pave a path to better schools (John Friedman mentioned)

August 13, 2018 Barrons

This article about the implications of the Supreme Court ruling on union membership focuses on its impact on teachers. It notes that economist John Friedman and his colleagues found that students of good teachers are less likely to experience teenage pregnancy, more likely to go to selective colleges, and end up earning more money as adults than students from comparable backgrounds who had worse teachers.

'A battle between Hindutva and Hinduism is coming' (written by Ashutosh Varshney)

August 13, 2018 The Indian Express

In a conversation with Professor Ashutosh Varshney, author Walter Andersen speaks of the changing nature of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, how it was influenced by its different sarsangchalaks and the challenges that lie ahead of the organisation.

Visions of war and wealth in the Middle East (Costs of War Project cited)

August 9, 2018 Foreign Policy in Focus

An analysis of U.S. involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan argues that it is part of a long-term strategy to gain regional influence and access to resources. The article cites the Costs of War Project, which estimates that more than 100,000 people have died in the war in Afghanistan and about 200,000 people have died in the war in Iraq.

The lesson in the ruins of Rome (written by Stephen Kinzer)

August 7, 2018 The Boston Globe

Senior Fellow Stephen Kinzer in The Boston Globe, "Roman history teaches us that even the most powerful of empires cannot survive indefinitely if it insists on waging endless war in distant lands."

Brown war chest lags far behind Raimondo in R.I. governor's race (comments by Wendy Schiller)

August 2, 2018 The Providence Journal

Democratic candidate for governor Matt Brown faces high financial hurdles in his race to unseat Gov. Gina Raimondo this year. Professor Wendy Schiller said financial struggles in August of an election year can "indicate there isn't a groundswell of support."

Economists approve statistical model that finds Harvard discriminates against Asians (Glenn Loury mentioned)

August 2, 2018 College Fix

A team of university economists, among them Professor Glenn Loury, said Asian-American applicants to Harvard whose grades and test scores were in the top one percent fared worse in "personal" ratings from the school than white applicants in the top 50 percent.

US diplomacy after Trump and Putin meet at Helsinki (J. Brian Atwood featured)

August 1, 2018 WPRO

Senior Fellow J. Brian Atwood joined WPRO to discuss President Trump's indication that he would consider turning over a former U.S. ambassador to the Russians for questioning.

Is India living through a new 'gilded age'? (Ashutosh Varshney mentioned)

July 30, 2018 LiveMint

In an article on the world's fastest-growing major economy, Professor Ashutosh Varshney has drawn a striking analogy between contemporary India and the United States in the late 19th century, a time similarly characterized by a heady cocktail of growth, inequality and corruption.

Midday Briefing: Professor Richard Arenberg on the Helsinki Summit (SiriusXM News & Issues)

July 23, 2018 SiriusXM News & Issues

Richard Arenberg, Visiting Lecturer in Political Science, joined The Midday Briefing on SiriusXM's News & Issues to break down the Helsinki Summit and how the United States should move forward with Russia.

4 reasons NOT to buy a $493 million Mega Millions ticket (research by Emily Oster cited)

July 23, 2018 Market Watch

The Mega Millions jackpot is now $493 million ahead of Tuesday's draw at 11 p.m., the fifth largest jackpot in history. A study by economist Emily Oster found that the lottery jackpot only becomes "progressive" -- meaning high earners spend more on tickets than low earners -- when the jackpot is at least $806 million.

Grime Beneath the Glitter (written by Ashutosh Varshney)

July 21, 2018 The Indian Express

Ashutosh Varshney discusses James Crabtree's book The Billionaire Raj and how India is living out the same "gilded age" as America did in the 1800s.

Michael Fuller: Fighting for incarcerated mothers (Watson concentrator featured)

July 19, 2018 News from Brown

Public Policy concentrator Michael Fuller '19, shares his experience this summer participating in the first Brown in Tulsa Kaiser Fellowship Program.

Amusing Archival Discoveries from the Cold War (Jeff Colgan featured)

July 18, 2018 War on the Rocks

This article features amusing archived documents from the Cold War period that scholars have come across during their research. Professor Jeff Colgan chose a 1975 report by The Church Committee that revealed a play related to Fidel Castro's beard.

Revisiting Decentralization After Maidan: Achievements and Challenges of Ukraine's Local Governance Reform (co-written by Anthony Levitas)

July 17, 2018 Wilson Center

Anthony Levitas in The Wilson Center's Kennan Institute, "The fact that Ukraine’s constitution does not yet reflect the reality of governance throughout the country is troubling."

Timothy Edgar tells Dan Yorke Show Trump's statements on Russian meddling are troubling

July 17, 2018 The Dan Yorke Show

Senior Fellow Timothy Edgar joined The Dan Yorke Show to discuss the 2018 Helsinki Summit, describing it as one of the worst days for a U.S. president in history.

Backing Up Women With Facts and Figures (Rose McDermott mentioned)

July 17, 2018 Pass Blue

The WomenStats Project links the status of women to the security and behavior of countries, offering insights into women's lives all over the world. The database helped uphold a ban on polygyny in Canada when Professor Rose McDermott submitted empirical research that used WomenStats numbers to the Supreme Court of British Columbia.

Democrats lead going into midterms, poll finds (Taubman Center poll cited)

July 12, 2018 The Providence Journal

An online survey of 1,000 people conducted by the Taubman Center showed that one in five distrust the federal government and that Democrats hold a nine-point lead heading into the midterm elections.

All the scientific support for breastfeeding that the US apparently didn't read (research by Emily Oster cited)

July 12, 2018 Quartz

Earlier this year, the U.S. tried to weaken a World Health Organization proposal encouraging the benefits of breastfeeding. Economist Emily Oster pointed out that it's "impossible to disentangle" the most commonly cited benefits of breastfeeding, such as higher IQ and lower obesity rates, from socioeconomic factors.

Is China meritocratic? (written by Ashutosh Varshney)

July 12, 2018 The Indian Express

Professor Ashutosh Varshney in The Indian Express, "A true meritocracy would place equally meritorious students from rural or urban settings, richer or poorer provinces, on an equal footing...China modifies the principle in the opposite direction. Its quota system gives preference to the privileged."

Politically energized women running for office in record numbers (comments by Wendy Schiller)

July 9, 2018 The Providence Journal

More female candidates than ever are running for political office in Rhode Island this year. Political scientist Wendy Schiller said the establishment party's endorsement controversy and recent pushback against pay equity, abortion rights and new sexual harassment laws has received stinging national media attention, and outrage among far-left-leaning voters could spur big wins for progressive candidates.

Price of democracy? A 4-point growth mantra (Ashutosh Varshney mentioned)

July 9, 2018 Deccan Chronicle

In an article on India's capital, Ashutosh Varshney, Director of the Center for Contemporary South Asia, calls the country an improbable democracy -- poor, impossibly heterogeneous and multicultural, and heavily reliant on its colonial history.

The Health 202: Medicare for all is new Democratic mantra in congressional races (comments by Eric Patashnik)

July 9, 2018 The Washington Post

Progressive political candidates motivated by Bernie Sanders' insurgent run against Hillary Clinton in 2016 are advocating for Medicare for all as part of their platforms. Professor Eric Patashnik said that the political viability of the idea will ultimately depend on its details -- such as whether the program would eliminate the private-insurance system altogether.

The Market is Valuing Climate Risk All Wrong (written by Jeff Colgan)

July 6, 2018 Global Policy Journal

Jeff Colgan in Global Policy Journal, "At the moment, property values and stock prices generally seem unaffected by the prospect of climate change, which generates a comforting illusion that our current trajectory is sustainable. But the idea that that markets rapidly update prices with all available information – an idea for which Eugene Fama won a Nobel Prize in 2013 – relies on a strict set of assumptions. In a world of climate change, those assumptions bear re-examination."

Nicaragua's Daniel Ortega leads violent clampdown amid fears of coup, civil war (comments by Stephen Kinzer)

July 6, 2018 The Washington Times

Senior Fellow Stephen Kinzer comments on Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega and the widespread discontent with leadership in the Central American country.

The World Cup's hot new accessory comes with a few questions (comments by Timothy Edgar)

July 5, 2018 The New York Times

The must-have accessory at the 2018 World Cup is the digital Fan ID, part identity card and part all-access pass. Senior Fellow Timothy Edgar says the Fan ID is "part of a surveillance economy where you are offered something that sounds enticing in exchange for valuable personal information."

Breaking border laws is as American as it gets (written by Peter Andreas)

July 3, 2018 The Washington Post

Professor Peter Andreas argues in a column penned on the eve of the Fourth of July that Americans should consider the fact that the U.S. founders were relentless lawbreakers -- particularly of laws meant to restrict who and what was allowed to cross borders.

How America's Wars Fund Inequality at Home (Costs of War Project cited)

June 28, 2018 TomDispatch.com

A new study by the Costs of War Project examines the relationship between the United States' war-related debt and societal inequality.

Cybersecurity expert talks border security, North Korea, Russia investigation on State of Mind (Timothy Edgar featured)

June 28, 2018 Dan Yorke State of Mind

Senior Fellow Timothy Edgar joined WPRI's Dan Yorke State of Mind to discuss the week's pressing security issues, including immigration policies, North Korea, and the Russian election meddling investigation.

The Supreme Court just struck a blow against mass surveillance (written by Timothy Edgar)

June 25, 2018 The Washington Post

Senior Fellow Timothy Edgar in The Washington Post, "A warrant requirement dooms collection in bulk because mass surveillance programs involve billions or trillions of records."

Hawaii's quest for a new type of independence (written by Stephen Kinzer)

June 25, 2018 The Boston Globe

Senior Fellow Stephen Kinzer in The Boston Globe, "The prospect that the United States would allow Hawaii to resume its place as an independent nation seems far-fetched."

Inside the Trump-Kim Summit (interview with Chas Freeman)

June 25, 2018 Legal Talk Network

Senior Fellow Chas Freeman joins Legal Talk Network's Lawyer 2 Lawyer podcast to discuss the summit meeting between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

Compelling history of Pope Pius IX and birth of Italian republic (David Kertzer featured

June 22, 2018 The Providence Journal

Reviewer Tim Norton says Faculty Fellow David Kertzer's new book, The Pope Who Would Be King, is an "important contribution in understanding the many ways that the Catholic Church, cloaked with unquestioned power in the Papal States of Europe, conspired to keep it."

Professor Michael Kennedy opines on implications of Singapore Summit and moral leadership (interview)

June 20, 2018 Dan Yorke State of Mind

Sociologist Michael Kennedy joined WPRI's Dan Yorke State of Mind to discuss the Singapore Summit between President Trump and North Korea's Kim Jong-un, and raise questions about the state of moral leadership in America.

Two Guys Walk Into a Summit in Singapore (interview with Chas Freeman)

June 18, 2018 Radio Open Source

Senior Fellow Chas Freeman joins WBUR's Radio Open Source to discuss President Trump's summit meeting with North Korea's Kim Jong-un.