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When lawmakers in the House begin their impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump, they will focus on what he said to supporters at a rally that turned into a riot and a violent assault on the Capitol.
The question they must answer: Did Trump’s inflammatory words incite that violence?
Kurt Braddock, a scholar in the School of Communication at American University, says “decades of research on social influence, persuasion and psychology show that the messages that people encounter heavily influence their decisions to engage in certain behaviors.” In other words, writes Braddock, the president’s words can be shown to have consequences.
Also today:
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Naomi Schalit
Senior Editor, Politics + Society
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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
Kurt Braddock, American University School of Communication
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.
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Ethics + Religion
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Michael Blake, University of Washington
An impeachment of President Trump will likely not be finished before he's left office. A political philosopher argues that the impeachment is still an important moral action.
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Health + Medicine
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Matt Motta, Oklahoma State University
Two in five Americans say they don't want a COVID-19 vaccine, which is a problem. Finding out what Americans do want from a vaccine might help.
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Politics/Election '20
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Mona Lena Krook, Rutgers University
With obscenities and violence, rioters at the Capitol left an obvious message: angry contempt for women.
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Sylvia Taschka, Wayne State University
The US faces many of the same problems Germans faced after World War II: how to reject, punish and delegitimize the enemies of democracy. There are lessons in how Germany handled that challenge.
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Long T. Bui, University of California, Irvine
Onlookers who recognized the flag wondered why the mostly white mob had 'coopted' Vietnamese history. But Vietnamese Americans are Trump supporters, too, some driven by a potent fear of socialism.
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Education
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Robert Kelchen, Seton Hall University
Congress passed a new law in late 2020 that will change how students apply for money for college. An expert explains what the changes mean for students and families.
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Katie Headrick Taylor, University of Washington
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Environment + Energy
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Glen J. Golden, Colorado State University
Scientists are experimenting with using dogs to sniff out people infected with COVID-19. But dogs aren't the only animals with a nose for disease.
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Arts + Culture
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Ani Kokobobo, University of Kansas
What would happen, the Russian novelist wondered, when people lacking any semblance of ideological or moral convictions rise to power?
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Science + Technology
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Forest Agostinelli, University of South Carolina
AI algorithms can solve hard problems and learn incredible tasks, but they can't explain how they do these things. If researchers can build explainable AI, it could lead to a flood of new knowledge.
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Jill Joyce, Oklahoma State University
Anti-nutrients naturally occur in food and can block the amount of other nutrients available for your body to use. But their effects aren't all bad, which is why they're undergoing an image makeover.
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Video
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Nathan Ahlgren, Clark University
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Jonathan D. Sarna, Brandeis University
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Paul Bruski, Iowa State University
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Joshua M. Pearce, Michigan Technological University
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