Read the latest news, commentary, and analysis from the Ash Center.
Podcast
In the season 2 premiere of Terms of Engagement, Archon Fung and Stephen Richer revisit January 6 with journalist Mary Clare Jalonick to examine what the January 6 Capitol attack reveals about democratic trust, accountability, and political violence.
Newest
Commentary
Allen Lab Senior Fellow, Allison Stanger, provided testimony for The Subcommittee on Communications and Technology of the Committee on Energy and Commerce hearing on “Where Are We Now: Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996”.
Video
The GETTING-Plurality Research Network at the Ash Center’s Allen Lab and Connection Science at MIT Media Lab hosted a webinar event focused on “AI and the Future of Privacy”. In this session, we hear from Bruce Schneier, security technologist, and Faculty Affiliate at the Ash Center; Sarah Roth-Gaudette, Executive Director of Fight for the Future; and Tobin South, MIT Ph.D. Candidate and Fulbright Scholar. Each presenter gives a lightning talk, followed by audience Q&A.
Video
Artist Hank Willis Thomas spoke with Harvard professor Sarah Elizabeth Lewis about how love guides his artwork at a Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics forum.
Video
Harvard-ID holders were invited to join the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation and the Institute of Politics for a conversation with Congressman Jamie Raskin (MD-08) about the future of the Electoral College.
Video
Harvard ID holders were invited to a discussion with Ryan Streeter and Steve Goldsmith on the future of conservatism today as outlined in a recent paper, An Aspirational Path for American Conservatism.
Video
On April 3rd, panelists discussed if there is, in fact, a better way to elect the President of the United States.
Commentary
The imminent famine in Gaza shows up in Crowd Counting Consortium (CCC) data as a sharp increase in references to hunger and starvation in protesters’ chants and signs.
Video
El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele was recently re-elected with more than 80% of the vote. While Bukele is credited with bringing the country’s crime rate to historic lows, he has also adopted increasingly authoritarian measures under the guise of fighting the country’s powerful gangs. Speakers analyzed the sources of Bukele’s popularity, the human toll of Bukele’s prolonged state of exception, and the threats to democracy in El Salvador.
Video
This Global Challenges to Democracy Seminar Series event featured Tariq Thachil, Professor, Madan Lal Sobti Chair for the Study of Contemporary India; Director, Center for Advanced Study of India; University of Pennsylvania. Urban citizens in low-income democracies rarely hold elected officials accountable for toxic air. To understand why, Thachil discussed a recent paper co-authored by Shikhar Singh.