Government
Black History Spotlight: The Civil Rights Movement
Today marks the start of Black History Month. Throughout February, the Britannica Blog will spotlight significant people, places, and events in African American history. This week, we will explore the personalities that emerged from American civil rights movement in the 1950s and ’60s. (Appropriately enough, today is the 53rd anniversary of the beginning of the Greensboro sit-in.) Read the rest of this entry »
6 Facts About Barack Obama’s Reelection
On January 20, Barack Obama will be sworn in for a second term as president of the United States—though because the 20th is a Sunday, the public inauguration will occur on January 21. It will mark only the third time since the Twentieth Amendment was ratified that inauguration day—officially January 20—has fallen on a Sunday. And, each time it has occurred—for Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1957 and Ronald Reagan in 1985—it has been for a president being sworn in for a second term. Read the rest of this entry »
Presidential Scandals in a Minor Key
Many eyes, not all of them friendly, will be on Barack Obama as he steps to the podium to take the oath of office next Monday. A president's second term, after all, is seldom without its problems—as witness Richard Nixon and, on another front, Bill Clinton. President Obama might be comforted to know that scandal is the currency of the post—and that every president has come under criticism for the smallest of matters. Step inside for our survey of some of the more minor presidential scandals, from skinny-dipping to naps. Read the rest of this entry »
Oyez, Oyez, Oyez! The 2011–2012 U.S. Supreme Court Term in Review
Since 1938 Britannica’s annual Book of the Year has offered in-depth coverage of the events of the previous year. While the book won’t appear in print for several months, some of its outstanding content is already available online. Here, we feature this article by Britannica editor Brian Duignan, which examines notable decisions in the 2011-12 U.S. Supreme Court term. Read the rest of this entry »
Honor Flight: Celebrating the Legacy of Those Who Served in World War II
A proud son describes a pilgrimage to the National World War II Memorial in Virgina with his father, a veteran, courtesy of the Honor Flight Network. Read the rest of this entry »
The Gamble: 5 Questions for Political Scientists John Sides and Lynn Vavreck on the U.S. Presidential Election of 2012
Britannica contributing editor Gregory McNamee caught up with political scientists John Sides (George Washington University) and Lynn Vavreck (UCLA), authors of the forthcoming book The Gamble: Choice and Change in the 2012 Presidential Election, to discuss the current presidential contest. Read the rest of this entry »
Oratory and Debate: A False Distinction
Following the first debate of the 2012 U.S. presidential campaign, a foreign journalist remarked that President Obama was "a good orator, but not a good debater." Yet opposing oratory to debating is incorrect by definition, since a debater can very well use eloquence to come out victorious in the judgment of his or her audience. Read the rest of this entry »
The Electoral College: Outdated Artifact of History
Although the purpose of the electoral college may have been understandable in 1787, it is now an undemocratic but still-extant relic of history. Read the rest of this entry »
The Election of 1912: A Century Ago, A Bruiser That Foreshadowed Today’s Political Melee
A bruising electoral race, with the sitting president subjected to abuse from conservatives and liberals alike. A Republican Party torn apart by populist dissent. Charges of corruption in the air, brokered by popular figures in the media, themselves with much political influence. And everywhere, a politics awash in money poured on by big corporations and interest groups. Sound like today? Well, it also describes the election of 1912, a full century ago. Read the rest of this entry »
John Quincy Adams, Neglected President: Five Questions for Biographer Harlow Unger
History and the popular imagination alike tend to overlook the contributions of America's sixth president, John Quincy Adams, to the nation's history. The oversight is understandable, considering Adams's modesty, but following the publication of Harlow Unger's lucid new biography, John Quincy Adams: A Life, there's no good excuse not to learn more about this eminent figure of the early Republic. EB contributing editor Gregory McNamee asks Unger about his book and its subject. Read the rest of this entry »
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