Our weekly roundup of news found at the intersection of media, politics, policy and technology, from the Shorenstein Center and from around the web. Sign up to receive Media and Politics Must Reads in your inbox each week. Also connect with us on Twitter and Facebook for more updates.
This Week at the Shorenstein Center
Cross-examining the network: The year in digital and social media research. A roundup by Journalist’s Resource of 10 of the most important pieces of new research into digital and social media published in 2017.
News from Faculty and Fellows
As social media companies soar, former insiders among the fiercest critics. “These companies just are of almost unimaginable power in shaping what the public sphere is, and that brings with it special obligations,” says Nicco Mele, Shorenstein Center director.
Why Europe Is Willing To Regulate Tech More Than The U.S. Jonathan Zittrain, George Bemis Professor of International Law at Harvard Law School and Shorenstein Center faculty affiliate, says there’s “a general appetite for regulation and a trust in government perhaps to do it right that may not culturally exist as much in the United States.”
Women need to be onstage at Consumer Electronics Show. It’s a #MeToo thing. Gina Glantz, Adjunct Lecturer in Public Policy at the Shorenstein Center in 2011, writes that “Zero women as top speakers signals we don’t have power — to hire, fire or even be heard.”
The Sad Trajectory of Orrin Hatch. Michael Tomasky, spring 2003 fellow, writes that “Mr. Hatch’s career reflects the sad trajectory of our times, from a Congress where legislators had differences but actually tried to legislate, to one in which legislators — especially Republicans, terrified of facing a well-financed primary from the right — do nothing of the sort.”
Iran protests may soon be crushed, but dissent will continue. Nazila Fathi, spring 2012 fellow, says “the protests stem from low-income Iranian citizens, rather than from activists or students as in prior demonstrations.”
New Studies
- ‘Fake News’: Wide Reach but Little Impact, Study Suggests, from The New York Times.
- Study: Competition between TV stations spurs investigative journalism, from Columbia Journalism Review.
Trump and the Press
Who’s Winning Trump’s War With the Press? Assessing Year One. From Politico Magazine.
Media and Trust
- Polls show Americans distrust the media. But talk to them, and it’s a very different story. From The Washington Post.
- Show your work: The new terms for trust in journalism, from Press Think.
Resources
13 questions to ask before adopting new tools or changes in the newsroom, from Poynter.
International
- Germany starts enforcing hate speech law, from BBC News.
- Emmanuel Macron promises ban on fake news during elections, from The Guardian.
