Breaking News

This page features brief excerpts of stories published by the mainstream media and, less frequently, blogs, alternative media, and even obviously biased sources. The excerpts are taken directly from the websites cited in each source note. Quotation marks are not used.

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• SOURCE: Politico
  11/19/2020
  

  Why Michigan’s Top Legislators Should Cancel that Meeting with Trump

  University of Michigan law professor Richard Primus: Since Michigan's House and Senate leaders have previously declared their intention to respect the state's popular vote for Joe Biden, if they change their minds after a meeting with Trump it would expose them to credible accusations and potential prosecution for accepting bribes--crimes for which Trump can't pardon them.

• 
• SOURCE: The Hill
  11/18/2020
  

  Tom Cotton Attacks "Revisionist History" of Thanksgiving on Senate Floor

  The Arkansas Senator warned that the "politically correct editors" of the New York Times are coming for Thanksgiving. 

• 
• SOURCE: Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (HAI)
  11/17/2020
  

  Whose History? AI Uncovers Who Gets Attention in High School Textbooks

  Natural language processing reveals huge differences in how Texas history textbooks treat men, women, and people of color.

• 
• SOURCE: Crosscut
  11/16/2020
  

  Native History Is Washington History, And Tribes Are Helping Schools Teach It

  Teachers are working to implement a 2015 change to Washington state's history standards that requires content developed with the state's native tribes. 

• 
• SOURCE: New York Times
  11/17/2020
  

  When Schools Closed, Americans Turned to Their Usual Backup Plan: Mothers

  "Mothers are the fallback plan in the United States in part because of persistent beliefs that they are ultimately responsible for homemaking and child rearing, and because of the lack of policies to help parents manage the load."

• 
• SOURCE: New York Times
  11/16/2020
  

  The Cities Central to Fraud Conspiracy Theories Didn’t Cost Trump the Election

  by Emily Badger

  Trump's focus on Detroit, Philadelphia and Milwaukee reflect the attempt to mobilize longstanding suspicion by many white Americans of cities and Black voters, not any significant changes in the vote in those cities since the last election.

• 
• SOURCE: Bloomberg CityLab
  11/17/2020
  

  How Suburbs Swung the 2020 Election

  by Richard Florida, Marie Patino and Rachel Dottle

  The noted urban theorist points out that assumptions about suburban voters haven't kept up with the changing demographic realities of America's suburbs, which house a majority of the population and differ from each other as much as they do from central cities. 

• 
• SOURCE: The Guardian
  11/19/2020
  

  Erin Brockovich to Joe Biden: Are You Kidding Me?

  "Are you really listening to the science or are you listening to an industry insider, who is controlling the message?"

• 
• SOURCE: Places Journal
  11/15/2020
  

  Reservoir: Nature, Culture, Infrastructure

  by Luc Sante

  A four-part series of essays and photography examines the creation, maintenance and consequences of the reservoirs constructed to supply water to New York City, including the complex divisions and connections among urban and rural communities. 

• 
• SOURCE: New York Times
  11/16/2020
  

  Academy Museum Gives Debbie Reynolds Her Due as a Costume Conservator

  For reasons likely including institiutionalized sexism, costumes have been a neglected part of the preservation of cinematic history. The new Academy Museum of Motion Pictures hopes to work with the late Debbie Reynolds's son to change that. 

• 
• SOURCE: The New Republic
  11/17/2020
  

  Charles Koch Got the Free-Market Dystopia He Wanted. Now He’d Like Your Approval

  "The problem isn’t simply which horses a newly contrite Charles Koch chooses to back, but the extent to which his extreme wealth and his commitment to a system that enshrines the power of the rich has shaped the entire racetrack."

• 
• SOURCE: Washington Post
  11/16/2020
  

  Virginia Sen. Louise Lucas Cleared of Charges of Conspiring to Topple Confederate Monument

  Virginia state senator L. Louise Lucas, who is Black, was cleared of charges related to this summer's protests against public monuments to the Confederacy. 

• 
• SOURCE: Washington Post
  11/16/2020
  

  We Dare Not Repeat the Mistakes of 9/11

  by Jennifer Rubin

  The Washington Post columnist argues that the delayed transition to the George W. Bush presidency in 2000 and 2001 limited the nation's preparedness for a terrorist attack. 

• 
• SOURCE: Politico
  11/12/2020
  

  First Professor: Jill Biden to Make History as a First Lady with a Day Job

  According to her top tags on RateMyProfessors.com, Dr. Jill Biden gives her students “good feedback” and is “respected” and “inspirational,” but she’s also a “tough grader” who gives “lots of homework.”

• 
• SOURCE: New York Times
  11/16/2020
  

  Liberals Envisioned a Multiracial Coalition. Voters of Color Had Other Ideas

  Since the dawn of the 21st century, it has become commonplace for party leaders to talk of a rising demographic tide that is destined to lift the Democrats to dominance. The party should look at the defeat of California's affirmative action referendum as a caution that things won't be so simple. 

• 
• SOURCE: New York Times
  11/15/2020
  

  Where Is the Smithsonian Museum for American Latinos?

  by Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Ken Salazar

  A former Florida Congresswoman and the former Interior Secretary present bipartisan advocacy for an American Latino Museum. 

• 
• SOURCE: New York Times
  11/13/2020
  

  Thieves Grab Nazi Memorabilia in Museum Heists, Puzzling Police

  Since March, four museums in the Netherlands and Denmark have been broken into, and memorabilia, including Nazi uniforms, has been stolen. 

• 
• SOURCE: New York Times
  11/15/2020
  

  Egypt Unearths New Mummies Dating Back 2,500 Years

  A recent excavation has produced the largest discovery of artifacts of the year at the Egyptian necropolis of Saqqara. 

• 
• SOURCE: The Atlantic
  11/11/2020
  

  "The Crown" Takes the Shine Off Queen Elizabeth’s Reign

  In its sharp and splashy fourth season, the show finally criticizes Elizabeth for her ignorance, characterizing her as a ruler whose stubborn devotion to tradition makes her and her family out-of-touch fools caught off guard by change. 

• 
• SOURCE: New York Times
  11/12/2020
  

  A Naked Statue for a Feminist Hero?

  "Ms. Hambling’s sculptural woman — perched above a plunge of mountainous form — seems to embody the epic saga that so many women have endured for their voices to be heard."