by Dennis Ganahl, Ph.D. According to the Poynter Institute, a journalism think tank, the United States ranked last among 46 countries in media credibility in 2021. They reported only 29 percent of Americans trusted the media. Why don’t Americans trust the media? As a journalist who was taught the First Amendment is the 11th Commandment and the Fourth Estate, I’m appalled at the number of politicians and many so-called journalists, who are calling for the end…

by Maryann O. Keating, Ph.D. Adam Smith believed that Britain’s defense of offshore colonies was an unfit project benefitting a subset of society at the expense of the whole (“Of Colonies,” The Wealth of Nations, Vol. II, Chapter VII, Liberty Fund Edition, 1981). In his chapter on defense, Smith does not address affluent nations seeking hegemony or a balance of power. Rather, he limits his warnings to advanced civilized nations defending liberty and prosperity from those…

Politics Corrupts Crime Data MOST EVERYONE CAN AGREE that protecting citizens and property is the justification for any legitimate government. So how is ours doing? Well, you don’t know, and you can’t find out. The FBI says crime is falling. The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) sponsored by the Census Bureau says it isn’t. Your local police chief, with his eye on the politics of the matter, will be of no help either way. The Wall Street Journal takes the pessimistic view.…

by Richard McGowan, Ph.D. The media in 2024, including newspapers, were quieter than in previous years regarding the horrible events of Sept. 11, 2001. Prior to this year, the media had consistently presented newscasts and provided articles on the fraught nature of Muslim existence in America. The typical article had pictures of Muslim families followed by a sympathetic analysis of Muslim experiences. What changed? I suspect the events of Oct. 7 quieted editors and media voices on the difficulties Muslims…

Bad Statistics, Worse Policies “There are lies, damned lies and statistics,” — Mark Twain WE TOUCHED ON THIS the other day, correlation but not causation, the inability to legitimately deduce a cause-and-effect relationship between two variables solely on the basis of an observed association. What if the number of Indiana hate crime complaints was not the same thing as the number of hate crimes, we asked. There’s more to it. indeed, an entire industry is built on…

9by MARK FRANKE Poor Abraham Lincoln.  When I was in school during the dark ages of our republic, Lincoln was known as the Great Emancipator and the man who saved the Union. His birthday was observed but not as an “everybody gets a free day off work” holiday. Still, it was an important day remembering the significance of one of the two most important of our presidents. Then Abe ran into the cancel-culture mob. It…

Knocking Down KKK Straw Men IT IS THE MOST DISAPPOINTING piece of journalism you should ever hope to read — the Indianapolis Star’s “investigation” Wednesday of the “right wing” in Indiana. Please excuse the use of scare quotes here but the lack of definition in the article and its spurious intent require them. Here is the headline: “Same Goals, New Tactics: How Extremist Groups Have Weaponized Social Media to Push Agendas.” The rest is an irrelevant and inchoate reading of history, that and base characterizations.…

The Diversity Horizon CAN WE SEPARATE DIVERSITY from identity long enough to understand that when it is arbitrarily applied it weakens any effort? Probably not, but here is an attempt. If you are putting together a team and decide to ensure that one-third of them are from Kansas then you have denied yourself the untold talent/ability/energy of those non-Kansans who might have joined. You have gained nothing in return. You have lost competitive advantage. Yet, you can…

Lucas Oil Stadium: A Big Hole in the Roof IT WAS AN OUTRAGEOUS admission: Officials do not know the exact cost of the subsidized Lucas Oil stadium, specifically that part assigned to the retractable roof. The Colts had told the Indianapolis Star that the team was never given a “line item” on how much the roof added to the price of the stadium. Now Rick McKinney, a former member of the Hamilton County Council and the lone vote against…

Is China a Threat? by Mark Franke It is interesting to observe how public opinion can change in short order. Twenty or so years ago China was viewed as an ideal market for American goods as it began an economic liberalization away from state-controlled communism toward a somewhat freer market system. The thought was that the purchasing power of its peasant population would rise with this economic liberalization.  Now China is viewed by many as…