University of Virginia
Nicole Hemmer is an assistant professor at the University of Virginia's Miller Center and the author of Messengers of the Right: Conservative Media and the Transformation of American Politics.
PROFILE
Nicole Hemmer
Guest
FROM Nicole Hemmer
To the Point
Steve Bannon may be out, but 'Bannon-ism' lives on After being ousted as presidential adviser , Steve Bannon is back in charge at Breitbart News and in no mood to lay down what he calls his weapons. Bannon's influence on president Trump is up for debate, but not his intention to pursue the goals of economic and social nationalism that helped propel Trump to the White House. With powerful financial backers still ready to support his divisive world-view, what will Bannon - and his team at Breitbart - do next? Is his bond with the president truly broken or has it just taken a different form?
To the Point
The way forward in a post-truth world Fake news isn't new. It's about as old as news itself. What is new is the speed and potency of fake news in the age of social media, and the way in which it figured in this year's election. From stories about Hillary Clinton selling weapons to ISIS to claims by the President-elect that he won the popular vote… sensational and poisonous stories have spread rapid fire on Facebook and Twitter, helped along by ad sales and algorithms that propel fake news to the top of pack, occasionally with violent results. How damaging is fake news to democracy, and what role do mainstream media outlets as well as technology companies play in defusing it?
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The art and science of fixing faulty genes UC Berkeley biochemist Jennifer Doudna and her colleagues say they can edit any organism’s DNA using an RNA-guided protein found in bacteria. This technology, called CRISPR-Cas9, could redefine the possibilities for editing human and non-human genes, opening the door to societal and ethical implications.
LRC Presents: All the President's Lawyers
The Democrats take the House. Will the president need more lawyers? The midterms are over. What’s next for President Trump?
To the Point
The Voting is Over, but the Campaign Continues Women had a major impact on the midterm elections. So did $5 billion in campaign spending. Meantime, Democrats now lead the House while Republicans dominate the Senate, and the politics of division continues on Capitol Hill. We’ll hear how former House Speaker Newt Gingrich helped start an era of gridlock and perpetual campaigning.