Mass Media and Political Communication
Learn how Political Science Students are Improving Wikipedia
By: Dr. Helaine Blumenthal, Wiki Education For the past several years, MPSA has been partnering with Wiki Education to improve Wikipedia’s coverage of topics related to Political Science. In an era where misinformation and disinformation are rife, this initiative has taken on new meaning as well as…
Making their work count: Political Science students improve Wikipedia
By: Dr. Helaine Blumenthal, Wiki Education Through its ongoing partnership with Wiki Education, MPSA has been helping political science and policy students engage with subject content in meaningful and lasting ways all while improving the world’s access to reliable knowledge in these very fields.…
Biased? Sure. Lying, no.
by Michael A. Smith, Professor of Political Science, Emporia State University Accusations that the news media are biased are now so common as to become cliché. Undoubtedly, the media are biased. In fact, bias is inevitable in human decision making. Unfortunately, one of the greatest political…
Is the Preference for Chaos a Rational Decision?
by Michael A. Smith, Professor of Political Science, Emporia State University The study of “fake news” and other rumors spread via social media are gaining steam. Recent work by political scientists fundamentally challenges the conventional wisdom about the fake news phenomenon and the…
Blue Wave, Red Wave; What Wave? No Wave
By Chapman Rackaway of the University of West Georgia Political scientists and pundits alike face a contradictory challenge in the concept of the “wave” election. Journalists use the term commonly, and 2018 is no exception. The hashtag #bluewave is a constant presence on political Twitter feeds,…
Save the Swamp
By Michael A. Smith of Emporia State University The Trump Administration’s recent reversal on immigration policy regarding children has gotten me to thinking. What exactly does it mean to “drain the swamp?” First, let me share a bit of background about the current situation. In 1997, a court ruling…
Call for #MPSA18 Conference Bloggers
MPSA seeks bloggers (and vloggers) to cover the most popular panels and events at the upcoming conference in Chicago. Just as the MPSA conference concentrates on the best thinking in the discipline, informed by theory, research and practical application, we expect our bloggers to do the same. You…
(The Lack of) Diversity in Trump's America
By Adaobi Duru, University of Louisiana at Monroe The lack of diversity in Trump's cabinet appointment is significant and might be a reflection of the President's position on issues regarding racial and gender equality in government. The President's cabinet is made up of 18 men and four women. In…
Ruling by Distraction
To rule by distraction is a time-tested tool of autocratic and authoritarian regimes. It is a go-to move for non-democratic regimes when faced with a challenge, domestic or international. As the name suggests, this approach is simple but effective. The idea is to create enough chaos and…
Election 2016 Lesson for the Media: New Journalistic Norms Needed to Cover Elections
The 2016 U.S. presidential election will stand out in the nation’s collective memory as a highly unusual event for many reasons. It featured two unique candidates, an election campaign that completely overturned the norms set by previous elections, a neglected voter base that showed an…