The Ambassador Comes to Call

When my wife and I were students at Regent University working on our doctorates we often had gatherings at our large Victorian home in South Norfolk.  I’ll never forget when a man from Africa attend...

Dr. Robert Owens - avatar Dr. Robert Owens

View from The Hill: Joyce could be facing waves at a judicial inquiry after the election

It’s hard to believe Barnaby Joyce really wants to lead the Nationals again. Of course everyone knows he does, desperately, but his unhinged ABC interview with Patricia Karvelas on Monday showed...

Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra - avatar Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra

Australia's 'watergate': here's what taxpayers need to know about water buybacks

The federal government committed to reducing water extraction from the Murray-Darling Basin.ShutterstockIn 2017, the then agriculture minister, Barnaby Joyce, signed off on an A$80 million purchase of...

Lin Crase, Professor of Economics and Head of School, University of South Australia - avatar Lin Crase, Professor of Economics and Head of School, University of South Australia

Ethnic media are essential for new migrants and should be better funded

An annual indexation freeze in funding introduced by the Liberal government in 2013 has cost the sector almost A$1 million.ShutterstockThe fact that the community ethnic and multicultural broadcasting...

John Budarick, Lecturer in Media, University of Adelaide - avatar John Budarick, Lecturer in Media, University of Adelaide

Rift between NZ government and aid agency over naming of nurse captured by ISIS

The ICRC may have decided to release the name of a New Zealand nurse captured in Syria because ISIS has been defeated in its strongholds.Ahmed Mardnli/EPA, CC BY-NDLast week’s revelation that a ...

Alexander Gillespie, Professor of Law, University of Waikato - avatar Alexander Gillespie, Professor of Law, University of Waikato

Media Files: Investigative journalist Adele Ferguson on the 'disappointing' banking royal commission and how she works with whistleblowers

Today on Media Files, it’s journalism versus the big banks. We’re hearing from Adele Ferguson, the celebrated journalist who many credit as the driving force behind the banking royal commi...

Andrew Dodd, Director of the Centre for Advancing Journalism, University of Melbourne - avatar Andrew Dodd, Director of the Centre for Advancing Journalism, University of Melbourne

FUCT gets day in court as SCOTUS considers dropping slippery moral standard when granting trademarks

When’s a brand too scandalous to trademark? That’s a question the Supreme Court will soon decide in a case that tests the constitutional limits of free speech. I attended the oral argument...

Megan M Carpenter, Dean, University of New Hampshire - avatar Megan M Carpenter, Dean, University of New Hampshire

'I'm not a traitor, you are!' Political argument from the Founding Fathers to today's partisans

How partisans argue tells a lot about how the public sees democracyShutterstockPresident Trump is working with the Russians to enrich himself. The Republican Party is shielding him from accountability...

Jeffrey Selinger, Associate Professor of Government, Bowdoin College - avatar Jeffrey Selinger, Associate Professor of Government, Bowdoin College

Why federal student aid should be restored for people in prison

Research shows prison education lessens the chances that inmates will return to prison after their release.Elaine Thompson/APCongress is thinking of lifting a longstanding ban on federal student aid f...

Andrea Cantora, Associate Professor of Criminal Justice, University of Baltimore - avatar Andrea Cantora, Associate Professor of Criminal Justice, University of Baltimore

A quest to reconstruct Baltimore's American Indian 'reservation'

Members of East Baltimore Church of God, which was founded by Lumbee Indians, and was once located in the heart of 'the reservation,' in the 1700 block of E. Baltimore Street.Photo courtesy of Rev. Ro...

Ashley Minner, Lecturer, Folklorist, University of Maryland, Baltimore County - avatar Ashley Minner, Lecturer, Folklorist, University of Maryland, Baltimore County

What Leonardo's depiction of Virgin Mary and Jesus tells us about his religious beliefs

Leonardo da Vinci's Virgin of the Rocks.National Gallery LondonOn the 500th anniversary of Leonardo da Vinci’s death, Italian academic Francesco Caglioti’s recent claim that a sculpture he...

Diane Apostolos-Cappadona, Haub Director of Catholic Studies, Georgetown University - avatar Diane Apostolos-Cappadona, Haub Director of Catholic Studies, Georgetown University

Understanding the periodic table through the lens of the volatile Group I metals

Sodium metal explodes on contact with water. Albert Russ/Shutterstock.comThe news broke that a railroad car, loaded with pure sodium, had just derailed and was spilling its contents. A television repo...

Erwin Boschmann, Professor Emeritus of Chemistry & Chemical Biology, IUPUI - avatar Erwin Boschmann, Professor Emeritus of Chemistry & Chemical Biology, IUPUI

Japan’s next emperor is a modern, multilingual environmentalist

For the first time in 217 years, a Japanese emperor will cede his place on the imperial throne. On April 30, Japan’s ailing 85-year-old Emperor Akihito will abdicate and be replaced the followin...

Constantine Nomikos Vaporis, Professor of History, University of Maryland, Baltimore County - avatar Constantine Nomikos Vaporis, Professor of History, University of Maryland, Baltimore County

In India, WhatsApp is a weapon of antisocial hatred

Smartphones are a conduit for misinformation about the Indian election.AP Photo/Manish SwarupA general election in India, the world’s most populous democracy, seems a theoretical impossibility. ...

Rohit Chopra, Associate Professor of Communication, Santa Clara University - avatar Rohit Chopra, Associate Professor of Communication, Santa Clara University