As in much of the developed world, the US media is in an existential crisis. For more than a decade, dwindling advertising revenue and threats to the authority and legitimacy exacerbated by the rise of digital and social platforms is putting relentless pressure on mainstream news organisations. As president, DonaldContinue Reading
Rupert Murdoch is famous for always wanting to back a winner. So, amid the frenzied atmosphere of the vote count, when his Fox News network started to refer to Donald Trump’s “unfounded fraud claims” with regard to the election, it was clear his chances of retaining the presidency were diminishingContinue Reading
In July 2018 Lucy McHugh, aged 13, was killed by her older “boyfriend” despite trying to let people know she was in danger. Her murder has recently been in the news again because of the release of a report (in which she is known by the pseudonym “Clare”). This independentContinue Reading
Hopes are high in the European Union that Joe Biden will rapidly get to work on a substantive global “to-do” list when he takes over as US president in January. This includes a renewed commitment to multilateralism and specific assurances on NATO and the UN – plus re-entry to theContinue Reading
Now Joe Biden has been declared the winner of the US presidential election, many analysts are looking ahead to what a Biden presidency might mean for America and the world. In the meantime, the US political system has entered a state of suspended animation. As we await the final voteContinue Reading
Donald Trump promised the American people that he would “Make America Great Again” by pursuing an America First foreign policy as president. The pledge, made on his inaguration day, stemmed from his belief that the international liberal order created by the US at the end of the second world warContinue Reading
I Wei Huang/Shutterstock Trust is a crucial component of effective public health policy. It is also a two-way street. People need to trust the authorities – universities, employers, the government – that are asking them to behave in a certain way, but they also need to feel trusted by theseContinue Reading
The Czech Republic, which had been praised for its swift response to COVID-19 in the spring, is now topping global charts of new coronavirus infections and deaths per population. Authorities have failed to control new infections since cases started to increase in the summer. Despite almost three weeks of aContinue Reading
Screen Shot at Most parts of the UK are now living in a state of some form of lockdown. Meanwhile, however, more police are out on the streets. This is because in the wake of the terrorist attacks in Austria and France, the UK’s terrorism threat level has been raisedContinue Reading
Africa Studio/Shutterstock The campaign led by footballer Marcus Rashford to provide lunches for children over a school holiday period in England has brought discussions over poverty and state help into the spotlight. Central to this debate is an ideological position on how people view poverty: whether it is seen toContinue Reading
