Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · 25d

Probably not exactly what you’re after, but on voteview you can search by member name and see which ideological bin they fall into relative to party/chamber. My students had fun with it yesterday.

1 1

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · Aug 18

Really cool feeling to open a box of your own book! For sale starting august 26.

www.pennpress.org/978151282802...

1

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · Jul 24

I’m just a simple guy begging Google Docs to not log me out when I’m in the middle of typing a sentence

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · Jul 18

Congrats! Well-deserved

1

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · Jul 8

With @raylaraja.bsky.social: Are small donors the solution to democracy’s problems? www.brookings.edu/articles/are...

Are small donors the solution to democracy’s problems? | Brookings

Campaign finance regimes that increase the number of small donors may not be a solution to America's democracy woes.

www.brookings.edu

1

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · Jun 4

Could easily replace “academics” with “partisans” and explain a lot about politics

Jay Van Bavel, PhD @jayvanbavel.bsky.social · Jun 4

An analysis of ~100,000 academics finds that a small subset of academics generate majority of social media posts.

That vocal minority can skew how the public—and even journalists—infer “academic consensus,” potentially fueling false perceptions. www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Political expression of academics on Twitter - Nature Human Behaviour

An analysis of nearly 100,000 academics on Twitter reveals strong progressive stances on climate and social issues, driven by a small, vocal subset. The study highlights potential gaps between academi...

www.nature.com

2

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · May 27

Worth noting this is due mostly to people thinking he isn’t serious or disciplined enough to stick to one of his most sincere, central policy goals. Which is one of the many reasons these tariffs will only have negative effects

Carl Quintanilla @carlquintanilla.bsky.social · May 27

WASHINGTON (AP) - US consumer confidence rebounds in May after five straight months of declines due to anxiety over Trump tariffs.

1

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · May 19

Very cool stuff! I find similar results when I look at more traditional forms of engagement (think tank hiring and event participant patterns) in my book. Love the idea of podcasts as data. Looking forward to seeing more!

2

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · Apr 24

Really cool stuff. Love when there’s a paper to cite for something I’ve long thought to be true

5

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · Apr 23

Awesome, thanks!

1

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · Apr 23

Love this idea. Any idea how to implement in R? Wasn’t able to find much with a quick look

1

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · Apr 9

Need some parenting advice. My four year old has been rampaging through the house smashing things with a baseball bat. He finally agreed to pause for 90 days. My instinct is to lavishly praise him for his foresight and restraint. But what would you do?

1 1

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · Apr 9

“No other president would’ve done it” is the truest thing he’s ever said

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · Apr 9

I bounce back and forth (much like trump on tariffs) between “there is no plan” and “the plan is self-enrichment via market manipulation”. The truth is probably that trump is dumb and likes tariffs (no plan) + those around him see opportunities in that to make money

Jeff Tiedrich @jefftiedrich.bsky.social · Apr 9

do I have this right? Donald Trump is just going to crash the world economy every three months — and then pretend to save it, over and over, while his cronies rake in untold billions on his shameless market manipulation, is that it? fucking hell

1 4

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · Apr 9

I agree. But also worth noting that it’s actually a large shift in today’s political terrain

5

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · Apr 4

I’m sure everyone will have a different favorite but “definition” really stands out to me

PEN America @penamerica.bsky.social · Apr 4

A growing list of words and materials are being scrubbed from government websites and documents in an attempt by the Trump administration to remove all references not only to DEI, but also to climate change, vaccines, and a host of other topics.

More: pen.org/banned-words...

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · Mar 31

Really interesting. Is there a paper associated with this?

1 1

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · Mar 22

Don’t forget Willy!

2

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · Mar 5

The obsession with tariffs actually makes a lot more sense if this was the ultimate goal

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · Mar 5

Why can’t we have nice things (planned cap increases that don’t get derailed by pandemics or idiotic policies)?

8

Reposted by Zack Albert

Dr. Susan Liebell @drsusanliebell.bsky.social · Mar 4

Are you a PhD in Political Science? #polisky Have you signed the statement against basic changes to government and democracy? 1200 people have signed (ranging in many ideologies). If you wish to sign, go here: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F....

Political scientists' statement on recent events

Please use this form to add your signature to the following statement. Note that we are only soliciting signatures from individuals with PhDs in political science. We, the undersigned, are political ...

docs.google.com

3 9

Reposted by Zack Albert

taekulee.bsky.social @taekulee.bsky.social · Feb 11

Political scientists: please consider signing, and sharing with other political scientists, this petition, which expresses urgent concerns about threats to the balance of powers in the U.S. today. Hundreds have already signed.

Political scientists' statement on recent events

Please use this form to add your signature to the following statement. Note that we are only soliciting signatures from individuals with PhDs in political science. We, the undersigned, are political ...

urldefense.proofpoint.com

24 23

Reposted by Zack Albert

Aaron Sojourner @aaronsojourner.org · Feb 4

The Council of Professional Associations on Federal Statistics, a great org, asks individuals & orgs to sign their letter requesting Congress act to restore data that has been removed & ensure a similar purge does not reoccur.
#EconSky #PolicySky #sociology #PoliSky
docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...

5 150 230

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · Feb 5

I should say I love working with pro editors and what they do is important. But we need to acknowledge an asymmetry here: while responsible outlets strive for objectivity, others are lying about "$50 million for Gaza condoms" and framing Trump's assault on the Constitution as a normal corrective

1

Zack Albert @zalbert.bsky.social · Feb 5

One thing that came into clearer focus writing this is how the editorial norm of objectivity fits uneasily with this moment. Striving for objectivity is good! But in practice it leads to contrived statements that understate reality (e.g. "clearly illegal" -> "appear to be illegal according to...")

1