Ask someone how the United States Digital Service (USDS) began, and chances are you’ll hear about the healthcare.gov crisis of 2013. But the true story of this agency, which worked from the inside to make technology work better within and for government and the people it serves, is more nuanced and expansive. U.S. Digital Service […]
The views expressed in Shorenstein Center Discussion Papers are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of Harvard Kennedy School or of Harvard University. Discussion Papers have not undergone formal review and approval. Such papers are included in this series to elicit feedback and to encourage debate on important issues and challenges
Can They Do Good and Still Do Well? Local TV Stations and Communities’ Information Needs Read More »
The Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School is proud to announce the recipients of the 2024–2025 David Nyhan Prizes for Public Policy Journalism. These awards celebrate journalists whose compelling reporting elevates public understanding of policy, politics, and the impact of government on people’s lives—especially those often left unheard by
Michael Harriot and Rose Conlon Named 2024–25 Nyhan Prize Honorees Read More »
Medicaid was signed into law in 1965 as a health insurance program for low-income people. As of November 2024, nearly 72 million people were enrolled in Medicaid in the 50 states and the District of Columbia, according to medicaid.gov. Medicaid is jointly funded by states and the federal government and provides health coverage to one in five
The Journalist’s Resource’s explainer on childhood vaccine safety includes a primer on how the government tracks vaccine safety data. As changes are proposed to federal vaccine policy, this guide can help understand the implications of these changes. How vaccine side effects are tracked in the U.S. Before vaccines arrive on the market, they go through
How does the government track vaccine safety? Read More »
“Unlocked,” a new explanatory content series designed to make the inner workings of government more accessible to journalists, content creators, and others who report on the news, launched today as a joint project of the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy and The Journalist’s Resource, a project of the center focused on informing
“Unlocked: How Government Works” – new series to help news media demystify government Read More »
President Trump ran on the idea of imposing wide-ranging trade tariffs, and immediately upon taking office announced his first tariff plan. Covering tariffs is complicated – what tariffs have been enacted and for how long, which are being contested and how, what are the likely short and long term effects of the tariffs? Hear from
Unlocked: How do tariffs work and what are the impacts? Read More »
Political appointees. Career civil servants. Special Government Employees. Classifications and procedures around federal government employment have rarely been in the ether as much as they have been in the early months of President Trump’s second term. The Journalist’s Resource’s in-depth explainer about federal hiring and firing covers a lot of ground, including: What are
Unlocked: How does hiring and firing work in the federal government? Read More »
Nancy Gibbs talks with former Administrator of the U.S. Digital Service Mina Hsiang about what actually drives government inefficiency.
Q&A with Mina Hsiang Read More »
Government’s efficiency – or lack thereof – has been consistently in the news since the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) was created in the shell of what had been the U.S. Digital Service. But, what is at the core of longstanding understanding that many parts of the U.S. government are inefficient. Do they have to
Unlocked: What makes government inefficient? Read More »
President Trump signed an executive order on March 20, 2025 which, among other things, vowed to close the Department of Education. One of the newest and smallest cabinet-level agencies, the Department of Education’s mandate and funding priorities are vastly misunderstood. The Journalist’s Resource published 8 tips for better understanding and reporting on the Department of
Unlocked: What does the U.S. Department of Education Do? Read More »
Submissions are now being accepted for the 2025 Goldsmith Awards, including the Goldsmith Prize for Investigative Reporting, the Goldsmith Book Prize, and the brand new Goldsmith Prize for Explanatory Reporting. The Goldsmith Awards Program, launched in 1991, has as its goal the encouragement of a more insightful and spirited public debate about government, politics and
Nominations now open for the 2025 Goldsmith Awards Read More »
Independent films illuminate untold stories, spark discourse, and broaden our perspectives – but independent film in the United States is at risk. In this groundbreaking new research, film industry leader Keri Putnam brings new data together to analyze the overall audience for independent film and the collapse of the financial model driven by the streaming economy, and offers recommendations and opportunities for the future.
US Independent Film Audience and Landscape Study Read More »
Smoking continues to rank as the foremost preventable cause of premature death. In a paper published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science (PNAS), Harvard researchers report findings that evoking feelings of gratitude in people who smoke helps reduce their urge to smoke, and increases their likelihood of enrollment in a
The following are excerpts from a new peer-reviewed journal article published June 5, 2024 in Science Advances. Abstract Over 30,000 field experiments with The Washington Post and Upworthy showed that readers prefer simpler headlines (e.g., more common words and more readable writing) over more complex ones. A follow-up mechanism experiment showed that readers from the
Reading dies in complexity: Online news consumers prefer simple writing Read More »
New research co-authored by Shorenstein Center resident faculty member Todd Rogers suggests that simpler writing may be the key to attracting readers in today’s crowded online news landscape. A large-scale study analyzing over 30,000 headline experiments on news websites found that readers were consistently more likely to click on and engage with news headlines written
Reading Dies in Complexity – new study co-authored by Professor Todd Rogers Read More »
For the first time in the 18 year history of the Nyhan Prize for Political Journalism, administered by the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School, the selection committee has chosen three co-winners for this year’s Nyhan Prize. Robert Downen, reporter at The Texas Tribune, and the team of Mike
CBS News Prime Time anchor John Dickerson, who has covered eight presidential candidates in his career as a political journalist, gave the Theodore H. White Lecture on Press and Politics at Harvard Kennedy School on February 5, 2024. The following is a lightly edited version of his speech for publication. The full video of his
The Presidency Above the Campaign Read More »
Disclaimer: This is a working paper of the Democracy and Internet Governance Project at the Shorenstein Center. As a working paper it represents research in progress. This paper represents the opinions of the authors and is the product of professional research. It is not meant to represent the position or opinions of the Shorenstein Center,
The Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy is pleased to announce the Fall 2023 cohort of Shorenstein Fellows. Shorenstein Fellows join the center for a semester or year of research, events, and engagement with HKS students, faculty, and the wider university community. This semester’s fellows are working on research related to artificial intelligence;
Fall 2023 Shorenstein Center Fellows Read More »
The Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy is a Harvard Kennedy School research center dedicated to exploring and illuminating the intersection of press, politics and public policy in theory and practice. The Center strives to bridge the gap between journalists and scholars, and between them and the public.
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