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Communications

Can a critic who becomes a believer sway others? The case of genetically modified foods
GMO protester holding a sign that reads "poison is poison...it will kill us sooner or later" and the letters GMOs crossed out

Can a critic who becomes a believer sway others? The case of genetically modified foods

A study from researchers at the Annenberg Public Policy Center shows that a conversion message, when a strong advocate for one side of a controversial issue in science publicly announces that they now believe the opposite, can influence public attitudes toward genetically modified foods.

Penn Today Staff

How to escape pseudo-events in America: The lessons of Covington

How to escape pseudo-events in America: The lessons of Covington

Kathleen Hall Jamieson of the Annenberg Public Policy Center was cited for her book, “Cyberwar: How Russian Hackers and Trolls Helped Elect a President—What We Don’t, Can’t, and Do Know” in an analysis of the coverage surrounding an encounter between a high school student and a Native American activist at the Indigenous Peoples March in D.C.

Many Americans think that climate-change deniers ‘get what they deserve’ when disasters strike

Many Americans think that climate-change deniers ‘get what they deserve’ when disasters strike

Annenberg Public Policy Center postdoc Matt Motta co-authored an article about politically polarized discourse in the United States. In studying people’s reaction to climate change-related disasters, Motta found that “among Democrats, identifying as a liberal is associated with approximately a 38 percent greater likelihood of believing that climate-change deniers get what they deserve if their region is devastated by a hurricane.”

The science behind Facebook’s viral #10YearChallenge
Benjamin Franklin statue in front of College Hall The Benjamin Franklin statue outside of College Hall.

The science behind Facebook’s viral #10YearChallenge

Jonah Berger, an associate professor of marketing at The Wharton School, and author of ‘Contagious: Why Things Catch On,’ discusses why people are suddenly eager to talk aging on social media.
Company known for deep cost-cutting offers to buy Gannett

Company known for deep cost-cutting offers to buy Gannett

Victor Pickard of the Annenberg School for Communication commented on a possible takeover of Gannett Co., publisher of several major daily papers, by Digital First Media. “If Digital First acquires Gannett it will be good for their business but bad for everyone else, including employees that work at Gannett papers and the local communities that those newsrooms serve,” said Pickard.

A conversation with Mr. Fish

Penn Today kicks off its ‘Office Hours’ podcast series with a one-on-one chat with Annenberg School for Communication lecturer and outspoken political cartoonist, Dwayne Booth.
Mr. Fish teaches in a classroom with the Center for Media at Risk logo in the background
Dwayne Booth, a lecturer at the Annenberg School for Communication and a political cartoonist. (Photo courtesy: The Annenberg School for Communication)
‘One of the highlights of my life’
Delli Carpini sits on bright red chair in Annenberg School lobby

‘One of the highlights of my life’

As his time as dean of the Annenberg School comes to a close, Michael X. Delli Carpini reflects on the impact he hopes he’s had.

Lauren Hertzler

The other way the National Enquirer helped elect Trump

The other way the National Enquirer helped elect Trump

The Annenberg Public Policy Center’s Kathleen Hall Jamieson discussed the role of tabloids in shaping the 2016 election. “Even as we look at extreme content and say, ‘That’s ridiculous, I dismiss that,’ it changes our sense of where the middle of the distribution of the content is,” she said. “It pushes open our acceptance of extreme content.”