Why Australia’s cuts to news services in the Indo-Pacific are a failure of soft diplomacy

By Alexandra Wake, Professor, Journalism, RMIT UniversityMay 22, 2026

As authoritarian influence and disinformation grow across the Indo-Pacific, Australia is still failing to back one of its strongest assets: trusted journalism.

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Politics & Society Science

America’s nonprofit sector is pushing back against an ‘authoritarian playbook’

The Trump administration has made many threats against nonprofits whose missions it disagrees with.

Christopher Justin Einolf, Professor of Sociology, Northern Illinois University·May 22, 2026

The Conversation

The ‘warrior ethos’ promises victory — history says it leads to defeat

Loyalty outranks expertise, and reality bends to the leader’s word. From Nazi Germany to Imperial Japan, fascist war machines collapse on the same contradictions.

John Broich, Associate Professor of History, Case Western Reserve University·May 21, 2026

ProPublica

Louisiana’s Tough-on-Crime Policies Stand to Cost Taxpayers Millions More for Years to Come

The post Louisiana’s Tough-on-Crime Policies Stand to Cost Taxpayers Millions More for Years to Come appeared first on ProPublica.

Chris Alcantara·May 22, 2026

ProPublica

California Teacher Previously Fired for Sexual Harassment Is No Longer in the Classroom After New Complaints

The post California Teacher Previously Fired for Sexual Harassment Is No Longer in the Classroom After New Complaints appeared first on ProPublica.

Holly McDede·May 22, 2026

Public Books

Solo el pueblo: Migrant Justice Against Fascism in the Americas

Thanks to the politics of sanctuary and abolition, the multiracial city is, perhaps, challenging authoritarian power, even as liberal democratic institutions have faltered utterly against the rise of right wing, white ethnonationalism. The post Solo el pueblo: Migrant Justice Against Fascism in the Americas appeared first on Public Books.

Morgan Barry·May 21, 2026

Public Books

The Double Edge of Border Security: 30 Years of Expanding Executive Power through Immigration Law

In the 1990s, lawmakers—including Schumer, Biden, and Clinton—invoked civil rights ideals, even while they narrowed legal protections from detention, deportation, and policing. The post The Double Edge of Border Security: 30 Years of Expanding Executive Power through Immigration Law appeared first on Public Books.

Imani Radney·May 19, 2026