Communications

Michael Mann of the School of Arts & Sciences says that reaching net-zero emissions by 2050 is possible for Pennsylvania but will require Gov. Josh Shapiro to convince voters that legislative Republicans are blocking efforts to create a livable future.

Matthew Levendusky of the School of Arts & Sciences and the Annenberg Public Policy Center says that heightening a sense of American national identity can reduce polarization and partisanship between opposing political parties.

The Annenberg Public Policy Center’s FactCheck.org finds that at least five Republican lawmakers, including Speaker Kevin McCarthy, have already voiced opposition to a proposal that would dismantle the IRS and replace current forms of federal taxation with a 30 percent sales tax.

A survey by Joseph Turow of the Annenberg School for Communication and colleagues finds that most Americans don’t understand how online devices and services track users.

Joseph Turow of the Annenberg School for Communication says that consumer voices can be used to reveal a wealth of knowledge to companies, including height, weight, ethnicity, personality traits, and possible health issues.

Kathleen Hall Jamieson of the Annenberg Public Policy Center says that conspiracy theories about influential global leaders aren’t new but that scrutiny of the Davos forum and its chairman, Klaus Schwab, intensified during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the Annenberg Public Policy Center’s factcheck.org, Republican claims that Nancy Pelosi was to blame for the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riot are unsubstantiated.