Annenberg School for Communication

Group of people wearing masks at a vigil in Philadelphia.

Viewing 2021 through a lens

Photojournalist Kylie Cooper’s annotated photo essay about the liminality of 2021 captured the Capitol insurrection, the Ground Zero commemoration of the 20th anniversary of 9/11, and more.

Person reading success story how-to book.

Do success stories cause false beliefs about success?

Does explicitly acknowledging bias make us less likely to make biased decisions? A new study examining how people justify decisions based on biased data finds that this is not exactly the case.

Journalism is outdated: Barbie Zelizer discusses a new ‘manifesto’

In ‘The Journalism Manifesto’, Annenberg School of Communications’ Barbie Zelizer and her co-authors argue that journalism needs a major transformation in order to survive as an essential pillar of our democracy.

TV camera in front of a crowd of people.

Racial justice protests influenced local news reporting

A new Media, Inequality, and Change Center report finds that news coverage of policing did become more inclusive and less dehumanizing, but was still heavily slanted toward a police perspective.

Hard barriers and soft power: Study assesses outsider perceptions of border walls

Two researchers explore how border walls damage a country’s international image, with real soft power implications.

Researchers Sara Cherry, Susan Davidson, Douglas Durian, Kathleen Hall Jamieson, Katalin Kariko, I. Joseph Kroll, Mingyao Li, Hongjun Song, Duncan Watts, and E. John Wherry

Ten from Penn elected 2021 AAAS Fellows

Ten scholars representing five schools across the University of Pennsylvania have been named to the 2021 class of American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellows, recognized for their “scientifically and socially distinguished achievements.”

Alexis McGill Johnson and Dorothy Roberts

Anti-racism and reproductive justice

PIK Professor Dorothy Roberts joined Alexis McGill Johnson, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood, in the 21st annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Lecture in Social Justice. They addressed the intersectional nature of anti-racism and reproductive freedom.

Two human figures communicating via different colors, shapes, and dialog boxes.

Want to reduce political polarization? Start by looking beyond politics

New research from PIK University Professor Duncan Watts sheds light on how even hardliners can be swayed when coming in contact with opposing viewpoints.

Cover of the book "Creating conspiracy beliefs: How our thoughts are shaped" by Dolores Albarracín, Julia Albarracín, Man-pui Sally Chan, and Kathleen Hall Jamieson

A novel theory on how conspiracy theories take shape

In a new book, Dolores Albarracín, Kathleen Hall Jamieson, and colleagues show that two factors—the conservative media and societal fear and anxiety—have driven recent widespread conspiracies, from Pizzagate to those around COVID-19 vaccines.

Person looking at laptop computer, visibly concerned.

What can be done to prevent and resist image-based abuse?

A virtual symposium held by Annenberg’s Center for Media at Risk and the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative brought together experts from around the world to analyze the abuse commonly referred to as “revenge porn.”

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