by jpitney | Sep 15, 2020 | Coronavirus, Public Administration, Public Opinion, Science
Reid Wilson at The Hill: The American public is beginning to lose trust in political leaders and scientific institutions as the coronavirus pandemic drags into its sixth month, troubling signs that raise the prospect that millions of Americans may not take advice or...
by jpitney | Aug 27, 2020 | Congress, Coronavirus, Debate, Deliberation, House of Representatives
Susan Ferrechio at The Washington Examiner: New House rules permitting lawmakers to vote both by proxy and remotely, without ever coming to the Capitol, were intended to allow Congress to function more safely during the coronavirus outbreak. But some lawmakers have...
by jpitney | Aug 5, 2020 | Civility, Coronavirus
The Deseret News: Practicing civility will create the best environment for persuasion. Studies show story-telling and open-minded conversations are powerful tools that connect two parties on a neurological level. A presumption of decency is as useful as anything in...
by jpitney | Jul 28, 2020 | Coronavirus, Social Media, Vaccine
At STAT, a bipartisan message from Former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, M.D. (R-TN), California State Senator Richard Pan, M.D. (D), and Max G. Bronstein, founder of the Journal of Science Policy & Governance: We must also invest in grassroots public outreach...
by jpitney | Jul 23, 2020 | Civility, Coronavirus, Deliberation
Shaun Cammack at The Deseret News: When the stakes are high, like during a pandemic, we often click into a tribal psychology that identifies the problem, or problematic persons, and desires to eliminate them. It’s the kind of “us versus threat” response that kept...
by jpitney | Jul 14, 2020 | Congress, Coronavirus, Deliberation, Technology
Marci Harris, Claire Abernathy, and Kevin Esterling at Brookings: The chaos surrounding Congress’s switch to remote work in response to the COVID-19 pandemic laid bare weaknesses of Congress’s technical procedures and infrastructure, from its inability to hold...
