This article features Emily Oster, her COVID-19 school database and the role she took in leading parents through the pandemic's tough decisions regarding children.
In the News
The Orange County Register
Repeal the 2001, 2002 authorizations for use of military force (Costs of War report cited)
This article cites the Costs of War report at Watson: "There have been over 182,000 Iraqi civilians killed by direct violence since the US invasion..."
Foundation for Economic Education
New Harvard data (accidentally) reveal how lockdowns crushed the working class while leaving elites unscathed (John Friedman cited)
This article draws on data from Opportunity Insights, co-directed by John Friedman.
Brown Daily Herald
CNN's Sara Sidner discusses reporting on race
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Brian Atwood penned this article on the state of Israel's democracy.
Emily Oster is leading a project to capture all of the data states collected about school operations in 2020-21 and present it in a consistent format that can inform researchers and policy makers well into the future.
Richard Arenberg in ABC13, "While some of the rhetoric by Democrats may be a little overheated, the proliferation of outrageous voter suppression laws in red states around the country make a federal response critical."
Ashutosh Varshney provided commentary on India's public opinion of Modi in the wake of a COVID-19 crisis: "A very large part of the base is hugely disenchanted because they've lost their loved ones. They've lost their siblings, their parents, their children."
The American Prospect
Making Room for Children Vulnerable to COVID (Emily Oster cited)
This article cites Emily Oster and her opinion that with sufficient adult vaccination, children are effectively protected from the virus.
Mark Blyth penned this article in The Guardian.
Wendy Schiller appeared on this episode of Bloomberg Daybreak.
Brian Atwood penned this article on the current immigration challenge facing the United States.
Emily Oster in Head Topics, "I'm basically a fan of anything that makes it fun," in reference to offering giveaways to those who get vaccinated.
This article references a study by Patrick Heller that found that countries led by elected autocrats are the most dismal performers in the fight against COVID-19.
Ashutosh Varshney in Modern Ghana, "This is too immense a period of suffering and it will be too hard to convince people that this was just down to 'divine will' or individual failures to wear a mask."
The Harvard Gazette
Racial wealth gap may be a key to other inequities (John Friedman cited)
John Friedman is cited in this article as one of the co-founding directors of Opportunity Insights.
This article references the Costs of War project at Watson stating, "...at least 83 civilians were killed in 24 separate U.S. attacks in the first nine months of last year."
Ashutosh Varshney provides commentary in this article on welcoming Senior Fellow Arvind Subramanian to Watson.
This article cites the Costs of War report at Watson, referencing the number of civilians killed in overseas wars since 9/11.
This article draws statistics from the Costs of War report at Watson in reference to Biden's new proposed military budget.
In this opinion piece, Patrick Heller explains how elected officials in the U.S., Brazil, and India made the effects of the pandemic worse.
In this interview, Mark Blyth explains why cutting spending could have catastrophic economic consequences.
Providence Business News
Double duty: Should R.I.'s citizen legislature become a full-time body? (comments by Wendy Schiller)
Wendy Schiller said Rhode Island could move to a hybrid model in which representatives and senators are paid more but also have longer sessions.
Rose McDermott offered commentary on US medical intelligence and leadership profiling efforts.
U.S. News & World Report
China Blasts Defense Secretary Austin as 'Unprofessional and Unfriendly' (comments by Tyler Jost)
Tyler Jost comments in U.S. News & World Report on the relationship between U.S. and Chinese military leaders.
Brown Daily Herald
No time to waste: Taubman panel recaps Biden's first 100 days
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Stephen Kinzer in Boston Globe Opinion, "The widespread outrage over Israel's attack might be seen as support for a genuine "rules-based order." Yet some of the most outraged world leaders are themselves reckless rule-breakers."
Emily Oster is cited in this article for her opinion on how public health officials should handle Covid-19 vaccinations for younger children.
National Catholic Reporter
No 'smoking gun' yet in Pius XII archives, researchers say (commentary by David Kertzer)
David Kertzer is cited and provided commentary in this article stating, "I do not think there is going to be one smoking gun — in fact, I would despair of any evidence that's actually changing people's minds these days."
This article references a Twitter thread by Emily Oster about a study on school reopenings in Texas.
Mark Blyth appeared in this podcast segment stating, "You've got quite naturally a lot of what we call bottlenecks, a lot of supply shortages, across different sectors that are all coming out of hibernation at once."
Richard Arenberg offered commentary in this article stating, "Given that and a right-wing president—such as if Trump wins back the White House in 2024–all past progressive legislation could be undone."
New Haven Register
Opinion: Taking on military spending (Costs of War report cited)
This article cites the Costs of War project at Watson in reference to the number of counterterrorism operations the U.S. was involved in between 2018-2020.
Channel News Asia
Commentary: The US needs a new China strategy (written by Chas Freeman)
Chas Freeman penned this article on the current and future status of U.S.-China relations.
Ashutosh Varshney in the Guardian, "Modi's image will depend on how the mass suffering is interpreted, and whether he can successfully deploy his skills at narrative shifting, but I think he will have to pay a price."
This article includes commentary from Stephanie Savell and cites a visual essay featuring new Costs of War data.
Ashutosh Varshney provided commentary in this article.
Wendy Schiller appeared in this radio segment of Bloomberg Daybreak to discuss the future of the GOP.
This article cites the Costs of War project, specifically noting the number of British casualties during the peak of allied deployment in Afghanistan.
This article cites the Costs of War project at Watson, referencing the amount of money spent on post-9/11 wars.
Emily Oster in Chalkbeat, "The overall picture shows a change in a lot of other things at the same time — work hours, for example — and although that could be a result of school opens, it may also be that other restrictions changed."
Brian Atwood penned this article on Biden's plans to help restore America's foreign policy, with nods to "intermestic policies" from past leaders in office.
Emily Oster in TODAY, "I think parents are excited about some return to normalcy but also finding everything very confusing. The messaging around kids is really split between 'they are low risk' and 'they're unvaccinated so you still can't do anything..."
Tech Crunch
The human-focused startups of the hellfire
This article cites the collaboration between the Watson Institute and Project HOPE to train 100,000 healthcare on the new virus.
Prerna Singh penned this article on the current crises in India, including a deadly COVID-19 outbreak and the erosion of democracy.
Marc Dunkelman penned this column on America's absence of a centralized figure empowered to cut through the objections and force bureaucracies to serve a common mission.
Emily Oster contributed to a study that found no substantial difference in the number of cases of COVID-19 among either students or staff in school districts that implemented a distancing policy of three feet versus six feet between students.
Chas Freeman penned this article stating, "There are many issues that cannot be addressed without Chinese participation. Chinese capacity needs to be leveraged to serve those US interests."