Democratic Erosion University Course Student Blog

Students enrolled in our course are encouraged to write for the course blog, and to read and comment on posts from students at other participating universities. The blog offers students the opportunity to analyze current events through the lens of the theory and case studies they engage with through the course.

Fighting Fake News: Lessons from the World’s Top Target

2018 was a year of awakening in Taiwan. Two high-profile events threw the consequences of fake news into relief. First, Su Chii-cherng, the envoy to Osaka for the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office, took his own life in September 2018 after false reports about him...

Can Democracies Wait Another 2,500 Years to Meet Today’s Needs?

In 500 BC, during Athens' golden age of democracy, the voting age was set at 18. Over 2,500 years later, this threshold remains the same in the vast majority (90%) of countries. However, as democracies grapple with rising populism, authoritarianism, marginalization of...

Présidence Impériale: Executive Aggrandizement in Macron’s France

Amidst significant challenges to France’s democracy, President Emmanuel Macron has ignored democratic norms and abused constitutional articles to expand his own power—periling France’s democracy.

How Nationalism Saves Democracy

Brown University

It is in the comforting sound of your mother tongue, the aroma of a home-cooked traditional meal, shared celebrations, and the beauty of our architecture that we find an...

La Ultraderecha: Is Spain’s Vox an Example of Right-Wing Populism?

Brown University

On December 17, 2013, Santiago Abascal established the Spanish political organization Vox, which the New York Times describes as “nationalism at its finest” (Source). The...

Hanging By A Thread: Democracy in Peru

University of Utah

On December 7th, the Peruvian Congress removed sitting President Pedro Castillo from office after he announced plans to shut down congress. This presidential announcement came hours before Castillo...

Felon Disenfranchisement and Subversion of the Black Electorate

University of Utah

Beginning after Reconstruction—when Black men were granted the right to vote—the implementation of voter disenfranchisement laws crept across the United States in the form of poll taxes, literacy...

Libel Suits are an Effective Legal Tool to Combat Disinformation

University of Utah

The spread of disinformation related to the Big Lie conspiracy perpetuated by Trump, and his allies, including Right-wing media networks, helped spur the 'Stop the Steal Movement' and the rioters...

COVID-19: A Pandemic of Misinformation

University of Utah

The COVID-19 pandemic was not only a pandemic of a virus, but also a pandemic of misinformation and disinformation. During the year 2020, it was not uncommon to log onto social media sites or sit...

A Defamation Lawsuit Against Fox News and What That Means Moving Forward

University of Utah

Dominion Voting Systems has created a court filing in a lawsuit against Fox News under a defamation claim regarding the 2020 presidential election. The lawsuit, which was filed in March 2021,...

Independent State Legislature Theory and its Effects on Democracy in the United States

University of Utah

After the 2020 census, North Carolina gained a 14th seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. This meant the Republican-led state legislature was able to redraw the House Congressional districts,...

How the NRA Contributes to America’s Democratic Erosion

University of Utah

In a recent poll, 1 in 5 Americans has experienced gun violence in the past 5 years. The same poll revealed that 75% of Americans are in favor of raising the legal age of gun ownership to 21 years...

The US Populace and Bureaucracy: A Surprisingly Positive View

Rollins College

Bureaucracy, what many consider the fourth branch of the United States government, is not typically viewed as popular among Americans. Indeed, in her book, The Politics of Resentment, Katherine...

The Future of Labor: Immigration or Automation?

Rollins College

An article titled "People Over Robots (The Global Economy Needs Immigration Before Automation)," [1] written by Lant Pritchett and published in the March/April 2023 issue of Foreign Affairs...

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