News & views.
A collection of stories about data, public opinion and politics and news about our firm.
Voting our way into a housing crisis
In her book On The Housing Crisis: Land, Development, Democracy, Jerusalem Demsas tackles a critical yet often misunderstood issue: how democratic structures, local elections and community meetings have contributed to a nationwide housing shortage.
Want to fight misinformation? Teach people how algorithms work
A peer-reviewed study in the Harvard Kennedy School Misinformation Review shows that individuals become more vigilant about spotting misinformation when they understand how algorithms filter and boost content.
The Unstoppable and Overdue Growth of Women's College Basketball
When organizations and media outlets commit to equitable messaging, storytelling and promotion across women's and men's sports, they fulfill a moral obligation while unlocking public enthusiasm and market potential that can transform industries.
Reforming America's Olympic & Paralympic Movement
The U.S. Congress created in 2020 a bipartisan commission on the state of U.S. Olympics and Paralympics (CSUSOP). The goal: reimagine the governance system for the kaleidoscopic (and scandal-plagued) array of organizations within the Olympic movement.
Lessons from a California land-grab
Razor-sharp reporter Gil Duran has a must-read article on the "bumbling and villainous" effort to build a new city in rural California. The effort would be laughable—and not just for its name, California Forever, which Duran likens to a celebrity cemetery—if it weren't a possible beachhead for a libertarian movement to create "network states" outside the reach of democratic nation-states.
Public Opinion and the Future of AI
Americans' darkening view of AI is important because public opinion will affect how policymakers shape the regulatory landscape.
A strange bedfellows campaign to change the sugar industry
The No Big Sugar campaign is putting a spotlight on the misdeeds of this industry, which is as politically shrewd as it is arcane. These misdeeds offend stakeholders from the free-market right to the social justice left, plus a range of American industries in between—and that's the main source of the coalition's strength.
Artificial Intelligence and a Return to Human Interaction
When you can't trust what you see online due to AI hallucination, deepfakes and rampant misinformation—you have no choice but to go back to the basics.
Patagonia and Brand Politicization
How do we reconcile conventional wisdom about the risks brands run when they take a political position with the news that Patagonia is America's best-loved corporate brand?
The Power of an Apology
The New York City Transit Authority used to punctuate subway delays with an automated announcement telling riders, "we apologize for this unavoidable delay." It was an excuse masquerading as an apology, and an unintentional reminder of the low quality of service riders should expect.
Debating the Decline of American Values
A new opinion survey from the Wall Street Journal and the University of Chicago has set off a debate over the state of our national character. The poll suggests patriotism is fading in America, with a drop of nearly 30 points in the number of Americans who say patriotism is very important to them.
A New Era for American Energy
The goal of the Permian Energy Development Lab, which launched last month, is to speed up the development of advanced, clean energy systems, educate the next generation of energy professionals and support energy-intensive communities and the natural resources they depend on.
What's Missing from Today's News?
Author and journalist Amanda Ripley has a secret – she actively avoids the news and has been doing so for years. She's not alone. Data from the Reuters Institute tells us the United States has one of the highest news-avoidance rates in the world. Four in ten Americans sometimes or often avoid contact with the news. Why? It's dispiriting, repetitive and of questionable credibility, according to Reuters' survey data.
What We Impose on People with a Stutter
This New York Times opinion video deepened our understanding of what people who stutter have to contend with in daily life. It reveals a society largely unprepared or disinclined to accommodate them, but also points to ways non-stutterers can alter their behavior in helpful ways. It's worth a view.
Axios and the Business of Shallow Thinking
Axios is not the cause of our distracted mindset, but they have built a business upon it. In pushing us toward facile summaries, Axios weakens our ability to make the tough tradeoffs complexity requires.
Listening Matters
A civic engagement group called NYC Speaks conducted this spring what may be the most extensive policy survey in New York City history. It's an inspired effort to lead by first understanding what people care and worry about, and we hope other public leaders take note.
The Stark Gap Between the Supreme Court and the American Public on Abortion
The vast gap between the two positions points to a Republican position on abortion that is not just out of step with public opinion, it’s diametrically opposed to it.
An Antidote to Misinformation
One insidious aspect of misinformation is that it makes it harder for society to deal with already-tough problems.