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‘Information gerrymandering’ poses a threat to democratic decision making
Pixelated image of a brain with red, blue, and purple regions

Information gerrymandering can change the way we think about political decisions, as depicted in this image of a gerrymandered mind. People must integrate disparate sources of information when deciding how to vote. But information does not always flow freely; it can be constrained by social networks and distorted by zealots and automated bots. Researchers showed that certain structures in a social network can sway the voting outcome of towards one party, even when both parties have equal size and each player has the same influence, a phenomenon they called “information gerrymandering." (Image: Alexander Stewart)

‘Information gerrymandering’ poses a threat to democratic decision making

Concern over fake news and online trolls is widespread and warranted, but researchers have identified another impediment to the free flow of information in social networks. The phenomenon, which they term “information gerrymandering,” arises from the structure of a social network and introduces bias into collective decisions.

Katherine Unger Baillie

Here’s what happens when political bubbles collide

Here’s what happens when political bubbles collide

Joshua Plotkin of the School of Arts and Sciences co-authored an article about information gerrymandering and its consequences for democracy. “What we show in our study, mathematically and empirically, is that a party’s influence on a social network can be broken up, in a way analogous to electoral gerrymandering of congressional districts,” he writes.

Polarization can happen even when rational people listen to each other
A cartoon drawing of six people. Two are holding megaphones, one is holding a sign that says "Yes," one is holding a sign that says "No," and one is holding a cane.

Polarization can happen even when rational people listen to each other

Using computer models, philosopher Daniel J. Singer, political scientist William Berger, and colleagues found that divides over factual issues can stem from humans’ limited memory capacity rather than from one side or the other being irrational.

Michele W. Berger

‘A master of deflection.’ Trump and the whiplash presidency

‘A master of deflection.’ Trump and the whiplash presidency

Kathleen Hall Jamieson of the Annenberg Public Policy Center commented on President Trump’s efforts to shift the public’s attention away from unfavorable news. “You know that recession is on his mind because into this bizarre news agenda of the last week, he continues to intrude things that are relevant to a recession, if only to dismiss them,” she said.

Justice served: A summer at the Department of Justice
Student standing in front of plaque that says U.S. Department of Justice Washington, and flanked by two flags.

Penn senior Jordan Andrews is a summer intern at the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, D.C.

Justice served: A summer at the Department of Justice

Senior political science major Jordan Andrews from Detroit is a summer intern at the U.S. Department of Justice Consumer Protection Branch. She is working on cases involving identity theft, opioid abuse, and many types of fraud, while learning about the law and exploring Washington, D.C

Louisa Shepard

What are the long-term costs of the China-U.S. trade war?
Two signposts, one reads Made in China, pointing left, directly beneath it reads Made in USA, pointing right, symbolic of the U.S. China trade war crossroads.

What are the long-term costs of the China-U.S. trade war?

Wharton experts Marshall Meyer and Efraim Berkovich discuss the escalating trade war with China, and argue that U.S. households must brace for higher prices that won’t come down.

Penn Today Staff

Uncovering the roots of discrimination toward immigrants
A group of people waiting on a platform of a train station with sunlit windows and a train on the tracks.

Sambanis and his co-authors ran the experiment more than 1,600 times in train stations in 30 cities in both western and eastern Germany, with more than 7,000 bystanders unwittingly participating.

Uncovering the roots of discrimination toward immigrants

New research from political scientist Nicholas Sambanis finds that religion may matter more than ethnicity in how immigrants are treated, even if they comply with local social norms.

Gwyneth K. Shaw