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Top headlines
Lead story
The $3 billion that Mike Bloomberg gave to charity last year landed him atop the Chronicle of Philanthropy’s just-released annual list of the nation’s 50 biggest donors. Bloomberg donated 1 in 4 of the dollars those wealthy people gave collectively in 2023.
Three scholars of philanthropy have spotted a few important trends in the new data. David Campbell of Binghamton points out that Melinda French Gates has made her first independent appearance on this list following her divorce from Bill Gates. Angela R. Logan of Notre Dame observes that billionaires with their own foundations are giving more these days through donor-advised funds – accounts that serve a similar purpose as foundations but have less stringent disclosure rules. And Michael Moody of Indiana University’s Lilly Family School of Philanthropy explains why he’s ready to see some surprises from big donors in 2024.
We could bring you this data on the same morning it was published because of a partnership between the Chronicle, The Associated Press and The Conversation U.S. that began in 2020. And starting tomorrow, we’re joining forces to produce Giving Today, a new philanthropy newsletter. Please subscribe now so you can be among the first to get it in your inbox every Wednesday.
[ The latest from the the world of philanthropy and nonprofits. Sign up for our weekly newsletter, Giving Today. ]
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Emily Schwartz Greco
Philanthropy + Nonprofits Editor
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Penny Knight and Phil Knight were the second-largest givers of 2023.
Michael Hickey/Getty Images
David Campbell, Binghamton University, State University of New York; Angela R. Logan, University of Notre Dame; Michael Moody, Indiana University
Three philanthropy scholars discuss several trends in giving by the wealthiest Americans highlighted in this yearly report. Among them: Much of this money doesn’t go to charities right away.
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Politics + Society
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Robert A. Strong, University of Virginia
Right from the very beginning of the nation, there have been rules that limit the ability of the people to choose their leaders.
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Jeff Inglis, The Conversation
Experts explain the context behind the Supreme Court’s ruling on Donald Trump’s eligibility to appear on presidential ballots.
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Sarah E. Patterson, University of Michigan; Adriana Reyes, Cornell University
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s proposed tax credit is part of a trend toward public support for family caregiving.
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Lynn Greenky, Syracuse University
A college junior who has gained a following by sharing high-profile people’s private flight information says that he is sharing public information. Others, like Taylor Swift, say that he is stalking.
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International
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Haidar Khezri, University of Central Florida
In the wake of the death of Jîna Mahsa Amini in police custody in 2022, Iranian authorities have executed political dissenters at what the UN chief described as ‘an alarming rate.’
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Education
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David R. Buys, Mississippi State University; Aaron Guest, Arizona State University
As the share of adults age 60 and older grows globally, age-friendly universities offer social connection, continued learning and better health.
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Science + Technology
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Wesley Chang, Drexel University
Electric vehicles are catching on across the US, but they’re also catching on fire in colder regions like the Northeast and Midwest.
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Margaret Boyle, Bowdoin College
Early modern societies in Latin America and Spain saw a convergence of traditional medical knowledge and the professionalization of medicine. The resulting differences in access to care endure today.
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Siddhant Pusdekar, University of Minnesota
Not much is known about the predator fly Laphria saffrana. New research identified how they count the wingbeats of their favored prey, letting it slip out of focus before adjusting their heads.
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Ethics + Religion
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Anthony Smith, University of Dayton
Though only a few of Scorsese’s films focus on religious stories, deeper questions about faith, doubt and living in a violent world tend to haunt his movies.
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Michael D. Bailey, Iowa State University
The iconic image of a witch on a broomstick has apocryphal origins. But whether they could actually fly didn’t stop Christian society from persecuting them.
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Arts + Culture
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Scott Malia, College of the Holy Cross
Hopefully, Academy Award winners will be chosen because voters believed in the actors’ performances − not because of some meta narrative about their off-screen behavior.
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