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American University School of Communication

Based in Washington, D.C., the American University School of Communication offers a comprehensive approach to media practice, production and research, with bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral and certificate programs in Communication Studies, Film and Media Arts, Games, Journalism, and Public Communication.

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Displaying 1 - 20 of 52 articles

CBS’ Edward R. Murrow was the most influential person in the early years of television news during the 1950s.. Bettmann/Getty Images

Though CBS legend Edward R. Murrow is given credit, he wasn’t the first muckraking journalist to question Joseph McCarthy’s communist witch hunts

Starting in 1950, as the fear of communist subversion spread throughout America, McCarthy launched hearings that were based on scant evidence and overblown charges.
Polls showed Joe Biden, right, holding double-digit leads over Donald Trump, left, in the run-up to the 2020 election, but he won election by only 4.5 percentage points. AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File

Often in error but still seductive: Why we can’t quit election polls

The unusual candidacy of former President Donald Trump has made election polling especially appealing, more than a year from the election. But consumers beware: Those polls may be wrong.
A prominent GOP poll said Democratic U.S. Sen. Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire would lose her re-election bid to a Republican. Hassan won by 9 percentage points. AP Photo/Charles Krupa

Some midterm polls were on-target – but finding which pollsters and poll aggregators to believe can be challenging

Polling for the 2022 midterms was more accurate than the dramatically wrong predictions of 2016 and 2020, leading one pollster to boast, ‘The death of polling has been greatly exaggerated.’
In Maine’s 2020 Senate race, not one poll showed the GOP incumbent, Susan Collins, in the lead. But she trounced her Democratic challenger by 9 points. AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty

With memories of embarrassments still fresh, election pollsters face big tests in 2022 midterm elections

Will some polls misfire in prominent races in the 2022 midterms? Probably. Will such errors be eye-catching? In some cases, perhaps. Will the news media continue to tout polls? Undoubtedly.
U.S. President Richard Nixon at a White House lectern reading a farewell speech to his staff following his resignation on Aug. 9, 1974. George Tames/New York Times Co./Getty Images

Woodward and Bernstein didn’t bring down a president in Watergate – but the myth that they did lives on

Washington Post reporters Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward broke stories about the Watergate scandal that helped unravel Richard Nixon’s presidency. But they were not the sole force to bring him down.
Terrified children, including 9-year-old Kim Phuc, center, near Trang Bang, Vietnam, after a South Vietnamese plane on June 8, 1972, accidentally dropped its flaming napalm on its own troops and civilians. AP Photo/Nick Ut, File

50 years after ‘Napalm Girl,’ myths distort the reality behind a horrific photo of the Vietnam War and exaggerate its impact

The ‘Napalm Girl’ photo is much more than powerful evidence of war’s indiscriminate effects on civilians. It also shows how false assertions can get traction in the media.
Domestic extremists were involved in the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. AP Photo/John Minchillo

Why is it so difficult to fight domestic terrorism? 6 experts share their thoughts

Addressing American domestic radicalism will require new ways of thinking about the nation’s problems, and new ways of solving them.
A voter exits a polling location on Election Day, Nov. 3, 2020 in Fort Worth, Texas. Tom Pennington/Getty Images

Election polls in 2020 produced ‘error of unusual magnitude,’ expert panel finds, without pinpointing cause

A task force of polling experts found surveys notably understated support for Donald Trump, both nationally and at the state level. Here’s what may have gone wrong, according to a polling historian.
Biden supporters in Philadelphia celebrate when his win – with a much smaller margin than predicted by polls – was projected by news outlets on Nov. 7, 2020. Chris McGrath/Getty Images

Survey experts have yet to figure out what caused the most significant polling error in 40 years in Trump-Biden race

Stung by their failure to accurately predict the outcome of the 2020 presidential election, pollsters collectively went off to figure out what went wrong. They have yet to figure out what or why.
Bay of Pigs debacle: Watched by armed guards, grim-faced US-backed invaders are marched off to prison after their capture by Fidel Castro’s forces. Bettmann via Getty Images

60 years after Bay of Pigs, New York Times role – and myth – made clear

The New York Times gave in to White House pressure and did not publish crucial information about an impending US-backed invasion of Cuba. It’s an old story, much repeated – but it’s wrong.
The U.S. Capitol, which was besieged by insurrectionists on Jan. 6, and where the Trump impeachment trial takes place in the Senate. Xinhua/Liu Jie via Getty Images

Impeachment trial: Research spanning decades shows language can incite violence

Language affects behavior. When words champion aggression, make violence acceptable and embolden audiences to action, incidents like the insurrection at the Capitol are the result.
Sebuah layar video yang menampilkan wajah Donald Trump menjelang pidato dihadapan pendukungnya. Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Kata-kata dari mulut Trump adalah amunisi yang mempersenjatai serangan di Capitol

Setiap kata punya konsekuensi. Penelitian beberapa dekade mendukung argumen bahwa pidato Trump kemungkinan besar mendorong massa pendukungnya sehingga terjadi pemberontakan di gedung Capitol AS.
A video screen displays Donald Trump’s face as he prepares to address a crowd of his supporters. Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

At impeachment hearing, lawmakers will deliberate over a deadly weapon used in the attack on Capitol Hill – President Trump’s words

Words have consequences. And decades of research supports the contention that Donald Trump’s words could in fact incite people to mount an insurrection at the US Capitol.
Pollsters predicted a much higher vote for Joe Biden, including in Florida, where workers at the Pinellas County Supervisor of Elections Office in Largo process voters’ ballots on Nov. 3. Octavio Jones/Getty Images

In its troubled hour, polling could use an irreverent figure to reset expectations

Pollster Bud Roper once said of his field that “a good deal more than half is art and … less than half is science.” After the 2020 polls got a lot wrong, is it time for more candor from pollsters?
Watching the presidential election returns on election night in retirement community of The Villages, Florida. Ricardo Arduengo/AFP via Getty Images

An embarrassing failure for election pollsters

Polls predicted a ‘blue wave’ that didn’t materialize.
Voters wait to cast their ballots Tuesday at Johnston Elementary School in the Wilkinsburg neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Jeff Swensen/Getty Images

A Q&A with a historian of presidential polls

An expert on the history of polling has a first take on how pollsters did this year.
Supporters on election night 2016 at a Hillary Clinton party, when it became clear poll-based forecasts had been off target. Toni L. Sandys/The Washington Post via Getty Images

Why Americans are so enamored with election polls

Polling is an imperfect attempt at providing insight and explanation. But the public’s desire for insight and explanation about elections never ends, so polls endure despite their flaws and failures.
Will Trump voters – like these at a rally, waving goodbye to him as he leaves – defy the polls and send him back to the White House? Olivier Touron/AFP/Getty Images

How might the campaign’s endgame be disrupted? Here are five scenarios, drawn from the history of election polling

Polling shows Joe Biden with a large lead over Donald Trump nationally in the presidential race. But there are many ways that presidential race polling has gone wrong in the past, and could do so now.

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