Distinguished Faculty Speak on the 2016 Presidential Election
On Friday, November 4th, three distinguished BU professors joined us to provide diverse insight and perspective on the 2016 presidential election. Virginia Sapiro, Professor of Political Science, a former BU dean, and a former Vice President of the American Political Science Association, began with a talk entitled “The American People and This American Election” in which she addressed two overarching questions: “How did we get Donald Trump as the
Republican candidate?” and “Why did the race stay so close at the popular level for so long?” Robert Loftis, Director of Graduate Studies and Professor of the Practice at the Pardee School of Global Studies and a former State Department official and U.S. Ambassador to Lesotho, followed with a description of the current election and its potential implications for U.S. foreign policy. Then John Carroll, Assistant Professor of Mass Communication and an award-winning political journalist and creative director and consultant in the advertising industry for over two decades, spoke on the role of television and social media in the campaigns of Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump.
Following the speakers’ presentations, a vibrant Q&A session ensued. It was a deeply engaging and informative session that helped all of us to make better sense of the complicated, confusing, and terribly consequential U.S. presidential election that will take place in just four short days.