Week 3: We Gon’ Be Alright: Exploring the challenges, possibilities and potential for building a multi-racial, multi-issue and multi-cultural progressive coalition in America. In this study session, we will discuss and explore the formation, development and sustainability of new forming political alliances and broadbase national coalitions. We will discuss the key political issues that these new coalitions are organizing and forming around and examine if these coalitions are effective and sustainable. How are national movements impacted the political landscape? What has been the progress and what has been the backlash? What are the best strategies around organizing coalitions and strategic alliances for building a national movement. Where are populist movements helpful and could populist movements be harmful? Guest: Alicia Garza (Founder of Black Lives Matter and Black Census Project)

Week 3: Fake News vs. Alternative Facts: The Role of the Media in the Era of Trump

President Trump calls the media “the enemy of the people” and Fake News.  Members of the media defend their responsibility to serve and fact check our elected officials.  Why is a free press so important to a free society? Alice Stewart opens up the discussion with CNN White House Correspondent Jim Acosta to discuss the role of the media in covering politics.

Guest: Jim Acosta (Chief White House Correspondent, CNN)

Learn more about this new two year post-graduate fellowship in cybersecurity!

This event is co-sponsored by the Office of Career Advancement. 
 

Week 3: Covering the White House in the Time of Trump

The view from the briefing room (if they still held briefings). What’s it like covering Donald Trump?

Guest: Maggie Haberman (White House reporter, New York Times)

Location: Littauer Building (L-150), Harvard Kennedy School

Week 3: Controlling Your Narrative

In this session, we will discuss the importance of controlling and owning your narrative. After the public announcement of her appointment to White House Social Secretary, there were countless articles that appeared. Journalists played up the less glamorous parts of Deesha’s life to create a more sensationalized narrative. As you move into the public sphere, how do you control and own your (or your boss’) narrative in a world that is more concerned with telling a good story than it is about honest representation?

Location: Institute of Politics (L-166)

An exciting debate featuring one speaker from the following groups:
-Harvard College Democrats for Cory
-Harvard College Democrats for Pete
-Harvard College Democrats for Bernie
-Harvard College Democrats for Biden
-Harvard College Democrats for Warren
-Harvard College Democrats for Kamala
-Harvard College Democrats for Yang

~Insomnia Cookies will be provided!~

Topics of the debate include but are not limited to climate change, healthcare, foreign policy, and education. There will be an opportunity for audience questions!

Martin Burt, Author, Who Owns Poverty?; Founder & CEO, Fundación Paraguaya

Moderator: Bianca Cordazzo '21

This panel brings together Professor Ruha Benjamin, Professor Khalil Gibran Muhammad, Ms. Latoya Peterson and moderator Joan Donovan for a discussion on race, technology, media, and policy to converse on a range of topics from the recent public upheavals over facial recognition technology, increasing integration into police and state surveillance tools, and the manipulation of social media to gain a political advantage.

Week 2: Bush 43 and the burden of conservative governance. 

The election of Barack Obama. The rise of the tea party, the failure of immigration reform and laying the groundwork for a populist movement.

Location: Littauer Building (L-150) at the Harvard Kennedy School, 79 JFK St.

Week 2: The Panama Papers, how does a government deal with an external crisis.

Millions of documents leaked by a consortium of journalists, exposing financial and attorney – client information. Including information about public figures worldwide, simultaneously, around the globe, in all major newspapers and agencies. The leak of information created local and global stress. Named after Panama, it represented a major challenge to the government, seriously affecting the image of the country. We will address the reputational consequences and the impact on Panama ́s agenda on global financial services.  

Guest: Ambassador Gian Castillero, lawyer, former member of the National Council on Foreign Relations. Designed and executed with the Panamanian government the strategy to face the Panama Papers scandal and recuperate image.

Location: Institute of Politics (L-163)

A first in the IOP’s ongoing Election 2020 series featuring embedded reporters on the campaign trail with presidential candidates. This inaugural event features CBS News’ Musadiq Bidar, Washington Post’s Chelsea Janes, and NBC News’ Marianna Sotomayor. The conversation will be moderated by IOP Senior Fellow and Washington Post correspondent Dan Balz.

Week 2: To Vote or Not To Vote: Whose Democracy Is This?

How did formerly incarcerated people organize themselves and their allies to restore voting rights to over 1.4 million people in Florida?  How did they win such a sweeping victory in a battleground state? How do we strengthen democracy in an environment where the right to vote for many is openly being attacked and challenged by those in positions of power at the highest levels of government? Can we protect the right to vote with a weakened Voting Rights Act?  Is democracy a modern political desire and/or value for Americans?

Who are the organizations and organizers that are leading efforts to expand the electorate and/or shrink the electorate? In this study session, we will discuss and explore some of the most effective and innovative strategies being used in this current political environment to address voter suppression, mobilize voters and expand democracy

Guests: Desmond Meade is a voting rights activist and Executive Director of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition. As chair of Floridians for a Fair Democracy, Meade led the successful effort to pass Florida Amendment 4, a 2018 state initiative that restored voting rights to over 1.4 million Floridians with previous felony convictions.^[2]In April 2019, Time magazine named Meade as one of the 100 most influential people in the world.^[3]