Showing 1 - 10 of 13
The UK's most working-class government
Oped, Published on 09/07/2024
» The United Kingdom has a new Labour government whose class composition are radically different from previous ones. According to our analysis of Labour's shadow cabinet, some 46% of Keir Starmer's cabinet members were raised by parents with "working class" occupations. That figure is well above average in terms of the broader working population, and it stands in stark contrast to the 7% who were of working-class origin in the last Conservative cabinet.
Premier League bets $5 billion on game theory
News, Published on 08/11/2023
» Competitive tension is essential to the thrill of any sporting contest. The world's richest domestic soccer competition hasn't been over-endowed on that score in recent years, with Abu Dhabi-bankrolled Manchester City winning England's top division for three consecutive years and leading the table again almost a third into the current season. Those hankering for a bit more drama might do better to turn their attention to the unfolding financial contest for control of who screens the games.
Inequality rising and democracy under seige
Oped, Published on 09/09/2023
» There has been much handwringing about the retreat of democracy and the rise of authoritarianism in recent years -- and for good reason. From Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán to former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro and former US president Donald Trump, we have a growing list of authoritarians and would-be autocrats who channel a curious form of right-wing populism. Though they promise to protect ordinary citizens and preserve longstanding national values, they pursue policies that protect the powerful and trash longstanding norms -- and leave the rest of us trying to explain their appeal.
Press fights back Big Tech disruption
Oped, Published on 26/05/2023
» Two years ago, the Australian parliament passed the News Media Bargaining Code, which forced Meta (Facebook) and Alphabet (Google) to compensate media outlets for news content shared on their platforms. The law has been a remarkable success, with Australian media outlets now receiving more than A$200 million (about 6.9 billion baht) annually from Big Tech firms.
The battle between Big Tech and the free press
Oped, Published on 10/04/2021
» Worldwide, the free press is waging a battle for survival against Facebook and Google. Besides being gushing firehoses of Covid disinformation and QAnon conspiracies, Google and Facebook have been dangerously undermining the financial stability of media outlets all over the world.
Sun almost set on those Page 3 girls
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 25/01/2015
» For a moment it looked like the British national media had finally become nipple-free after more than 40 years. For the first three days of last week The Sun’s Page 3 girl, normally topless, was actually wearing clothes, prompting insiders and other newspapers to speculate that a decision had finally been made to drop the much-criticised daily dose of titillation.
The real victims in the 'war of terror'
News, Published on 21/12/2014
» In the wake of the Port Arthur massacre in 1996, the Australian prime minister at the time, John Howard, showed his first and arguably greatest act of leadership. Tough new gun laws were introduced, and semi-automatic weapons were bought back across the country and melted down for use in innocuous items such as chicken wire.
Plutocrats dodge inequality at G20
News, Published on 14/11/2014
» At an official dinner in Washington, DC, ahead of this weekend's G20 Summit in Brisbane, Australia-born media mogul Rupert Murdoch lectured ministers on the dangers of socialism and big government. A fervent opponent of Australia's carbon price, and a battle-hardened opponent of US President Barack Obama, Mr Murdoch lauded the virtues of austerity and minimal regulation, and railed against the corrosive effects of social safety nets.
The era of unified nation-states nears its end
News, Published on 16/09/2014
» This week's referendum in Scotland could result in the UK losing almost one-third of its landmass, and 8% of its population, and, very likely, its present prime minister. In a summer rich with shocks, the breakup of a United Nations Security Council member suddenly seems more likely than the long-predicted fracturing of Iraq.
Floods and drought highlight summer of climate truth
News, Jeffrey D Sachs, Published on 31/07/2012
» For years, climate scientists have been warning the world that the heavy use of fossil fuels (coal, oil, and natural gas) threatens the world with human-induced climate change. The rising atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide, a byproduct of burning fossil fuels, would warm the planet and change rainfall and storm patterns and raise sea levels. Now those changes are hitting in every direction, even as powerful corporate lobbies and media propagandists like Rupert Murdoch try to deny the truth.