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Timely election administration and technology symposium draws leading scholars

Going into the 2020 election, popular fear of interference, fraud, or election meddling, means that leveraging the tools of rigorous social science is as important as ever.

Participants in the USC Bedrosian Center’s Symposium on Election Administration and Technology skillfully brought data, theory, and logic to bear on questions often driven by reflexive fear, anger, or confusion.

Who Has the Ear of Your Legislators and Why They Can’t Seem to Get Anything Done

We’re six months away from one of the most consequential midterm elections in modern history, and Americans are fed up with Congress. Politicians have gotten a bad rap throughout history, but today’s legislators are setting record lows in approval ratings and public trust. What gives? Why do they disappoint us so often? Are they really ignoring our needs and demands, or are we misunderstanding the challenges they face?

In this episode, Sarah Anderson shows that it’s a little of both: politicians don’t listen to all constituents equally, but they also can’t just snap their fingers and fulfill our wishes.

To listen to this episode of Our American Discourse, click the arrow in the player here. Or download it and subscribe through ApplePodcasts, Soundcloud, Google Play, Stitcher, or your favorite podcasting app – click the links or search “usc bedrosian.”

Tweeting a Successful Campaign

by Jeremy Loudenback In the 2008 presidential campaign, the much more prominent use of social media by Barack Obama’s campaign served to highlight his relevance and forward-looking perspective. But by 2012, the social-media gap had narrowed sharply, with Twitter and other social media becoming a contentious political battlefield for candidates from Read more…

Bedrosian Center