Highbrow Magazine - News & Features https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/news-features en Myanmar’s Ethnic Minorities Are Forced to Fight, Resist, or Flee https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24562-myanmar-s-ethnic-minorities-are-forced-fight-resist-or-flee <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Wed, 03/27/2024 - 16:06</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1myanmar_depositphotos_0.jpg?itok=vJ4vdpwm"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1myanmar_depositphotos_0.jpg?itok=vJ4vdpwm" width="480" height="320" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Last October marked a significant shift in the longstanding conflict in Myanmar, the world's oldest ongoing war. Several ethnic resistance armies joined forces, initiating a campaign of coordinated attacks that are succeeding in pushing the Tatmadaw (Myanmar government army) out of the ethnic states. Previously, it appeared that each anti-government militia and armed group fought independently. However, there's been a notable change as an increasing number of them rally behind the National Unity Government. Ethnic leaders are unified in their goal to overthrow the military junta, which seized power in a 2021 coup, and establish a federal democracy modeled after the United States.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Such is the depth of hatred towards the regime that entire units of the Tatmadaw, the Myanmar  Army, have <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/02/14/myanmar-war-military-rebels-surrenders/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">either surrendered</a>, deserted, or <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2024/jan/29/myanmar-military-junta-totters-as-battalions-surrender#:~:text=Since%20Operation%201027%2C%20more%20than,formed%20to%20oppose%20the%20junta." style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">defected to the rebel side</a>. With the tide shifting against them, the military leaders in Myanmar are growing increasingly desperate. To bolster their dwindling ranks, they've resorted to <a href="https://www.voanews.com/a/myanmar-s-youth-leaders-fear-conscription-law/7511036.html" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">forced military conscription</a>. According to the junta's estimates, among the nation's 56 million citizens, approximately <a href="https://www.voanews.com/a/myanmar-s-youth-leaders-fear-conscription-law/7511036.html" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">6.3 million men</a> and 7.7 million women are deemed eligible for conscription, and the Tatmadaw is adamant about drafting them all.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/2myanmar_depositphotos_0.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The strict enforcement of the law, with its harsh measures, like scooping young people up off the street and forcing them into the army, not only worsens the refugee crisis in Thailand but also backfires on the junta. Instead of obeying, young individuals are choosing to risk their lives by leaving the country or joining the resistance.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Twenty-one-year-old Sai Su Thamma from Lashio, Northern Shan State, sought refuge in a camp in Northern Thailand upon learning about the conscription. “I heard the Burm[ese] army’s new law that everyone from the age of 18 to 45 must serve in the army for three years. If anyone disobeys the law, the punishment [will be to] go to jail for five years,” he said. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">While recruitment and coercive measures are already underway, the full enforcement of the law, including punishment and pressure on families of those who refuse to serve, is scheduled to commence at the end of March.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/3myanmar_0.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Sai Su Thamma expresses that the Tatmadaw's policy is unjust: “This policy is not right. And I don’t want to join any army. As they just want to maintain their power. Moreover, I don’t want to fight and kill people in the same country, or my own people." </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">This sentiment underscores a significant issue for ethnic minorities who already endure government oppression and war on the frontlines. If drafted by the Myanmar military, they would be compelled to kill their own people.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Two siblings, Sai Pandawa, aged 22, and his sister, Nang Sing, aged 19, hailing from Laikha township in Southern Shan State, recounted their ordeal. Their father received a letter demanding their enlistment into the army two years ago. Despite his efforts to plead for their exemption, the general remained unmoved. The general warned that any attempt to escape or aid the children in their escape would result in the seizure of the family’s property. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Sai Pandawa spoke of his father’s courageous act of love. “My father came back home and decided to let them take whatever they want, and we moved.” The family surrendered their village property and resettled in the city, where Sai Pandawa became a monk and pursued studies in the temple, while his sister Nang Sing enrolled in medical school. It's common for Shan boys to receive education in monasteries, typically exempting them from military service. The family believed they had found a solution, but the new conscription law caught up with them, disregarding their monkhood and student status, and the army demanded both of the children. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/4myanmar_0.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Sai Pandawa said, "My younger sister [and I]…we don’t want to be in any army, as we know we have to fight and kill each other." Consequently, their father made the decision to send them to Thailand. Presently, Nang Sing, formerly a medical student, works as a house cleaner, while Sai Pandawa, compelled to abandon his monkhood to support himself, is employed as a construction worker.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Thaw Reh Est, a 47-year-old male and Secretary Number Two in the Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP), the government in exile of the Karenni ethnic group, clarified that due to the control of villages by the Karenni resistance armies, the Tatmadaw faces difficulties enforcing conscription. Nevertheless, Karenni youths who have migrated to cities for study or work remain at risk of being apprehended.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">He elaborated on how the conscription law was unfolding: “Some flee to revolution areas” joining the resistance. “Some try to find their own way to Thailand. Some young people will be caught and conscripted to the army. And some will run away." He smiled a sad, ironic smile and remarked, "But the military is also smart enough, perhaps, not to equip them with weapons.” </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Tragically, he concluded that some ethnic conscripts “mixing with the others will have no option.” The Tatmadaw, he emphasized, would not permit their escape. “They have no will to fight with their brothers, but they are forced to stay in the camp.”  </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Author Bio:</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em><strong>Antonio Graceffo, a </strong></em><strong>Highbrow Magazine</strong><em><strong> contributor, is a Ph.D. and also holds a China-MBA from Shanghai Jiaotong University. He works as an economics professor and China economics analyst, writing for various international media. Some of his books include: The Wrestler’s Dissertation, Warrior Odyssey, Beyond the Belt and Road: China’s Global Economic Expansion, and A Short Course on the Chinese Economy.</strong></em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>For Highbrow Magazine</strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em><strong>Photo Credits: <a href="https://depositphotos.com/stock-photography.html" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Depositphotos.com</a>; Mikhail Esteves (<a href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Mae_La_refugee_camp.jpg" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Wikipedia Commons</a>); Trocaire (<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Burma_2,_Emergencies-Humanitarian_15_%2810268240826%29.jpg" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Wikimedia Commons</a>); Ecrusized (<a href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Myanmar_civil_war.svg" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Wikipedia Commons</a>)</strong></em></span></span></p> <p> </p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/myanmar" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Myanmar</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/war-myanmar" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">war in myanmar</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/burma" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Burma</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/burmese-war" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">burmese war</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/myanmar-military" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">myanmar military</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/ethnic-minorities-myanmar" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">ethnic minorities in myanmar</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tatmadaw" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">tatmadaw</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/military-junta" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">military junta</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/military-conscription" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">military conscription</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Antonio Graceffo</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Wed, 27 Mar 2024 20:06:54 +0000 tara 13148 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24562-myanmar-s-ethnic-minorities-are-forced-fight-resist-or-flee#comments The Media’s Frenzied Focus on Sex Scandals Raises Serious Questions About Privacy Rights https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24558-media-s-frenzied-focus-sex-scandals-raises-serious-questions-about-privacy-rights <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Mon, 03/25/2024 - 10:35</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/2news_scandal_depositphotos.jpg?itok=NlBfeqe3"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/2news_scandal_depositphotos.jpg?itok=NlBfeqe3" width="480" height="385" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">In modern society's controversies, few tiles glimmer with as complex a spectrum as those involving sex scandals. We love them and hate them, and we can’t get enough of them. Salacious by nature already, add to them the spice of queerness or race, and it’s a recipe for a media feast that's both irresistible and indigestible. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The Aidan Maese-Czeropski <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">scandal</a>, while a singular event, serves as a poignant entry point into a complex web of societal perceptions, biases, and narratives surrounding sex scandals, particularly those involving LGBTQ+ and individuals from other minority groups.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The media's engagement with the Maese-Czeropski scandal—set against the backdrop of other high-profile incidents, including the contrasting coverage of the Christian Ziegler scandal and the media’s history of reporting these incidents—reveals not just a disparity in treatment but a deeper reflection of societal biases. This is not just a matter of journalistic preference but a reflection of deep-seated societal prejudices against LGBTQ+ individuals and ethnic minorities that go back decades, since the inception of the press as we know it, really. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/1faniwillis-gettyimages-2043989919.jpg" /></p> <p><em><span style="font-size:14px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Getty Images</span></span></em></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">From the coverage of Anita Hill’s <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">testimony</a>, through the Clinton-Lewinski affair, and to Jim McGreevey’s coming out, there’s an underlying current of how these events are reported differently, down to the language that the press uses depending on what—or rather on whom—they are reporting. These narratives, when dissected, uncover a persistent pattern of how homosexual or ethnic minority acts and desires are often cast in a more pernicious light. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Now, the Aidan Maese-Czeropski scandal—let's call it a modern-day morality play, but with less moralizing and more plot twists: In mid-December 2023, an explicit video began circulating around social media channels, specifically a WhatsApp chat group of gay DC staffers. It showed two then unidentified men having intercourse on the floor of the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing room. <em>The Daily Caller</em>, a conservative site, was the <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">first</a> to report on the graphic video, and it was also the first to <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">identify</a> Aidan Maese-Czeropski as one of the men involved. Eventually, Maese-Czeropski <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">resigned</a> from his job and the Capitol Police did not bring any charges <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">because</a>, while there may have been congressional misconduct, no actual laws had been broken. Doubtlessly, there was some poor judgment here. Past the shock value, this whole thing was in poor taste. Also, having sex at your workplace is just frowned upon. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">But the coverage of the scandal oscillated between solemn condemnations and barely-contained <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">glee</a>, a reflection of society's complex relationship with morality, sexuality, and the ever-entertaining fall from grace of those we villainize. Reports on gay sex scandals tend to employ more sensationalist language, focusing on the scandalous nature of the acts with a marked emphasis on the sexual orientation of the individuals involved. And when reporting on the Maese-Czeropski, pearls were clutched. <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline"><em>Forbes</em></a> called it a “porn’” scandal. Maese-Czeropski’s alma mater made the <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">news</a>. The <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">tone</a> of his “salacious” comments on his Venmo account were dissected. He appeared to be having <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">unprotected</a> sex. A U.S. congressman called the event a <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">desecration</a>. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/1clintonlewinsky.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">This contrasts sharply with the treatment of heterosexual scandals, where the focus may lean more towards the consequences of the actions, or the redemption arc of the individuals involved. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">In late November of 2023, the press learned that Christian Ziegler, chair of the Republican Party of Florida, was involved in a sexual battery investigation. More facts would later surface, including details about Ziegler’s and his wife, Bridget’s, recurring involvement in threesomes with another woman. The Zieglers, both staunch conservatives, were a Florida Republican power <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">couple</a>. Bridget Ziegler, a member of the Sarasota School Board, apparently even had a hand in writing Florida’s controversial “Don’t Say Gay” bill, and is the founder of a group that has <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">said</a> that two girls kissing during homecoming was “lewd” and “traumatic.” </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Some publications were quick to call on the moral hypocrisy of a couple embroiled in a sex scandal that involves threesomes and allegations of rape. But they also reported on how Ziegler <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">feared</a> the political fallout caused by the investigation. They wondered how the <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">public</a> would react to the accusations. They <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">wrote</a> on how Bridget Ziegler “broke the silence” and <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">refused</a> to resign from the board because kids must come first and politics don’t belong in the boardroom. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/2clintonlewinsky.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">We know that the choice of language and <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">framing</a> in reporting on these scandals reveal underlying societal prejudices. And, importantly, the media's portrayal of sex scandals not only reflects societal attitudes but also actively shapes them. Public discourse around these incidents is heavily influenced by the media narrative, with significant <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">implications</a> for societal norms and prejudices. When media coverage emphasizes the sensationalist aspects of LGBTQ+ scandals, it reinforces the notion that non-heterosexual orientations are inherently scandalous or newsworthy for their deviation from the norm, echoing broader societal discomfort with non-heteronormative behaviors and identities. This mirroring effect serves to validate and perpetuate these attitudes, giving them a platform and legitimacy.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Dive into the media coverage of scandals starring individuals who tick the racial minority or the LGBTQ+ boxes, and we’ll find intricate <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">layers</a> of bias. The stories spun around these personalities tend to mix in a bit of every stereotype on the shelf, serving up a narrative that’s tart, spicy, and leaves a lingering aftertaste. This portrayal ensures they’re cast in a light that’s more blindingly scandalous and less forgiving than their heterosexual or white counterparts, as if their very identities were not just roles they played but unforgivable plot twists in the saga of societal norms.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">For instance, when a scandal <a href="https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=130074189" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">involves</a> a person of color (straight or queer), the language used in such coverage can subtly—or sometimes overtly—invoke stereotypes associated with the person's racial background, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/entertainment/news/ray-j-says-that-his-and-kim-kardashians-sex-tape-is-the-biggest-lie-in-this-industry-in-the-history-of-entertainment/articleshow/91328283.cms" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">suggesting</a> an inherent predisposition to certain behaviors. This dual framing serves to otherize the individual, casting their actions in a light that is inherently more scandalous or reprehensible due to their race or identity. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">In the early 1990s, Anita Hill became a household name almost overnight, not for the reasons one might aspire to, but as a central figure in a national drama that unfolded on the grand stage of U.S. politics. Hill, a law professor, came forward with allegations of sexual harassment against Clarence Thomas, who was then a nominee for the Supreme Court. The allegations were shocking not just for their <a href="https://wams.nyhistory.org/end-of-the-twentieth-century/the-information-age/anita-hills-testimony/" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">content</a> but for the context in which they emerged—a confirmation hearing for one of the highest judicial positions in the country.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/1news_scandal_depositphotos.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The media coverage of Anita Hill's allegations was intense and, at times, <a href="https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2018/09/23/rewatched-anita-hill-testimony-kavanaugh-metoo-220526/" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">divisive</a>. Television networks and newspapers across the country were fixated on the hearings, broadcasting Hill's testimony and the subsequent questioning she faced to millions of Americans. For many, the hearings were their first introduction to the concept of sexual harassment in the workplace, making the coverage both educational and sensational.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Similarly, and more recently, we have the Fani Willis <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/article/fani-willis-georgia-trump.html" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">scandal</a>, which revolved around accusations of a romantic relationship between Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and special prosecutor Nathan Wade, who were involved in the investigation of former President Donald Trump and his allies in Georgia's election case. The scandal emerged when allegations surfaced that Willis hired Wade to work on the case and that they developed a personal relationship, leading to claims of a conflict of interest. Trump and his co-defendants sought to <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2024/01/24/a-reality-check-on-the-fani-willis-scandal-00137238" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">disqualify</a> Willis, Wade, and the entire district attorney's office over this alleged relationship, arguing that it could compromise the integrity of the case. Wade has since stepped down. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">While the scandal created significant legal and ethical challenges—with debates over whether Willis should be disqualified from handling the prosecution and legal experts have been divided on this issue—it also drew attention to the <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/da-fani-willis-rebuts-accusations-misconduct-georgia-trump/story?id=106904657" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">personal</a> lives of the prosecutors involved in this high-profile case, raising concerns not only on the impact on the credibility of the legal proceedings against Trump and his associates but also on privacy issues. The <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2024/02/02/fani-willis-donald-trump-affair-court/72449818007/" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">intrusion</a> into the personal lives of Willis and Wade, including details about their relationship timeline, financial arrangements, and personal interactions, raises questions about the boundaries between public scrutiny and individual privacy rights. This level of exposure of personal details can have lasting consequences on persons’ professional careers and personal well-being.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/1ziegler.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The media played a dual role in these sagas: On one hand, it was the conduit through which many Americans learned about the intricacies and personal <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/09/28/1040911313/anita-hill-belonging-sexual-harassment-conversation" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">devastations</a> of sexual harassment in the case of Anita Hill, and about the implications of ethical and legal challenges in what could be one of the most impactful trials in American history; on the other, it was a lens that often magnified the spectacle over the substance. Hill's poised demeanor under intense scrutiny, mirrored by Willis’s <a href="https://apnews.com/article/fani-willis-hearing-trump-case-potential-conflict-c37fcf993ac33c150f3cb3e4a7a888db" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">dignified</a> and “fiery” testimony, and the graphic nature of the questions posed to them created a media spectacle that was as uncomfortable as it was captivating.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">For these individuals at the intersection of marginalized identities, all this means they must face a compounded form of <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">scrutiny</a> that is greater than the sum of its parts. The public, influenced by media narratives steeped in intersectional biases, may harbor and express more critical, dismissive, or punitive <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">attitudes</a> toward these individuals, compared with their attitudes toward those who occupy a more privileged or singularly marginalized position. This heightened scrutiny is not just a matter of public opinion but can translate into tangible consequences for the individuals involved. It can lead to a more severe backlash, including social ostracization, professional repercussions, and in some cases, ramifications that are harsher than those faced by individuals who do not share the same intersectional identities. This differential treatment underscores the power of intersectionality to shape not only narratives but also outcomes.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">There’s no denying that narrative framing in media <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">coverage</a> is a potent tool for shaping societal attitudes. By choosing which aspects of a scandal to highlight and which to omit, media outlets can craft narratives that either challenge or reinforce existing biases. Framing a scandal involving, say, a gay politician around issues of hypocrisy and betrayal, without similar scrutiny for heterosexual counterparts, <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">reinforces</a> the idea that LGBTQ+ individuals are less <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">trustworthy</a> or morally upright. Conversely, media coverage that focuses on the systemic issues underlying a scandal, such as abuse of power or violation of consent, can shift the narrative away from individual moral failings and towards broader societal discussions.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/1anitahill.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Moreover, the <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12872333/Fired-Democrat-senator-aide-gay-sex-tape-criminal-charges.html" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">visual</a> <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/moms-liberty-founder-faces-calls-resignation-school-board/story?id=107071594" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">representation</a> in media coverage can also play a significant role in compounding biases (there’s Maese-Czeropski in bondage costume in a public setting, and there’s Bridget Ziegler in business attire looking important behind a desk). These images selected for stories reinforce stereotypes, with individuals from minority groups depicted in ways that emphasize difference or deviance, further entrenching racial and sexual prejudices in the public's mind.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">This all makes sense, though, to an extent. There's a nuanced mix of reactions when public figures are caught in the act, the most compelling of which is <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">schadenfreude</a>—the feeling of satisfaction gained from the troubles of others. Schadenfreude is a multifaceted emotion, rooted in the human tendency to compare oneself with others and find solace or superiority in their failures. This phenomenon becomes particularly pronounced in the realm of sex scandals, especially when the individuals involved have previously positioned themselves on high moral ground (like publicly espoused anti-LGBTQ+ sentiments), only to be later embroiled in a scandal that contradicts their public persona, like the Zieglers who advocated against any form of behavior that they perceived as sexually deviant. The revelation of a scandal involving such an individual not only exposes their hypocrisy but also serves as a form of social <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">leveling</a>, where the perceived moral high ground is eroded, bringing the individual back down to a more human, fallible level.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">And the role of the media in amplifying schadenfreude cannot be understated. Through selective reporting, sensational headlines, and the framing of the narrative, the media can significantly influence the public's perception of the scandal and the individuals involved. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">This media amplification not only serves to heighten the public's interest and engagement with the story but also reinforces the emotional payoff of seeing someone perceived as hypocritical being publicly exposed. It doesn't just spice up the morning news; it whips up a veritable feast of satisfaction from the audience as they watch the high and mighty tumble from their self-erected pedestals. The spectacle of a public figure caught with their moral compass spinning wildly is irresistible, creating a feedback loop that's part spectacle, part public service announcement on the perils of hypocrisy.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">But while schadenfreude is a natural human emotion, its amplification by the media raises ethical <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">considerations</a>. The glee derived from someone else's downfall, especially when it pertains to personal and often sensitive matters like sexuality, can have damaging effects not only on the individual involved but also on broader societal attitudes toward sex and morality. It underscores the need for a more empathetic and nuanced approach to reporting on sex scandals—one that recognizes the complex human emotions at play but strives to maintain a focus on accountability, privacy, and the implications of the scandal beyond the immediate sensationalism.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Moreover, the media's dalliance with schadenfreude straddles a fine line between public interest journalism and the <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">voyeuristic</a> pleasures of reality TV. It prompts a moment of introspection for both the purveyors and consumers of news: What is the cost of this engagement with the narrative of downfall? In the quest for clicks and views, the media risks not just exploiting human emotion but also cementing a culture that revels more in the fall than in the potential for redemption or understanding.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">That said, we live in a democracy with a <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">free</a> press. And the reporting of sex scandals—while fraught with challenges and responsibilities—carries potential benefits for society. It's important to recognize that the intrinsic value of a free press lies in its ability to inform the public, foster transparency, and hold power to account. When approached with integrity and sensitivity, the reporting on sex scandals can contribute to these democratic ideals in several ways.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Firstly, the coverage of sex scandals can play a crucial role in promoting transparency and accountability, especially when those involved hold positions of <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">power</a>. By bringing these incidents to light, the press ensures that public figures and institutions are held accountable for their actions, reinforcing the principle that no one is above scrutiny. This <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">accountability</a> is fundamental to the health of a democracy, as it encourages ethical behavior and deters misuse of power.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Moreover, delving into the torrid affairs of the powerful doesn’t have to be just tabloid fodder; it could be a public service, sparking spirited salon discussions amongst the masses on topics once reserved for whispered gossip. From the ashes of scandal, we could find the seeds of <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">progress</a>: conversations about sexual harassment policies, consent education, and a richer tapestry of diversity initiatives, all blooming like flowers in the manure-rich soil of public disgraces. So, let's not forget the potential for societal evolution. Through the lens of someone else's bad choices, we're invited to reflect on the labyrinthine nature of human relationships, challenging our own preconceptions and biases. It's as though the coverage of these scandals holds up a mirror to society, and society, in turn, vows to try to do better.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/1clarencethomas.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">It's crucial, however, to navigate the challenges inherent in reporting on sex scandals with a focus on ethical journalism. This includes ensuring accuracy, respecting <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">privacy</a> where appropriate, avoiding sensationalism, and being mindful of the language and framing used to avoid perpetuating biases and stereotypes. The aim should be to inform and enlighten, rather than exploit or <a href="about:blank" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline">sensationalize</a>. In a society with a free press, reporting on sex scandals can, therefore, serve as a catalyst for positive change, provided it is approached with a commitment to integrity, empathy, and social responsibility. It’s akin to turning the spotlight on cockroaches—not for the thrill of the hunt but to clean house. This nuanced approach can help balance the need for transparency and accountability with the imperative to foster a more understanding and equitable society.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The contrasting portrayal of scandals based on sexuality and race, where the spotlight swings wildly between morality tales and telenovelas, underscores the need for equitable representation in media narratives. By examining how heterosexual scandals are reported, it becomes evident that the media has the power to either reinforce societal biases or challenge them. Adopting a more balanced and empathetic approach to reporting on all scandals—regardless of the individuals' sexual orientation or racial identity—can contribute to dismantling the underlying prejudices that divide society.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Now, asking for equitable representation in the scandal-sphere isn't a call to arms for sharpening the pitchforks whenever a straitlaced scandal saunters down the pike. It's more about tuning the typewriters so every scandal—be it draped in rainbow flags or traditional garb—receives a score that resonates with humanity and fairness, not just the catchy hook of sensationalism. As amusing as that spectacle might be, the aim is not to crank up the drama dial on heterosexual misadventures. Rather, it’s advocating for a universal empathy upgrade in our scandal storytelling: recognizing and recalibrating the imbalances in media portrayal like adjusting the lens through which we view our world, striving for a picture that prizes fairness and understanding, ideally in HD clarity over the grainy, sensationalized reruns of stigma and stereotype. It should be a journey towards a society where the news cycle spins with integrity, and scandals—regardless of whom they involve—are treated with the dignity and respect they often strip away.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Author Bio:</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong><em>Angelo Franco is</em> Highbrow Magazine’s <em>chief features writer.</em></strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>For Highbrow Magazine</strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong><em>Photo Credits: </em></strong><a href="https://depositphotos.com/stock-photography.html" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline"><strong><em>Depositphotos.com</em></strong></a><strong><em>; </em></strong><a href="https://www.gettyimages.com/" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline"><strong><em>Getty Images</em></strong></a><strong><em>; Clinton White House (</em></strong><a href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Bill_Clinton_and_Monica_Lewinsky_on_February_28,_1997_A3e06420664168d9466c84c3e31ccc2f.jpg" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline"><strong><em>Wikipedia Commons</em></strong></a><strong><em>); Clinton Whitehouse (</em></strong><a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Photographs_of_Monica_Lewinsky_at_the_White_House_During_November_1995_through_March_1997_A3e06420664168d9466c84c3e31ccc2f-cropped-Monica.jpg" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline"><strong><em>Wikipedia Commons</em></strong></a><strong><em>); Sarasota County Commission (</em></strong><a href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Official_portrait,_2018.jpg" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline"><strong><em>Wikipedia Commons</em></strong></a><strong><em>); Gage Skidmore (</em></strong><a href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Anita_Hill_by_Gage_Skidmore.jpg" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline"><strong><em>Wikipedia Commons</em></strong></a><strong><em>); SCOTUS (</em></strong><a href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Clarence_Thomas_official_SCOTUS_portrait.jpg" style="color:#467886; text-decoration:underline"><strong><em>Wikipedia Commons</em></strong></a><strong><em>).</em></strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/fani-willis" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">fani willis</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/nathan-wade" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">nathan wade</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/sex-scandals" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">sex scandals</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/bill-clinton-and-monia-lewinsky" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">bill clinton and monia lewinsky</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/lewinsky" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">lewinsky</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/scandals" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">scandals</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/media-scandals" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">media scandals</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/maese-caeropski" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">maese-caeropski</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/bridget-ziegler" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">bridget ziegler</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Angelo Franco</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Mon, 25 Mar 2024 14:35:29 +0000 tara 13139 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24558-media-s-frenzied-focus-sex-scandals-raises-serious-questions-about-privacy-rights#comments China’s Two Sessions: No Solid Plan for the Economy https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24527-china-s-two-sessions-no-solid-plan-economy <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Mon, 03/18/2024 - 17:27</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1china.jpg?itok=DnuMdjNS"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1china.jpg?itok=DnuMdjNS" width="480" height="360" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">On March 11 in Beijing, the Chinese government concluded its annual Two Sessions, the pivotal planning event of the year, comprising the National People's Congress (NPC) and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC). These sessions convene around 3,000 delegates nationwide to deliberate on critical legislative and political matters, proposing policies and advising the government to foster consensus and steer the nation's development.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">While the sessions are ostensibly aimed at consultation, in practice, major decisions are predetermined before convening, serving primarily to brief delegates on their annual objectives. Subsequently, delegates must return to their constituencies and decide how to achieve their targets.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/1china_depositphotos.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Each year, governments around the world monitor the Two Sessions to see what China has planned for the coming year. This year is of particular interest because China is in the worst state economically and diplomatically that it has been in for several decades.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">China’s economic growth was driven into the doldrums by <a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">extreme COVID lockdowns</a>, which finally ended in January 2023. Even before COVID, China was facing one of the largest debt-to-GDP ratios on the planet. At the same time, its real estate sector had become a massive bubble, which, when it burst, threatened to take the banking sector with it. After the first few months of the pandemic in 2020, the diplomatic tide began to turn on China. Beijing was selling PPE and medical supplies to countries and claiming that it had donated aid.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/2china_depositphotos.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Much of the equipment countries purchased from <a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">China was defective</a>. The United Front Work Department of the Chinese Communist Party was also hard at work rolling out propaganda videos and <a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">pushing narratives online</a> that portrayed China as a savior. During lockdowns, poor countries and their populations suffered greatly from an inability to work and earn money. Many of these countries were already heavily indebted to China as a result of participation in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Now, the reality of the high interest China was charging on the loans was driving home the fact that the promised gains to GDP never materialized. The Wilson Center estimates that a full <a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">80% of government BRI loans</a> have gone to countries in debt distress.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The trade war with the United States expanded, taking another bite out of both China’s income and its global standing. Additionally, China officially shifted its foreign policy from a “charm offensive” to “<a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">wolf warrior diplomacy</a>” as Xi Jinping became more aggressive about claiming territory in the South China Sea and threatening to take Taiwan by force. Currently, apart from Taiwan, Beijing has <a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">sea territory disputes</a> with Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, and Indonesia, in addition to land border disputes with Bhutan, India, and Nepal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The dispute with India is significant because India is a member of the BRICS grouping and now the world’s largest country by population. Xi Jinping’s hopes that India would come into the Chinese sphere of influence seem less likely, especially after Beijing published a new map showing Indian territory as <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/china-new-map-anger-india-south-china-sea-border-disputes-rcna102921" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">already belonging to China</a>.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/4china_depositphotos.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The <a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Ukraine War</a> became a catalyst for countries stepping away from China because of Beijing’s support for Russia. This accelerated reshoring, friend-shoring, and rerouting of supply chains to avoid China. And this was not just for the US but <a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">also Europe</a>. At the G-7 meeting last year, the world’s leading economies discussed <a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">derisking from China</a>. At the same time, the manufacturing and exporting that has left China has given an economic boost to countries like Vietnam, India, and Indonesia, which were already experiencing strained relations with China.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">At the close of 2023, China’s net <a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">investment was negative</a>, meaning more money was flowing out than in. Industrial activity <a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">is trending down</a>, the country is <a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">experiencing deflation</a>, the real estate bubble has started to slowly burst as some of the larger developers have been <a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">forced into bankruptcy</a>, and youth unemployment remains at record levels. Debt to GDP stands at <a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">more than 287%</a>. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index, considered a benchmark of overall economic performance and confidence, has lost nearly <a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">20% over the past year</a>. According to <a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">recent polls</a>, about two-thirds of the world’s population has a negative opinion of China.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/5china_depositphotos.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Against this backdrop of negative indicators, the Two Sessions has set a GDP growth <a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">target of 5%</a>, which would be astronomical for a developed economy but is considered low for a developing country, particularly given that China still had double-digit growth just over a decade ago. What’s more, many experts are skeptical that China will hit this modest target given all of the problems it is struggling with.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Beijing announced plans to use central planning to <a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">support the industrial sector</a>, revamping equipment, and increasing productivity. There will also be a <a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">push for high-tech</a> and self-reliance, which is meant to be achieved through an allocation of $51.6 billion in government funding. Additionally, the Minister of Housing and Urban-Rural Development said that the central government would not bail out developers, and those in distress will be allowed to go bankrupt. Beijing announced stimulus that would be funded <a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">with $139 billion</a> of ultra-long government bonds. This raises questions about how China will deal with the additional debt burden.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/3china_depositphotos.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Normally, at the end of the conference, the Chinese premier, who is responsible for the economy, would hold a press conference. This year, the press conference was canceled, raising eyebrows and casting doubt about Beijing’s confidence in achieving its 5% growth goals. Normally, the property sector is a pillar of growth, but Beijing will not be coming to the rescue. It may also be that Beijing does not wish to address questions about how allowing the property developers -- who represent over 20% of the economy -- to collapse would not cause a chain reaction, which would sink the rest of the economy. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The final takeaway from the Two Sessions is that Xi has <a href="about:blank" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">further consolidated his power</a>, as economic decision-making will now be done by high-level Communist Party bodies, headed by Xi.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Author Bio:</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em><strong>Antonio Graceffo, a </strong></em><strong>Highbrow Magazine</strong><em><strong> contributor, is a Ph.D. and also holds a China-MBA from Shanghai Jiaotong University. He works as an economics professor and China economic analyst, writing for various international media. Some of his books include: The Wrestler’s Dissertation, Warrior Odyssey, Beyond the Belt and Road: China’s Global Economic Expansion, and A Short Course on the Chinese Economy.</strong></em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>For Highbrow Magazine</strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong><em>Photo Credits: <a href="https://depositphotos.com/stock-photography.html" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Depositphotos.com</a>; China News Service (<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%E4%B9%A0%E8%BF%91%E5%B9%B3_Xi_Jinping_20221023_01.jpg" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Wikimedia Commons</a>)</em></strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/china" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">China</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/prc" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">prc</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/chinese-government" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">chinese government</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/xi-jinping" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">xi jinping</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/chinese-economy" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">chinese economy</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/chinese-trade" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">chinese trade</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/us-china-relations-1" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">u.s china relations</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/russia-and-china" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">russia and china</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/europe" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Europe</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/communist-party" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Communist Party</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Antonio Graceffo</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Mon, 18 Mar 2024 21:27:37 +0000 tara 13117 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24527-china-s-two-sessions-no-solid-plan-economy#comments The Ukraine Quandary: Assessing Conservative Resistance to Further Financial Commitments https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24512-reducing-funding-ukraine-will-pose-threat-global-security <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Mon, 03/11/2024 - 15:00</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1ukraine_depositphotos.jpg?itok=_2N0FwTM"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1ukraine_depositphotos.jpg?itok=_2N0FwTM" width="480" height="312" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">This February, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III reaffirmed America’s steadfast commitment <a href="https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/3676925/austin-affirms-us-led-coalition-stands-with-ukraine/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">to supporting Ukraine</a>, emphasizing its crucial role in ensuring the ongoing security of not just the United States, but also Europe and the world at large. Austin emphasized, "The battle against Russia's aggression will shape global security for years to come." Nevertheless, there are voices within Congress advocating for a reduction or cessation of <a href="https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/3676925/austin-affirms-us-led-coalition-stands-with-ukraine/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">funding for Ukraine</a>.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The latest debate in Congress centers around a <a href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/senate-passes-95-billion-aid-package-for-ukraine-and-israel-fate-uncertain-in-house" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">$95 billion funding bill</a>, with $60 billion allocated to Ukraine and the remainder earmarked for supporting Israel, Taiwan, and bolstering US Naval forces combating the Iranian-backed Houthis in the Red Sea. While some mainstream media outlets and the White House depict Republican hesitancy to endorse the bill as a withdrawal of support for all these causes, the reality is different. Republicans are primarily expressing reservations regarding support for Ukraine, while maintaining steadfast support for Israel, Taiwan, and counterterrorism efforts. President Biden rightly pointed out that rejecting the bill plays <a href="https://apnews.com/article/ukraine-aid-congress-senate-5fdcf8cb1964681dcce0f4fe7b9a0f86" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">right into Putin’s hands</a>. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/2ukraineoil_0.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Echoing the sentiment of the president, Secretary Austin remarked, "<a href="https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/3676925/austin-affirms-us-led-coalition-stands-with-ukraine/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">The Kremlin continues</a> to gamble on our collective waning interest in Ukraine, anticipating our support to dwindle and fade away." This observation aligns with independent studies revealing that both Russia and China exploit the rising war funding weariness among the United States and its allies. Whenever foreign military aid funding faces delays in Congress, Beijing is quick to tell nations like Taiwan, the Philippines, Vietnam, and <a href="https://english.news.cn/20230929/15f3e0938cf84320858556f2a1bf3d6b/c.html" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">other nations</a> with territorial disputes with China—that the U.S. is an <a href="https://time.com/6590369/china-says-trump-abandon-taiwan-election/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">unreliable partner</a>. The underlying message is for these nations to capitulate to China's demands rather than counting on the U.S. to defend them. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Beijing's tactic hasn't been effective thus far, especially since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas conflict. Initially, China promoted a narrative suggesting that the US would abandon Israel, implying that Taiwan and others should align with Beijing. However, with the US reaffirming its commitment to funding Israel, China has shifted its messaging, arguing that the US is overextended and cannot sustain support for both Ukraine and Taiwan. In reality, US aid to Israel and Taiwan makes up only a small fraction of the assistance provided to Ukraine, and none of the funding debates are focused on reducing support for either Israel or Taiwan.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Russia is also capitalizing on <a href="https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2023/10/02/kremlin-says-ukraine-fatigue-will-grow-after-us-congress-drops-aid-from-spending-package-a82630" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">the narrative of funding</a> fatigue. The Kremlin perceives that decadence and selfishness of the West, along with <a href="https://www.foreignaffairs.com/united-states/russias-war-woke" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">liberal social movements</a>, are eroding US commitment to either engage in warfare or continue supporting Ukraine financially. What's interesting about this line of reasoning is that while US liberals and Democrats advocate for ongoing funding for Ukraine, they also tend to advocate for socially liberal movements. In contrast, conservatives oppose such initiatives, and Moscow has exploited these sentiments, positioning itself as <a href="https://foreignpolicy.com/2023/05/29/russia-ukraine-united-states-vietnam-war-putin-trump-desantis-anti-woke/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">an anti-woke</a>, anti-globalist force safeguarding Christian values. Ironically, Russia itself has one of the poorest records of <a href="https://www.uscirf.gov/countries/russia" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">religious freedom</a> in Europe.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/2ukraine_depositphotos.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Even among the majority of conservatives who reject the notion that Russia champions traditional family, religious, and social values, there's widespread fatigue regarding <a href="https://www.economist.com/europe/2023/11/27/ukraines-new-enemy-war-fatigue-in-the-west" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">funding for war</a>. The conflict has imposed significant economic strain, with escalating fuel and food prices affecting numerous countries. The continuous stream of news detailing the horrors of the war can lead to emotional desensitization for many individuals. Media coverage of the conflict has either diminished or become lost in the background noise of the overly saturated media landscape. Even discussions about funding allocations are losing their audience, as reports of <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-02-26/government-shutdown-q-a-will-it-shut-down-and-what-you-should-know" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">looming government shutdowns</a> have surfaced repeatedly over the past four years. Citizens who are concerned by the threat of their own government shutting down are less likely to care about funding for a foreign government. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The top concerns for Republicans revolve <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/meet-the-press/first-read/poll-republicans-advantages-immigration-crime-economy-rcna117054" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">around the economy</a>, crime, and immigration. While continued funding for Ukraine may momentarily benefit some defense contractors, in the long run, it will only add to the US debt and exacerbate economic woes. Rampant crime and <a href="https://nida.nih.gov/research-topics/trends-statistics/overdose-death-rates" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">drug-related deaths</a> plague <a href="https://www.dailysignal.com/2024/01/26/crime-rates-continue-explode-blue-cities-despite-medias-narrative-contrary/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">the US</a>, particularly in areas where law enforcement is hamstrung in its ability to fight crime. Additionally, <a href="https://news.wisc.edu/incarceration-rates-falling-in-every-us-state-drive-significant-shifts-in-risk-of-prison-for-marginalized-groups/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">incarceration rates</a> are declining while crimes committed by <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/03/05/opinion/how-bail-reform-drove-a-66-recidivism-rate-for-repeat-crooks/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">repeat offenders</a> are on the rise. Illegal immigration remains a pressing issue. Drug cartels pose a significant threat, <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/3/9/mexicos-president-slams-calls-for-us-military-to-target-cartels" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">destabilizing Mexico</a> and increasingly endangering US national security through the smuggling of drugs, <a href="https://homeland.house.gov/2023/12/14/now-nobody-crosses-without-paying-senior-border-patrol-agents-describe-unprecedented-cartel-control-at-southwest-border/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">people, criminals</a>, and gang members into the country. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The US allies in Europe see a potential Putin victory as a threat to <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-12-19/ukraine-running-out-of-help-has-us-allies-fearing-putin-will-win-the-war" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">their national security</a>, and that assessment is probably correct. Even those close to Putin are suggesting that after a victory in Ukraine, Russian forces will <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/russia-armenia-tv-threat-latest-1875852" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">roll on into Europe</a>. As a result, the Europeans arrive at the conclusion that because their security is imperiled, the US must continue funding Ukraine. And this is where the argument breaks down: US Republicans believe that if Europe’s security is at risk, Europe should defend itself and not rely on the U.S.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/5ukraineoil_0.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The United States accounts for <a href="https://www.wsj.com/world/europe/alarm-nato-weak-military-empty-arsenals-europe-a72b23f4" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">70 percent of NATO's</a> total defense spending. Since NATO's establishment, nearly all member nations have consistently fallen short of the 2 percent funding requirement year after year. While most NATO members have increased their defense spending since the Ukraine war began, as of 2023, <a href="https://breakingdefense.com/2023/03/only-7-nato-members-hit-alliances-2-percent-gdp-defense-spending-target-in-2022/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">only six members</a>, aside from the US, met the 2 percent target. Currently, <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/articles/2024-02-12/only-35-of-nato-countries-meet-the-groups-defense-spending-target#:~:text=The%20other%20countries%20estimated%20to,the%20countries%20that%20didn't." style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">35 percent are projected</a> to reach the target by 2025, which does not account for the fact that the US has a massive arsenal built up over decades by hitting or exceeding the target year after year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The United Kingdom and France, arguably possessing the most potent militaries apart from the US, still face limitations in their ability to engage in large-scale warfare. Together, they possess around 200 pieces of artillery and <a href="https://www.wsj.com/world/europe/alarm-nato-weak-military-empty-arsenals-europe-a72b23f4" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">fewer than 200 tanks</a>, while the entirety of Europe has only <a href="https://fairbd.net/aircraft-carriers-by-nation/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">four operational aircraft carriers</a>. Additionally, only <a href="https://247wallst.com/special-report/2023/06/18/nato-countries-that-have-mandatory-military-service/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">nine out of 31</a> NATO members have mandatory military conscription.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Therefore, the “funding fatigue” for Ukraine primarily originates from a main source: Conservatives in the U.S. who prioritize addressing domestic issues, as well as focusing on Taiwan, China, Israel, and counterterrorism – and that Europe should assume greater responsibility for its defense and cease relying on US military assistance.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Author Bio:</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong><em>Antonio Graceffo, a </em>Highbrow Magazine<em> contributor, is a Ph.D. and also holds a China-MBA from Shanghai Jiaotong University. He works as an economics professor and China economic analyst, writing for various international media. Some of his books include: The Wrestler’s Dissertation, Warrior Odyssey, Beyond the Belt and Road: China’s Global Economic Expansion, and A Short Course on the Chinese Economy.</em></strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>For Highbrow Magazine</strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong><em>Photo Credits: <a href="https://depositphotos.com/stock-photography.html" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Depositphotos.com</a>;</em> </strong><em><strong>The President Of Ukraine (</strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/president_of_ukraine/52004973591" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline"><em>Flickr,</em></a><em> Creative Commons);</em> <em>Donkey Hote (</em><a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vladimir_Putin_-_Caricature_%2848068742377%29.jpg" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline"><em>Wikimedia.org</em></a><em>, Creative Commons).</em></strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/ukraine" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">ukraine</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/war-ukraine" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">war in Ukraine</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/russia" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Russia</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/zelensky" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Zelensky</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/putin" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Putin</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/congress" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">congress</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/republicans" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Republicans</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/war-fatigue" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">war fatigue</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/lloyd-austin" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Lloyd Austin</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/president-biden" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">president biden</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/funding-ukraine" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">funding for Ukraine</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/europe" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Europe</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/global-security" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">global security</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/ukrainians" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Ukrainians</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Antonio Graceffo</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Mon, 11 Mar 2024 19:00:33 +0000 tara 13097 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24512-reducing-funding-ukraine-will-pose-threat-global-security#comments Why Overemployment Is Now Rampant in the IT Industry https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24493-why-overemployment-now-rampant-it-industry <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Wed, 02/28/2024 - 12:39</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1computer_depositphotos.jpg?itok=LVSvRB3C"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1computer_depositphotos.jpg?itok=LVSvRB3C" width="480" height="320" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Having worked in IT – an industry with high turnover – for all my life, I have trained myself to spot a coder who may be guilty of <a href="https://www.marketplace.org/2023/10/23/overemployed-people-work-overlapping-remote-jobs/" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline">overemployment</a>.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Coding is largely done in a solitary manner, sans the perfunctory “collaboration” and “teamwork”. And in an era when Agile project management methodology is all the rage, a coder’s tangible exposure to team collaboration seldom goes beyond giving a 40-second status update in the morning Scrum standup. To a coder, teamwork is a minimal overhead of time expenditure. Writing code is mostly an endeavor fully at the disposal of the coder, as long as they meet the deadlines.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">You get me? As long as the coder finds a way to stack these overheads in a day’s schedule skillfully, there is no hard and fast rule as to when and how the coding is done. And code snippets are by nature reusable and can be assembled to meet the specifications of deliverables from different employers at once.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">There is a famous quotation attributed to Otto von Bismarck: “If you like laws and sausages, you should never watch either one being made.” Enter remote work. What the eyes do not see does not bother the mind. Nobody has to watch how a coder generates the deliverables, including but are not limited to, frequent Google searches that bring back ChatGPT generated or other people’s code snippets and frantic debugging when coders bite way more than what they could chew.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/2computer_depositphotos.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">And the magic sausage machine a coder uses to disguise the fact he or she is working for multiple employers and to generate the optics of always available, is something called KVM. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">A KMV connects multiple computers to a single set of camera and audio devices, keyboard and mouse. In theory, if a coder is not doing a presentation or serving as the subject matter speaker, he or she can be attending multiple meetings at the same time. And the archetypal full-staff remoting in the IT industry has forced employers to discourage their employees to universally turn on their camera for network bandwidth concerns.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">I met – virtually – a fellow coder a few months back during a full-day orientation given by a new employer. Throughout the day, I noticed his camera would occasionally be turned off for 10 to 20 minutes at a time. Many a time, he appeared to be reading something intently and punching the keyboard when the orientation moved through a segment that did not require any reading or typing. The guy was no doubt responding to a Teams chat with colleagues with a different employer. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Even when he stayed on camera for an extended period of time, his eyes focused on something else on his screen, and I could tell he was also typing something that had nothing to do with the stages of the orientation. I therefore concluded that he is someone who dabbles in overemployment.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Overemployment is a reality and the zeitgeist of today's remote IT workforce, as a <a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/11/how-scores-of-tech-workers-are-secretly-juggling-multiple-jobs" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline"><em>Vanity Fair</em></a><a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/11/how-scores-of-tech-workers-are-secretly-juggling-multiple-jobs" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline"> article</a> also pointed out in 2022. (There is even a <a href="https://overemployed.com/" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline">website</a> dedicated to helping those actively seeking overemployment.)</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/3computer_depositphotos.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">But it is an extreme sport, and hence there are players who prosper, as well as those who get hurt. The good ones often claim they work on as many as seven jobs at the same time and rack up an annual income in the $1 million-dollar range. There are revelations and discussions on this subject everywhere, on <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/overemployed/comments/zqccbu/7_js_making_11_million_proof_posted/?rdt=56319&amp;onetap_auto=true&amp;one_tap=true" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline">Reddit</a> in particular.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">This beginner’s guide, so to speak, only provides the basic know-hows. To become a successful practitioner of overemployment, one must accumulate real-life experiences. The following is a bare minimum of prerequisites to get started:</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Invest in a good set of KMV</strong>. An expensive set of KVM, which is a humble acronym that stands for Keyboard, Video(monitors) and Mouse, can set you back for a thousand bucks or more. But it is infrastructure you must have in order to react to challenging and multithreaded workflows. It allows you to send your camera signal to one computer on which you are attending a meeting while your keyboard input to another computer where you are answering an email. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Try to avoid federal government or government contractor employers.</strong> There are potential pitfalls if one of the computers you plug into your fancy KVM is a government asset. Since KVM uses one single set of keyboard, monitors and mouse, the coder is potentially inappropriately accessing or exposing confidential government data. Plus, government-sector jobs come with high overhead in terms of suitability and security clearance requirements<strong>. </strong>For example, marijuana may be legal in many states but it is federally illegal and if you happen to be a hobbyist, it's hard to stay with a government job for the long run. Plus, many government jobs require you to report all side income and require pre-approval when accepting outside employment. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/4computer_depositphotos.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Always find extra jobs at any given time.</strong> No matter how skillful one is in handling multiple jobs with the help of a KVM, you will get caught occasionally. You could post a chat in the wrong forum or send out an email asking for help with a Microsoft SQL Server setup – except you send it to the HelpDesk of a computer that only uses Oracle database in their ecosystem, hence confirming others’ suspicions that you are working on side gigs.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Invest in a good calendar or calendar management software.</strong> Your professional persona as a coder is defined by the appearances of your calendar entries. Some of these fancy calendar management software can build in a configurable fuzziness into your calendar entries. That way when you have one entry blocking out 30 minutes in your day for a meeting with company A, it may also appear as a vague “busy” 30 minutes when viewed in the context of another company. There are way too many techniques and tricks you can employ to disguise your overemployment, with a calendar cheatware.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">This one is pretty obvious: <strong>Only accept job offers that permit full-time remote work</strong>. And emotionally or socially, have a Chinese wall around you.<strong> </strong>The bottom line is: Never volunteer any information about yourself when not required. It’s a small world. Someone in company A may know someone in company B and if you talk too much, one of them may eventually be able to put two and two together.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Build up risk tolerance.</strong> On paper, when you are involved in overemployment, you will be looking at employment contracts that inevitably stipulate legalese such as nondisclosure and non-compete agreements. But statistics show that companies do not really go through the hard work of litigating against a coder. Firing is good enough for them and much less costly.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/5computer_depositphotos.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Are overemployed coders burning the bridges every time they get caught and fired? Not really. Sing your praises as you like for the Agile methodology that has become the de facto political correctness of IT nowadays, as opposed to the conventional methodology of Watershed that facilitated historical breakthroughs as high caliber as Windows 95, Macbook, and embedded operating systems such as Sony and Samsung Smart TV. Coders no longer command the mandate of Leave-Me-Alone and Check-Back-with-Me in a couple of months, </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">In other words, coders were once treated like Tolstoy and worked on their <em>War and Peace</em> without anyone breathing down their neck. Today, coders are treated like farmhands or migrant crop workers. They come and go. Other than the code snippets they leave in a company’s repository, they become largely irrelevant to an IT firm’s future pursuit. In fact, the Chinese refer to coders as literally “source-code peasants.” For a coder to worry about being blacklisted by the IT sector or the firms from which they have been dismissed is, ironically, a self-aggrandizing delusion. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Finally, make hay while the sun shines. The IT job market has been on a tear, despite many rounds of layoffs by tech giants such as Google, Microsoft and Amazon.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Author Bio:</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong><em>Peter Chang is a pseudonym of an IT professional who contributes articles to</em> Highbrow Magazine.</strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>For Highbrow Magazine.</strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong><em>Photo Credits: <a href="https://depositphotos.com/stock-photography.html" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline">Depositphotos.com</a></em></strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/coding" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">coding</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/coders" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">coders</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/computer-coders" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">computer coders</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/it" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IT</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/techies" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">techies</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tech-employees" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">tech employees</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tech-companies" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">tech companies</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/managment-sofware" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">managment sofware</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/overemployment" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">overemployment</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tech-jobs" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">tech jobs</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/it-jobs" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IT jobs</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/overemployed" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">overemployed</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tech-giants" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">tech giants</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tech-industry" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">tech industry</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/finding-tech-jobs" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">finding tech jobs</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/computers" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">computers</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Peter Chang</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">In Slider</div></div></div> Wed, 28 Feb 2024 17:39:25 +0000 tara 13065 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24493-why-overemployment-now-rampant-it-industry#comments As the War in Myanmar Continues, Refugees Endure Dire Conditions https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24490-war-myanmar-continues-refugees-endure-dire-conditions <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Mon, 02/26/2024 - 15:00</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1myanmar_depositphotos.jpg?itok=DJqPkgBS"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1myanmar_depositphotos.jpg?itok=DJqPkgBS" width="480" height="320" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>--Reporting from the Thai/Myanmar border:</strong> The ongoing war in Myanmar has endured for over 70 years, with the country's 135 ethnic minority groups bearing the brunt of military repression. This has resulted in the displacement of millions, many of whom reside in makeshift camps within Myanmar as internally displaced people (IDPs). </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">These IDPs lack United Nations protection and receive minimal support from international aid organizations due to legal restrictions on entering Myanmar without invitation. Entire villages and towns have been abandoned, forcing civilians to seek refuge in the jungle, where they face targeted attacks from the military, including airstrikes, small arms fire, and bombings.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Some individuals opt to flee across the border into neighboring Thailand, where the sentiment "Thailand is freedom" resonates among those navigating landmines and military patrols to seek shelter in the Kingdom of Smiles. Once in Thailand, refugees face two paths: One involves attempting to reach a UN camp to secure official refugee status, while the other entails living with a quasi-legal or illegal status in Thailand, with the hope of obtaining a Thai ID card or citizenship in the future.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/2myanmar_depositphotos.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Official refugees in UN camps receive essential provisions such as food, medical care, and free education for their children. Additionally, they are issued a UN identity card and are permitted to legally reside in Thailand for as long as mutually agreed upon by the Thai government and the UN.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Twenty-year-old Bureh, an ethnic Karenni, shared that he was born and raised in the refugee camp, where he attended school. While he speaks English fluently, his command of Thai is limited. Despite the educational and financial advantages of being an official refugee in the camp, individuals with camp ID cards are not on a trajectory toward Thai residency or citizenship. Consequently, Bureh did not prioritize learning the language.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">When asked about the refugees' possession of passports, Khu Ko Reh, representing the Karenni Civil Society Network (KCSN), responded with a poignant question: "What kind of passport?" He paused, allowing the gravity of the situation to sink in, before elaborating. "Some people maybe have Burma ID when they leave, but under the current situation, no one can get passports.” The Myanmar government has implemented compulsory conscription, wherein any male aged 18 to 35 who visits a government office to acquire a passport or ID card is immediately enlisted into the army. Afterwards, they will be sent to kill others of ethnic minority.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">"I heard yesterday they arrested 18 or 20 young people trying to go back to Karenni state," said Khu Ko Reh. Like many other ethnic groups, the Karenni have established informal communication networks using platforms such as Whatsapp, Signal, and Facebook, enabling them to share news from the zone of conflict.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/3myanmar.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">"They can apply for a passport and maybe leave and go to Thailand, but only if they can pay" he added. With a sizeable bribe, one could obtain a passport in Myanmar, and with an even larger bribe, they can get an exit visa. But most of the ethnic minority are extremely poor. Once a family becomes displaced, it is likely that they not only lose their ability to earn a living, but also the ability to tend their fields and grow food.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">For those who hold out hope for a Thai ID card, residence, or citizenship, the first step is to not become official refugees living in the camp. The first step is easy; the rest is difficult because people fleeing Myanmar have to find a way to remain in Thailand, work, and eventually find a way to remain there legally. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Thirty-five-year-old Nang Kham, a mother of two, shares her experience as a Shan ethnic woman fleeing the war in Myanmar, and seeking refuge in Thailand. She married young, and her marriage soured after her husband was compelled to join an ethnic armed militia. "Initially, he was a good man and took responsibility for both the family and the militia. But later on, his behavior changed. He became lazy, came home late, and became easily angered." That's when Nang Kham discovered her husband's addiction to yaba (methamphetamine). The drug is produced and sold by several of Myanmar’s armed groups and transnational crime gangs, who utilize the proceeds to purchase weapons. With the despair of an endless war, yaba addiction is widespread in Myanmar and a significant problem in Thailand.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/4myanmar.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Two years after her divorce, she met another man who was also kind and took care of her and her child. However, during her second pregnancy, her new husband was forced to join an armed group. He was killed before the baby was even born. "I started to cry, and I felt trapped as a pregnant woman, realizing my child wouldn't have a father. I hated everything. I hated my environment, and I hated the armed groups. So, I made up my mind to leave my homeland."</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Selling off all of her possessions, Nang Kham was able to raise 20,000 baht, or about $700 USD. She had to pay half of that money to the people who smuggled her to the border. The other half she paid to obtain a work permit, enabling her to work on a farm in Thailand. She sprayed chemical pesticides all day, every day, with no protective gear, to support her two children.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">On her day off, she attended the Shan traditional festival Poi Sang Long (pre-novice monk festival) held in Fang, a town in Thailand that is home to a large number of Shan refugees. She met a new friend there and told him her story. He convinced her to take her children and move to live in the Shan refugee camp.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The camp in question is not a UN camp and does not receive support or protection from the UN. The refugees are in a quasi-legal status, with the Thai government effectively turning a blind eye. They could be deported at any moment, but there is also hope for a future in Thailand. Mothers from the camp can obtain a Thai birth certificate for their babies if they are born in the local Thai hospital. This can serve as a first step in achieving legal status, at least for the children.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/5myanmar.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">These unofficial refugee camps have varying levels of private support. This particular camp has a boarding school paid for by international donors. Therefore, the children will be able to receive an education, something they missed out on while hiding from the army in the jungle. The boarding school also provides the children with food and medical care. Additionally, the parents live in their own small houses or huts a few hundred meters away, allowing them to visit their children whenever they wish.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">About her new life in the refugee camp, Nang Kham said, "I feel life in the camp is better than at the farm, and better than in my homeland. One of my sons lives in the boarding house, and the younger son stays with me." </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">From time to time, the camp receives donations, which are shared among the inhabitants, particularly focusing on women with children. "We sometimes receive support such as rice and cooking oil." Lacking legal status, they are technically not allowed to work, but during harvest time, the Shan refugees can sometimes earn a little money. "We sometimes get to work on garlic farms and sometimes do cleaning." Regarding her children, Nang Kham said, "My two children go to school, and I feel happy for them living in the camp."</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">When she was told that her story would be read by people all over the world, Nang Kham said, "Ask the world to help us gain peace and end the civil war."</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Author Bio:</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong><em>Antonio Graceffo, a </em>Highbrow Magazine<em> contributor, is a Ph.D. and also holds a China-MBA from Shanghai Jiaotong University. He works as an economics professor and China economics analyst, writing for various international media. Some of his books include: The Wrestler’s Dissertation, Warrior Odyssey, Beyond the Belt and Road: China’s Global Economic Expansion, and A Short Course on the Chinese Economy.</em></strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>For Highbrow Magazine</strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong><em>Photo Credits: <a href="https://depositphotos.com/stock-photography.html" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Depositphotos.com</a>; Mikhail Esteves (<a href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Mae_La_refugee_camp.jpg" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Wikipedia Commons</a>); Trocaire (<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Burma_2,_Emergencies-Humanitarian_15_%2810268240826%29.jpg" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Wikimedia Commons</a>); Ecrusized (<a href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Myanmar_civil_war.svg" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Wikipedia Commons</a>). </em></strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/war-myanmar" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">war in myanmar</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/burma" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Burma</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/myanmar" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Myanmar</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/refugees" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">refugees</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/refugee-camps" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">refugee camps</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/bumese-refugees" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">bumese refugees</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/military-coup" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">military coup</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/thailand" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Thailand</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Antonio Graceffo</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">In Slider</div></div></div> Mon, 26 Feb 2024 20:00:19 +0000 tara 13059 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24490-war-myanmar-continues-refugees-endure-dire-conditions#comments How a 1920 Wall Street Bombing Tanked the Career of a Famous Detective https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24472-how-wall-street-bombing-tanked-career-famous-detective <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Wed, 02/14/2024 - 12:37</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1detective_depositphotos.jpg?itok=Daq8Cnaz"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1detective_depositphotos.jpg?itok=Daq8Cnaz" width="480" height="270" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">“There are about 25 dead and about 200 hurt and some are very badly hurt,” Charles Scully, head of the Bureau of Investigation (BI) Radical Division in New York, wrote in a memorandum during the evening of September 16, 1920. The BI was the forerunner of the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), and they were tasked with investigating the bombing that a few hours earlier had rocked Wall Street, sending the city into a frenzy. Scully was right about the number injured but wrong about the number dead. The death toll would eventually rise to 38. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">William J. Flynn was in Washington when word reached him about the bombing. Flynn was a celebrated law enforcement official known as the “Bulldog Detective,” for his tenacity in investigating and solving crimes that stymied other law enforcement personnel. He had been named director of the BI in 1919. Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer immediately put him in charge of the federal investigation, which involved about 5,000 government detectives connected to the Department of Justice, Treasury Department, Post Office, and Bureau of Immigration. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Of all the different investigators that would become involved in the case, there was one that Flynn knew would make life hard for him. William J. Burns was as famous as Flynn, if not more so. The two men didn’t like each other, even though they had much in common. They were both Irish and stubborn and loved media attention. They willingly granted interviews to reporters, wrote stories about their exploits, and delved into the movie business. They also even worked together for a brief time at the Secret Service. But whereas Flynn was more concerned with serving his country in government positions than making money in the private sector, Burns was the opposite. He had an entrepreneurial spirit and became a confidante of the rich and powerful. And while Flynn was never tainted by any type of scandal, Burns, who was six years older, dealt with scandals throughout his career. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">In 1909, Burns established his own private detective agency. The height of his fame came in 1911 when he identified the culprits behind a bomb attack at the<em> Los Angeles Times</em> building a year before. The bombing generated headlines across the country. It was the worst act of domestic terrorism at that time, only to be surpassed 10 years later by the Wall Street bombing. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/1wallstreet.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">But it wasn’t all smooth sailing for Burns following his success with that case. In 1916, he almost lost his New York State private detective license after being found guilty of wiretapping the offices of a legal firm on behalf of one of his clients, J. P. Morgan and Company. He was fined $100, but his conviction was reversed on appeal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">By the time of the Wall Street bombing, though, Burns had lost a lot of his luster. He needed it to get back in the limelight and generate the praise and acclaim that he had grown accustomed to. Investigating the bombing could also mean more lucrative contracts for his private detective agency.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">As is often true when there are multiple witnesses to a crime, there were varying accounts of the explosion. A sample of 21 witnesses did, however, reveal some points of agreement. Most of them said that a horse-drawn wagon was parked in front of or near the U.S. Assay Office, which was located on Wall Street at the time, and that it was old and dilapidated, its paint worn off. The color of the body of the wagon was dark or dirty gray, while the wheels were dark red. The horse, a dark bay, was aged, thin, and in poor condition, its front knees badly sprung. The witnesses could not, however, provide sufficient information about the most important clue the investigators were after: a description of the driver.32 </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Investigators had already checked out the businesses that the victims of the bombing were involved with and were able to determine that none of them owned or operated the horse-drawn wagon that exploded. That meant that whoever set off the bomb had gotten away. Flynn was optimistic that the perpetrators would be found. “We’ll get them,” he told the press. From the start, he was convinced that it was the Galleanists who were behind the attack. The Galleanists were a radical anarchist sect, founded by Luigi Gealleani, an Italian national who took up residence in the U.S., and was later deported in the Palmer Raids.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Flynn was under enormous pressure to solve the case. The New York Chamber of Commerce labeled the bombing an “act of war.” The <em>New York Times </em>wrote in an editorial that the perpetrators “will be hunted down in their lairs like wild animals. Every device and stratagem of detection will be put in operation against them.” Newspapers across the country reported daily on the progress (or lack of it) in the investigations. Expectations were high that Flynn would be the right man for the job. “Chief William Flynn, the famous ‘Big Bill’ hurried to New York to assume personally the task of the unraveling of the mystery,” the <em>Los Angeles Times </em>reported. Another newspaper ran a story about the bombing under the heading “William J. Flynn Will Run Down Conspirators.” And the <em>New York Daily News </em>wrote, “William J. Flynn, chief of the Bureau of Investigation of the Department of Justice—big, fat, friendly, conservative and yet generous with information (‘a whale of a man’ . . . )—will within twenty-four hours, it is believed, hold in the toil of the law those responsible for the Wall street disaster.” </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/2wallstreet.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Investigators could not determine exactly how long the wagon was parked in the street before the explosion. One witness said he saw a delivery wagon driving toward the Assay Office about one minute before the explosion occurred. Flynn believed the driver abandoned the wagon on Wall Street after setting the timer for the bomb a few minutes ahead. Another witness, however, said he saw a wagon parked unattended outside the Assay Office for at least an hour. If true, then it meant an old, beat-up wagon with a sickly-looking horse had been parked in the heart of Wall Street without arousing suspicion about its presence there. The <em>Wall Street Journal </em>criticized city officials for not policing the Financial District, which might have prevented the attack. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Since the horse suspected of drawing the bomb-laden wagon to Wall Street had been killed, investigators set out to determine whether any stables were missing a horse, either one that had been stolen or one that was never returned after being used on September 16. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Photostat copies were also made of two horseshoes with specific markings that were found outside Trinity Church near the bomb site. These were shown to approximately 4,000 blacksmiths along the Eastern Seaboard. One of them, Gaetano DeGrazio, whose shop was in the Little Italy section of Manhattan, recognized them and told agents he had made the shoes and shod the horse the day before the bombing for a man he described as Sicilian. Flynn arranged for DeGrazio to view hundreds of photos of anarchists with the hope that he might be able to identify his customer. To make sure, however, that DeGrazio wasn’t in some way connected to the bombing, Flynn had a BI confidential informant, code name “P-137,” watch his shop in case any suspicious people visited or in the eventuality that DeGrazio tried to get in touch with anybody who could be of interest to the bureau. The informant reported that he observed nothing of importance during his surveillances. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">While DeGrazio was viewing the photographs, investigators were busy on many different fronts. One involved trying to locate the person or persons who had bought a set of rubber letter stamps that were used to make propaganda leaflets found in a mailbox (without any envelopes or addresses) just a few blocks from Broad and Wall streets on the day of the explosion. These leaflets, which Flynn described as “a challenge to the American Government,” were similar in message to those that were discovered at all the sites of earlier bombings tied to anarchists. Rubber-stamped in red ink on white paper, the Wall Street leaflets warned of additional attacks: “Remember, we will not tolerate any longer. Free the political prisoners, or it will be sure death for all of you.” They were signed “American Anarchist Fighters.” This signature convinced Flynn that the same group of Italian anarchists (the Galleanists) had composed both sets of leaflets. “You can see,” he said, “they have simply added American to their title now.” (The flyers found at the sites of previous bombings were signed “The Anarchist Fighters.”) “The similarity of the circulars makes available all our knowledge of the gang who committed the outrages last year,” Flynn also said.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/4wallstreet.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Investigators learned that the R. H. Manufacturing Company of Springfield, Massachusetts, had produced the set of rubber stamps used to create the leaflets. This discovery was made because the word “for” in the leaflet (“death for all of you”) had a distinct style found only in “The Easy Sign Maker #0” rubber letter set that the company manufactured. More than 2,000 retail stores were visited by agents in the New York area to see to whom they might have sold such sets. No results were obtained from this part of the investigation. The same was true for stores visited in other cities throughout the East and Midwest.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">As the weeks and months passed by with no progress in the investigation, Flynn decided on a long shot. He would send one of his informants undercover to Italy to try to track down Luigi Galleani and elicit information from him about the bombing. This was ironic, of course, because had the government not deported Galleani in 1919 in the infamous Palmer Raids, they wouldn’t have had to look for him overseas.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The task of finding Galleani fell to Salvatore Clemente, a former counterfeiter turned police operative whom Flynn had worked with in the past. Clemente, posing as an anarchist from Paterson, New Jersey, was given the code name “Mull” and set sail for Italy, his home country, at the end of December 1920. When he arrived in Rome, an American diplomat gave him photos of Galleani and other Italian anarchists. He then went to Milan and met up with a Galleanist he knew from America, Antonio Mazzini.  Mazzini informed Clemente that Galleani was nowhere to be found in Italy, having fled the country to avoid arrest by the Italian authorities after resuming the printing of his newspaper, <em>Cronaca Sovversiva</em>, in Turin. Clemente was able to locate Galleani’s sister Carolina in Vercelli, who also told him that her brother “had to leave the country.” Having not achieved his mission, a disappointed Clemente returned to the United States in March 1921.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">By that time, Flynn was feeling increased pressure for not yet solving the Wall Street bombing. Many people wondered if it would ever be solved. And there were media reports that Flynn would soon be replaced as director of the BI by none other than William Burns. A new president had taken office, and he appointed a new attorney general, and neither of those developments boded well for Flynn. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Flynn, meanwhile, was working on what he hoped would be the big break in the case. Early in January, he began circulating to chiefs of police and postmasters in Eastern cities a composite drawing of who he suspected was the driver of the horse-drawn wagon that exploded on Wall Street. Gaetano DeGrazio, the blacksmith who shod the horse’s shoes, identified two photographs from the hundreds of anarchists he was shown, claiming they somewhat resembled the driver who brought the horse to his shop. It was, however, as historian Beverly Gage points out, only “educated guesswork.” </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/5wallstreet.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">DeGrazio worked with a commercial artist combining the two photos to make a composite drawing, suggesting changes to various features along the way. The wash drawings were then photographed and circulated to the select audience. Included with the photograph was a physical description of the driver as being “apparently Italian, 28 or 30 years; 5 feet 6 inches; medium build; broad shoulders; dark hair; dark complexion; small dark mustache, which at the date of the explosion represented about two weeks’ growth. He wore a gold cap, pulled down over his forehead, and khaki shirt turned in at the neck, as indicated in photograph.” The communication to the police chiefs and postmasters was supposed to be confidential, but the <em>New York Herald </em>got hold of one and published it on March 31. Other newspapers then reported on the story. “I have no knowledge as to how or where the newspaper obtained the circular and photograph,” Flynn wrote in a memo to Harry M. Daugherty, the new Attorney General, in April.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Flynn informed Daugherty that he had received many replies regarding the circular he sent out (he did not mention whether any information came from the newspaper publishing the material) and that all of the replies “have been or are under investigation.” One of the leads involved a person named Vincenzo Leggio, but the bureau soon learned that Leggio had moved to Italy in the spring of 1920. There were no reports that he had ever returned. But when police in Scranton, Pennsylvania, arrested an Italian anarchist named Tito Ligi for draft evasion, they found what they said were sash weights identical to the shrapnel used in the Wall Street bomb in the back room of a restaurant where Ligi once worked. Flynn now thought that he had finally gotten his man, given the similarity in the last names, and that Ligi was actually Vincenzo Leggio.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Even though the so-called sash weights turned out to be irregular blocks of iron and steel that Italians in the city used for playing a game, Flynn still summoned to the BI offices in New York a number of people who had previously stated that they had seen the driver of the bomb-laden wagon. These witnesses were shown 25 photos, Ligi among them. Two of the witnesses (Thomas Smith, a former New York Fire Department lieutenant, and James Nally, a stockbroker’s clerk) picked out Ligi’s photo “as that of a man closely resembling the driver.” But when the photograph was shown to DeGrazio, the blacksmith, he said Ligi was not the man who came to his shop the day before the bombing. Nevertheless, Flynn arranged for Smith and Nally, as well as a few other witnesses, to travel to Scranton to identify Ligi in a police lineup.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/3wallstreet.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Only Smith was able to make the identification. The other witnesses did not recognize Ligi. Smith, however, now claimed that Ligi was not the driver of the wagon but rather a person he saw talking to the actual driver about a half-hour before the explosion. New York police detectives had little faith in Smith’s account, claiming he was nowhere near Wall Street at that time on September 16. The case against Ligi soon fell apart, with Flynn admitting publicly that the BI had no evidence connecting Ligi to the bombing. But Ligi was still sentenced to one year in prison for draft evasion.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">By now, Flynn was like a boxer, far behind in points going into the last round against his opponent. Only a knockout would win the bout for him. With Burns waiting in the wings, Flynn likely knew he needed to solve the case soon to keep his job. Especially since the current Attorney General Daugherty was an old friend of his nemesis, William Burns. His last hope came around the same time that Ligi went to prison. A man named Giuseppe De Filippis was arrested in early May in Bayonne, New Jersey, because of his alleged resemblance to the composite drawing of the wagon driver. Witnesses were once again brought in, this time to the Bayonne jail, to identify him as the driver. Once again, inexplicably, Smith was among the witnesses. He now identified De Filippis as the driver, as did two other witnesses. But once again, the case fell apart, as there was no other evidence against De Filippis, who was not an anarchist. He claimed that he was at a Bayonne railroad siding on September 16, hoping to be hired to haul California grapes that were being unloaded there from a refrigerated car. Several witnesses confirmed his story.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Flynn remained in his job for most of the summer. But the ax fell on August 18, when Daugherty announced that Burns would be the new BI director. He told reporters that Flynn had not yet resigned but that he had been notified of Burns’s appointment. Daugherty had sent Flynn a telegram to his New York office informing him of the decision while Flynn was on vacation in Saratoga. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Burns held onto his job for few more years but was eventually forced out in May 1924 after a major scandal involving spying on a U.S. senator. Burns had used BI agents to try to gather evidence of criminal activity on the part of Senator Burton K. Wheeler from Montana after the senator called for Congress to investigate abuses in the Justice Department. Attorney General Daugherty was also forced to resign for his involvement in the scandal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The last time the FBI looked into the bombing was in 1944, and once again, no results were obtained. In a summarizing memo to headquarters that year, the New York office repeated the contention made just a month after the attack by Agent Scully—namely, that “Italian Anarchists or Italian Terrorists” were responsible for the bombing.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Adapted from </strong><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Bulldog-Detective-William-Americas-Terrorists/dp/1633888657/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1F5EP55H6KS7Q&amp;keywords=the+bulldog+detective+william+j.+flynn&amp;qid=1707856913&amp;sprefix=the+bulldog%2Caps%2C97&amp;sr=8-1" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline"><strong><em>The Bulldog Detective: William J. Flynn and America’s First War Against the Mafia, Spies, and Terrorists</em></strong></a><strong> (Prometheus) by Jeffrey D. Simon. Published with permission. </strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Author Bio: </strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong><em>Jeffrey D. Simon</em></strong><em> <strong>is an internationally recognized author, lecturer, and consultant on terrorism and political violence. </strong> </em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Highbrow Magazine</strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Photo Credits: </strong><a href="https://depositphotos.com/stock-photography.html" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline"><strong>Depositphotos.com</strong></a><strong>;  </strong><a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wallstreetbmb.jpg" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline"><strong><em>Wikimedia Commons</em></strong></a><strong><em>; George Grantham Bain Collection (</em></strong><a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Anarchist_bombings,_New_York_City.png" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline"><strong><em>Wikimedia Commons</em></strong></a><strong><em>); Library of Congress (</em></strong><a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:William_J._Flynn,_half_length_portrait_LCCN2017648513.jpg" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline"><strong><em>Wikimedia Commons</em></strong></a><strong><em>); </em></strong><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Luigi_Galleani,_published_1910.jpg" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline"><strong><em>Wikipedia Commons</em></strong></a><strong><em>; Archives New Zealand (</em></strong><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/archivesnz/47069871774" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline"><strong><em>Flickr</em></strong></a><strong><em>, Creative Commons). </em></strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/jeffrey-d-simon" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">jeffrey d. simon</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/bulldog-detective" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">the bulldog detective</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/1920-bombing" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">1920 bombing</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/wall-street-bombing" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">wall street bombing</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/italian-anarchists" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">italian anarchists</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/crime" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">crime</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/detectives" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">detectives</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/investigating-terrorism" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">investigating terrorism</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/new-books" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">new books</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/nonfiction" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">nonfiction</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Jeffrey D. Simon </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">In Slider</div></div></div> Wed, 14 Feb 2024 17:37:53 +0000 tara 13022 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24472-how-wall-street-bombing-tanked-career-famous-detective#comments Ads, Food, and Gambling Galore – Essentials of the Super Bowl https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24467-ads-food-and-gambling-galore-essentials-super-bowl <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Mon, 02/12/2024 - 16:35</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1superbowl24.jpg?itok=vyRHhTpI"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1superbowl24.jpg?itok=vyRHhTpI" width="480" height="320" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">On Sunday in Las Vegas, the Kansas City Chiefs look[ed] to win their second straight Lombardi Trophy, while a San Francisco 49ers victory would [have given] the team its first Super Bowl since 1995, when Steve Young was under center.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">I didn’t get a pass to media day, so I didn’t get a chance to ask Chiefs head coach Andy Reid about how he tends to his mustache.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">But my colleagues and I were able to ask an all-pro lineup of scholars to write about a range of football-related topics, from the partisan food divide to the numbers behind the biggest gambling bonanza in league history.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/2superbowl24.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>1. Flag, you’re it</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The Pro Bowl, the NFL’s version of the all-star game, usually gets scant attention. That’s because it happens the weekend before the Super Bowl – absent many of the stars playing in the big game – and the players seem most concerned about avoiding injuries, not winning the game.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">A year ago, league officials decided to shake up the annual showcase. It would no longer be a tackle football game. It would be a flag football match. The thinking went that if the league’s stars didn’t have to tackle one another, they might play harder, be more likely to showcase their athleticism and, importantly, have more fun.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">As West Virginia University sociologist Josh Woods explains, the NFL’s promotion of flag football is a big deal, particularly for an emerging sport that’s somewhat obscure outside of Florida, Georgia, and New York, where roughly 80 perent of high school flag football players live. Its inclusion in the 2028 Summer Olympics will only further bolster its profile.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">But Woods points to a gender divide and a political divide that could end up clouding the sport’s future.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>2. X’s, O’s, and Z’s</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">In 2011, former NFL cornerback Sam Shields was a rookie playing for a Green Bay Packers team that had made the Super Bowl. The night before the big game, he tossed and turned.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">“I had stomach aches, using the bathroom, but I didn’t have to use it,” he told <em>Sports Illustrated</em> in 2019. “It felt like Christmas too, when Christmas is the next day, you can’t sleep.”</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">I’ve wondered whether I would get a wink of shut-eye if I were scheduled to pitch in the World Series. Something tells me I’d be a lot like Shields. And as if the Chiefs and 49ers players and coaches aren’t feeling enough pressure, it turns out that getting a good night’s sleep is one of the most important things an athlete can do before a big game, meet or match.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">University of Pittsburgh sleep medicine specialist Joanna Fong-Isariyawongse highlights reams of studies showing how a poor night’s sleep can affect performance and decision-making while making you more likely to get injured.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">In fact, she writes, “Sleep deficits have been linked to decreased performance in every cognitive measure.”</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/3superbowl24.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>3. Going all in on gambling</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Did you bet on the 49ers to cover the spread? Perhaps you’re playing squares. Or maybe you’re betting on Reba McEntire’s national anthem to last longer than 90.5 seconds.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">If you wagered on some aspect of the big game, you’re one of roughly 67 million American adults who have done the same, according to a Morning Consult survey conducted in early February. That would make another new record, shattering 2023’s record, which shattered the mark from 2022. The country’s gambling mania has been aided, in part, by the Supreme Court’s 2018 ruling that overturned a federal ban on sports-betting.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Gambling and the Super Bowl have always gone hand in hand. To University of Iowa sports media scholar Tom Oates, what makes the developments of the past few years so remarkable is the NFL’s stunning reversal on its own attitudes toward betting.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Gone are the quaint days of league officials lobbying Congress to put restrictions and guardrails in place. The NFL has gone all in on its embrace of gambling, forging billion-dollar partnerships with the country’s top sportsbooks.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">“But this infusion of extra cash comes with a substantial social cost,” Oates writes. “Gambling addictions are at an all-time high, likely spurred by the ease with which people can place bets from their phones.”</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">So if you want to get in on the action, gamble responsibly and don’t let your emotions get the best of you.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">That being said, a little birdie told me that Reba can really hold her notes.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/1swift_depositphotos.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>4. At least they aren’t serving donkey meat</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Everything is politicized, so the lament goes. And even the Super Bowl – one of the few communal events left in a polarized, atomized nation – can’t avoid the creep of partisanship.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">In recent years, some of the country’s most iconic food brands – Bud Light, Goya, Papa John’s, Coca-Cola, Chick-fil-A – have been excoriated by partisans on both sides of the aisle.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">So food spreads can color every Super Bowl party with a tinge of “red team,” “blue team.”</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">“What you serve at your Super Bowl party, or what the host serves at the event you attend, can now be interpreted, or twisted, through a partisan lens,” write political scientists Joshua J. Dyck and Shanna Pearson-Merkowitz.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">One possible way to bridge the divide: Unite in a bipartisan celebration of Taylor Swift. Actually, scratch that.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Maybe you could just serve salmon – a food that, according to Dyck and Pearson-Merkowitz’s research, is “resistant to partisan cues.”</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Grim times, indeed.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/4superbowl24.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>5. The Ads</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">According to an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll, 22% of Americans planning to watch the Super Bowl are most excited about the commercials.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">That’s one reason companies are willing to fork over so much cash for a coveted slot – as much as $7 million for a 30-second spot.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">However, as Auburn University scholars Linda Ferrell and O.C. Ferrell point out, many regulars on the airwaves of the Super Bowl, such as GoDaddy and Ford, are missing from this year’s lineup.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">What gives?</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">“Gen Z, in particular, is not impressed by Super Bowl ads,” they write, “and complicating the matter is their lack of interest in broadcast TV.”</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">So as a millennial who’s spent years listening to how my generation has killed everything from paper napkins to mayonnaise, I take great pleasure in typing: Gen Z killed the Super Bowl ad.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Author Bio:</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong><em>Nick Lehr is the Arts + Culture Editor at the Conversation. </em></strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong><em>This story is a roundup of articles from <a href="https://theconversation.com/ads-food-and-gambling-galore-5-essential-reads-for-the-super-bowl-220641" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">The Conversation’s</a> archives, and is republished here with permission under a Creative Commons license. </em></strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Highbrow Magazine</strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em><strong>Photo Credits: <a href="https://depositphotos.com/stock-photography.html" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Depositphotos.com</a>; All-Pro Reels (<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Patrick_Mahomes_%2851615688913%29.jpg" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Wikimedia Commons</a>); All-Pro Reels (<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:NFL2021_-_Washington_Football_Team_vs._Kansas_City_Chiefs_175_%2851616130644%29.jpg" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Wikimedia Commons</a>); Gage Skidmore (<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/gageskidmore/40488250203" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Flickr</a>, Creative Commons); Mike Mozart (<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/jeepersmedia/49439320883" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Flickr</a>, Creative Commons).</strong></em></span></span></p> <p> </p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/super-bowl" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">the super bowl</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/kansas-city-chiefs" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">kansas city chiefs</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/san-francisco-49ers" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">san francisco 49ers</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/football" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">football</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/super-bowl-ads" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">super bowl ads</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/super-bowl-gambling" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">super bowl gambling</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/taylor-swift" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">taylor swift</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/travis-kelce" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">travis kelce</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/patrick-mahomes" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">patrick mahomes</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Nick Lehr </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">In Slider</div></div></div> Mon, 12 Feb 2024 21:35:30 +0000 tara 13016 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24467-ads-food-and-gambling-galore-essentials-super-bowl#comments ‘Imagining the Indian’ Summarizes the History and Fight Against Racial Mascots https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24460-imagining-indian-summarizes-history-and-fight-against-racial-mascots <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Wed, 02/07/2024 - 16:07</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1indians.jpg?itok=exWg8QnI"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1indians.jpg?itok=exWg8QnI" width="480" height="419" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">As the fight against systemic racism continues, one issue that has existed for decades is using Native peoples as mascots. It’s a tradition that’s caused a lot of pain and debate in America and as Indigenous American groups continue to advocate and protest against it, many groups across the country continue the practice. <em><a href="https://imaginingtheindianfilm.org/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Imagining the Indian</a></em> (currently available on DVD and streaming) is a documentary that explores the history, impact, and current struggles of this issue.</span></span></p> <p><br />  </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The film starts by delving into why there’s a disconnect between indigenous peoples and everyone else – most of which dates back to the portrayals of Natives in the early 20<sup>th</sup>-century films and serials. They were portrayed as either noble savages or backward brutes, and the women were always oversexualized. The early section of the film that portrays all this does a great job of showing why images of Natives were used as mascots or in ads to begin with and why it started the process of “othering” them in America. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/2indians.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Even younger generations of Indigenous Americans grew up being exposed to these images as some of the only representations of their people in American culture. It might take up a large chunk of the film, but it’s necessary in order to understand why sports teams like the Blackhawks and Redskins are offensive. The portrayals are not only inaccurate but dehumanizing, and it leads to people thinking that Indigenous Americans look or behave the same way. </span></span></p> <p><br />  </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The direction and editing in this documentary follow modern standards and use historical footage mixed with testimonials. It’s quite effective and delivers a lot of information in about 90 minutes, but it also doesn’t stand out visually. The material is a tad dry in the latter half of the film when it goes over the legal battles against the mascots. It does illustrate that the fight to ban those mascots has been going on longer than many realize, but it’s not as compelling as the first chunk of the documentary. </span></span></p> <p><br /> <img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/3indians.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">However,<em> Imagining the Indian</em> does a great job of providing context for an issue that caused a lot of debate a few years ago when the Washington Redskins had to change their name. It’s also an issue that people continue to fight and education is a part of the process of changing people’s minds. As of this writing, fans eagerly await the Super Bowl clash between the San Francisco 49ers and the Kansas City Chiefs, the latter a team that has held onto its name, despite other teams changing theirs.</span></span><br />  </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Advocates like Suzan Shown Harjo and Amanda Blackhorse have been in this fight for decades and their passion and pain really come through in this film. I can safely say that <em>Imagining the Indian</em> work does a great job of delivering this relevant issue concisely. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/4indians.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Author Bio:</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong><em>Ulises Duenas is a senior writer and film critic at</em> Highbrow Magazine.</strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>For Highbrow Magazine</strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong><em>Photo Credits: David (</em></strong><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/bootbearwdc/2857386389" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline"><strong><em>Flickr</em></strong></a><strong><em>, Creative Commons); All Pro Reels <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:NFL2021_-_Washington_Football_Team_vs._Kansas_City_Chiefs_175_%2851616130644%29.jpg" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">(Wikimedia Commons</a>).</em></strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/imagining-indian" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">imagining the indian</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/native-americans" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Native Americans</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/american-indians" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">american indians</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/indian-mascots" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">indian mascots</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/kansas-city-chiefs" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">kansas city chiefs</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/warhawks" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">warhawks</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/redskins" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">the redskins</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/washington-redskins" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">washington redskins</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/sport-mascots" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">sport mascots</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/football-teams" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">football teams</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/super-bowl-1" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">super bowl</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/new-documentaries" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">new documentaries</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Ulises Duenas</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">In Slider</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-videos field-type-video-embed-field field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"> <div class="embedded-video"> <div class="player"> <iframe class="" width="640" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/AtR82TETcBI?width%3D640%26amp%3Bheight%3D360%26amp%3Bautoplay%3D0%26amp%3Bvq%3Dlarge%26amp%3Brel%3D0%26amp%3Bcontrols%3D1%26amp%3Bautohide%3D2%26amp%3Bshowinfo%3D1%26amp%3Bmodestbranding%3D0%26amp%3Btheme%3Ddark%26amp%3Biv_load_policy%3D1%26amp%3Bwmode%3Dopaque" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> </div> </div> </div></div></div> Wed, 07 Feb 2024 21:07:55 +0000 tara 13005 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24460-imagining-indian-summarizes-history-and-fight-against-racial-mascots#comments Disinformation Is Often Blamed for Swaying Elections, but the Research Isn’t So Clear https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24446-disinformation-often-blamed-swaying-elections-research-isn-t-so-clear <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Mon, 01/29/2024 - 16:44</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1vote_depositphotos_0.jpg?itok=yA6Q2WgU"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1vote_depositphotos_0.jpg?itok=yA6Q2WgU" width="480" height="320" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Many countries face general elections this year. Political campaigning will include misleading and even false information. Just days ago, it was reported that a robocall impersonating U.S. President Joe Biden had told recipients not to vote in the presidential primary.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">But can disinformation significantly influence voting?</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">There are two typical styles of election campaigning. One is positive, presenting favorable attributes of politicians and their policies, and the other is negative — disparaging the opposition. The latter can backfire, though, or lead to voters disengaging with the entire democratic process.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Voters are already fairly savvy — they know that campaigning tactics often include distortions and untruths. Both types of tactics, positive and negative, can feature misinformation, which loosely refers to inaccurate, false, and misleading information. Sometimes this even counts as disinformation, because the details are deliberately designed to be misleading.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Unfortunately, recent research shows that the lack of clarity in defining misinformation and disinformation is a problem. There is no consensus. Scientifically and practically, this is bad. It’s hard to chart the scale of a problem if your starting point includes vague or confused concepts. This is a problem for the general public, too, given it makes it harder to decipher and trust research on the topic.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">For example, depending on how inclusive the definition is, propaganda, deep fakes, fake news, and conspiracy theories are all examples of disinformation. But news parody or political satire can be too.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Unfortunately, researchers often fail to provide clear definitions, and do not carefully compare different types of disinformation, adding uncertainty to evidence examining its effect on voting behavior.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Nevertheless, let’s investigate the research on disinformation so far, which is generally viewed as more serious than misinformation, to see how much influence it can really have on the way we vote.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/2vote_depositphotos.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Unconvincing findings</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Consider a study published in 2023, investigating the role of fake news in the Italian general elections in 2013 and 2018. It used debunking websites to help create a fake news score for articles published in the run-up to the election.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Then the researchers analyzed populist parties’ pre-election Facebook posts containing such news content. This also generated an engagement score based on the number of likes and shares of the posts.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Finally, scores were combined with actual electoral votes for populist parties to gauge the possible influence of fake news on such votes. The researchers estimated that fake news added a small but statistically significant electoral gain for populist parties. But the researchers suggested that fake news could not be the sole cause of the overall increase in vote share for populist parties — it only seemed to add a small amount to the overall increase in vote share.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Similar studies showing low effects of fake news on persuading voters has led some researchers to argue that the panic about fake news is overblown.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Other recent studies have looked at the potential influence of disinformation by asking people how they intended to vote and whether they believed specific pieces of disinformation. This was examined in national or presidential elections in the Czech Republic in 2021, Kenya in 2017, South Korea in 2017, Indonesia in 2019, Malaysia in 2018, Philippines in 2022 and Taiwan in 2018.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The general finding among all these studies was that it is hard to establish a reliable causal influence of fake news on voting. One reason was that who people say they vote for and how they actually vote can be vastly different.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">In fact, research has gone into understanding the reasons for dramatic failures of traditional pollsters to predict elections and referendums in Argentina in 2019, Quebec in 2018, UK in 2016, and US in 2016. People didn’t, for many reasons, reveal their actual voting intentions to pollsters and researchers.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/2news_fake_-_depositphotos.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Who is susceptible?</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">What about specific groups of voters, though? Might there be some that are more influenced by disinformation than others? Political affiliation doesn’t seem to matter. People tend to rate fake news as accurate when it’s in line with their own political beliefs. For instance, in the 2016 US presidential elections, both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump supporters were equally likely to rate fake news about their opposition as accurate.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">How about undecided voters? Some studies show that undecided voters are more likely than decided voters to consider fake news headlines as credible. But the opposite has also been shown — that they are less susceptible to political fake news.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Still, to maximize the influence of disinformation in an election, undecided voters would be the obvious target, especially in close-run elections. But accurately profiling undecided voters is difficult — especially since people are cautious in revealing their voting intentions and the reasons behind them.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">And if politicians or campaign staff use disinformation in aggressive negative campaigning to sway undecided voters, they can end up increasing disengagement in the election process — making some people even more undecided.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Ultimately, most research suggests that fake news is more likely to enhance existing beliefs and views rather than radically change voting intentions of the undecided.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Another issue that often gets ignored is a phenomenon known in psychology as the third-person effect — that we think that others are more persuadable, and even gullible, than ourselves.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">So when it comes to who is susceptible to disinformation, it is likely that those studying it, as well as those participating in the studies, assume they are immune, but that anyone else, such as supporters of the opposing political party, are not — making the evidence harder to interpret.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">It would be naive to say that disinformation, such as political propaganda, doesn’t have any influence on voting. But we should be careful not to assign disinformation as the sole explanation for election results that go against predictions.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">If we assign disinformation such a high level of influence, we ultimately deny people’s agency in making free voting choices. And studies show that we are aware that manipulative methods are used on us. Still, we all judge that we can maintain an ability to make our own choice when voting.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">It’s important to take this seriously. Our belief in free will is ultimately a reason so many of us back democracy in the first place. Denying it can arguably be more damaging than a few fake news posts lurking on social media.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/1italianpm_depositphotos.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong><em>This article was published by the Nieman Lab under a Creative Commons license, and originally published in <a href="https://theconversation.com/us">The Conversation</a>. It’s republished here with permission via <a href="https://marketplace.disco.info/searchArticles/index" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Disco Content Marketplace</a>. </em></strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Author Bio:</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong><em>Magda Osman is a principal research associate in basic and applied decision making at Judge Business School at the University of Cambridge. </em></strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Highbrow Magazine</strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><em><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Photo Credits: <a href="https://depositphotos.com/stock-photography.html">Depositphotos.com</a></strong></span></span></em></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/disinformation" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">disinformation</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/fake-news" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">fake news</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/2016" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">2016</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/2020" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">2020</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/fake-facts" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">fake facts</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/lies" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">lies</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/elections" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">elections</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/voting-0" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">voting</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/voters" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">voters</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/propoganda" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">propoganda</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/influencing-elections" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">influencing elections</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/elections-results" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">elections results</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Magda Osman</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">In Slider</div></div></div> Mon, 29 Jan 2024 21:44:17 +0000 tara 12982 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24446-disinformation-often-blamed-swaying-elections-research-isn-t-so-clear#comments