Sign in

Scott Althaus

@salthaus.bsky.social
569 followers 197 following 76 posts

Cline Center Director, professor of political science and communication at Illinois, current data scientist, former Tower Rat. www.clinecenter.illinois.edu

PostsRepliesMedia
Reposted by Scott Althaus
V-Dem Institute @vdeminstitute.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Today is the #InternationalDayOfDemocracy. But what is democracy? Most agree that democracy is some form of “rule by the people”. But it’s open to debate what that actually means in practice, and what should be considered fundamental parts of the definition of democracy.👇 v-dem.net/news/interna...
An abandoned building features a prominent democracy poster.
1129 0
Reposted by Scott Althaus
Matthew Sag @matthewsag.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
My new textbook on Copyright Law in the Age of AI is now up on my website as a free pdf. I will move it to a dedicated website soon, but for now matthewsag.com/copyright-la...
matthewsag.com
Copyright Law in the Age of AI – Matthew Sag
67929 0
Reposted by Scott Althaus
Alexandra Filindra @afilindra.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Who gets to be an armed citizen — and who gets to be a citizen at all? Race, Rights, and Rifles follows that question from the Revolution to now, and shows what believing the answer does to democratic commitments. Audiobook on sale through the end of August: www.audiobooks.com/promotions/p...
audiobooks.com
60% OFF Race, Rights, and Rifles: The Origins of the NRA and Contemporary Gun Culture
An eye-opening examination of the ties between American gun culture and white male supremacy from the American Revolution to today. One-third of American adults—approximately 86 million p...
021 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
Does your county have more/ fewer uses of lethal force by police than population size, pop density, and firearm violence levels would predict? See where your county lines up relative to national benchmarks in the new SPOTLITE Anomaly Detector dashboard: clinecenter.illinois.edu/spotlite/ano...
clinecenter.illinois.edu
The SPOTLITE Anomaly Detector  | Cline Center
044 0
Reposted by Scott Althaus
Adam Serwer @adamserwer.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
So CBS and others invested in a pro trump audience that won’t arrive, alienating their actual audience, and trump propagandists are losing audience bc people are souring on Trump. Also helps explain the increased racist shrieking as they try to farm engagement www.nytimes.com/2026/07/31/u...
nytimes.com
How the Pro-Trump Media Ecosystem Is Splintering Ahead of the Midterms
Once united in support of President Trump, right-wing influencers are embroiled in feuds and losing viewers, creating a problem for Republicans in the midterm elections.
912999722 0
Reposted by Scott Althaus
Nicholas Grossman @nicholasgrossman.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
Houthis firing at Red Sea ships and Saudi Arabia. Iraqi groups fire drones at Saudi Arabia. US and Saudi Arabia bomb PMF/KH targets in Iraq; reportedly kill some IRGC too. Drone attack on a shipping hub in Egypt. Looks like Iran activated its network of militias, unlike in the pre-MOU fighting.
1731691 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
Seen at Aldi just now. I knew inflation was up, but wow. Or maybe I’m missing the value proposition?
120 0
Reposted by Scott Althaus
Noam Ross @noamross.net · 27/05/2026
The National Science Foundation is terminating and suspending grants again, and at Grant Witness we need you to help to track them! 🧪 We can only identify research being suppressed by under-the-radar suspensions directly from researchers. Please report! grant-witness.us/posts/2026-0... #NSF
grant-witness.us
New Grant Disruptions at NSF - We Need Your Help to Report! – Grant Witness
5460424 0
Reposted by Scott Althaus
APSA @apsa.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
Letter from APSA Presidents to Senate on FY2026 Federal Budget Appropriations This letter is not an official APSA statement. The is an independent letter issued by former and some current APSA leadership shared for members' awareness. We, Presidents of the American Political Science Association,…
politicalsciencenow.com
Letter from APSA Presidents to Senate on FY2026 Federal Budget Appropriations
This letter is not an official APSA statement. The is an independent letter issued by former and some current APSA leadership shared for members' awareness. We, Presidents of the American Political Science Association, write in our individual capacities to express our deep appreciation for your unwavering support of the United States’ science and technology enterprise in the FY2026 federal budget appropriations, including important, if reduced, support for the social and behavioral sciences.
095 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
Are we entering a new period of Jim Crow? I certainly hope not. But reading V.O. Key’s Southern Politics shows me that the voting rights debates that we’re seeing today have strong resonance with the period between 1890 and 1910 when Jim Crow was set into law across southern states in the US. 13/13.
V.O. Key, American political scientist.
0105 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
Third, the main opportunities for legally diluting the power of minority voting groups today lie in gerrymandering and in erecting barriers to voting that are not racially targeted but have racially-specific effects, like requiring particular forms of ID or prohibiting mail-in voting. 12/
141 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
Second, literacy tests were banned in the Voting Rights Act of 1965, poll taxes were outlawed by the 24th amendment in 1964, and white primaries were banned in a series of court cases ending in 1953. These are no longer available for racialized discrimination, but other things are. 11/
131 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
First, laws intended to be discriminatory in their effects often don’t look discriminatory in their texts. It is how these laws are used, not what they say, that provides the racially discriminatory outcomes that the Jim Crow era was known for. 10/
264 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
It's complicated, because a party is a private organization that exercises public power. The law now recognizes this in more nuanced ways than used to be the case during Jim Crow days.
110 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
.... If only white people were allowed to participate in a Democratic primary, then that was held at the time to be the party’s decision to make. Thankfully this is no longer the case. So what does V.O. Key’s Southern Politics have to say to us today? Here are a few takeaways. 9/
271 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
Eighth, the only explicitly racialized Jim Crow element was the white primary, which held that political parties were private organizations, and so private organizations could decide how they wanted to select their party nominee. 8/
160 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
Seventh, this meant in practice that the discriminatory products of Jim Crow laws were almost exclusively resulting from discriminatory decisions made by local voting officials—typically county-level officials— on when to use these laws. That’s how black citizens were targeted by these laws. 8/
192 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
Sixth, these Jim Crow laws were designed to avoid legal disputes involving constitutional rights. Literacy tests could be given to anyone at the discretion of county voting officials, even if in practice they targeted mostly black Americans. Legally, at the time, they passed muster. 7/
281 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
Fifth, I learned from Key’s Southern Politics that Jim Crow laws were written in race-neutral language. There was “plausible deniability” about their real purpose, and the language used to discuss them publicly was rarely racialized, even though everyone understood what they were there for. 6/
1157 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
Fourth, each state was disempowering black citizens for its own reasons. This helps to explain why some states had very extensive Jim Crow laws while others had simpler ones, and why the mix of restrictive elements (poll taxes, literary tests, white primaries) varied so much across states. 5/
160 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
Third, Key’s Southern Politics shows how the origins of each state’s Jim Crow laws reflected internal political dynamics within states, rather than a common regional strategy to develop these laws simultaneously. States learned from one another, but didn’t appear to coordinate their efforts. 4/
1101 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
The second is how these laws were unevenly implemented across states. Each state had its own combination of legal codes, and this state-level variation is what drew Key to better understand how it came about and what its practical implications were for black populations in the south. 3/
151 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
The first is how localized the effects of Jim Crow laws were. Even though these were mostly state-level legal codes, their implementation was highly inconsistent at the local level. This meant that the oppressive effects of these laws on black populations were unevenly distributed within states. 2/
171 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
With everything in the news I've been reflecting on V.O. Key's Southern Politics, which traces the history, implementation, and political implications of the South's Jim Crow legal regime. I learned a few things about that history that are relevant to today. 1/ archive.org/details/sout...
archive.org
Southern politics in State and Nation : Key, V. O. (Valdimer Orlando), 1908-1963 : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive
xxvi, 675, xiv pages 25 cm
12914 0
Reposted by Scott Althaus
awkword @awkword.bsky.social · 13/05/2026
Your iPhone tracks everything you do — and say. Here are three quick-fixes to tighten your security settings. P.S. No technology is safe.
THE CAPITALIST HELLSCAPE
Privacy x Security
YOUR IPHONE IS LISTENING.
HERE'S WHAT YOU CAN DO
@awkwordisthisTHE IMPORTANT LOCATIONS
TRAP
Your iPhone keeps a hidden map of your most frequented places. It's used to analyze and predict behavioral patterns.
FIX: Settings > Privacy and Security >
Location Services > System Services >
Significant Locations & Routes > Disable
@awkwordisthisTHE INTER-APP TRACKING PIT
Apps talk to each other.
Search for something on Amazon or Target, and Instagram and Facebook know within an instant.
FIX: Settings > Privacy and Security >
Tracking > Deactivate "Allow Apps to Request to Track You"
@awkwordisthisTHE ADVERTISING ID FOOTPRINT
Your phone has a unique ID for advertisers. Think of it as a personalized digital profile of all your online habits.
FIX: Settings > Privacy and Security > Apple
Advertising > Disable
@awkwordisthis
661069558 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
Finding 3.3: As statewide daily arrests went up, the percentage of arrestees with criminal convictions went down. Full report available here: www.clinecenter.illinois.edu/project/fire...
000 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
Finding 3.2: The percentage of arrestees with one or more prior criminal convictions was lower during Operation Midway Blitz than at any period since the start of 2024.
100 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
Finding 3.1: Following a slow decline in ICE arrests across Illinois in 2024, the start of Operation Midway Blitz marked the fourth period of surging ICE arrests in 2025.
110 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
The @cline-center.bsky.social report on Operation Midway Blitz for the Illinois Accountability Commission also analyzed ICE arrests in Illinois. Download our full report here: clinecenter.illinois.edu/project/fire...
clinecenter.illinois.edu
231 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
Finding 1.7: Destabilizing acts by federal actors were concentrated in Broadview and Cicero as well as in Albany Park, Little Village, Back of the Yards, and other neighborhoods of western and southern Chicago.
000 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
Finding 1.6: The daily number of destabilizing governmental acts peaked in late October 2025.
100 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
Finding 1.5: While physical force was most commonly used, federal actors deployed chemical weapons on at least 63 occasions during Operation Midway Blitz. clinecenter.illinois.edu/project/fire...
clinecenter.illinois.edu
Firewatch Project | Cline Center
110 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
Finding 1.4: Federal actors used some kind of physical violence in 61.6% of destabilizing governmental acts.
110 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
Finding 1.3: Among federal law enforcement actors, ICE was the most frequent initiator of destabilizing governmental acts. clinecenter.illinois.edu/project/fire...
clinecenter.illinois.edu
Firewatch Project | Cline Center
100 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
Finding 1.2: Federal law enforcement officials initiated most of the destabilizing governmental acts involving federal actors during Operation Midway Blitz.
100 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
1. Findings about Destabilizing Governmental Acts Initiated by Federal Actors Finding 1.1: News reports documented at least 510 destabilizing acts initiated by federal actors, including 380 events involving questionable arrests. clinecenter.illinois.edu/project/fire...
clinecenter.illinois.edu
Firewatch Project | Cline Center
100 0
Scott Althaus @salthaus.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
Last week the @cline-center.bsky.social released a report for the Illinois Accountability Commission documenting 510 instability acts by federal actors during Operation Midway Blitz, including 63 uses of chemical weapons. Download our full report here: clinecenter.illinois.edu/project/fire...
clinecenter.illinois.edu
Firewatch Project | Cline Center
136 0
Reposted by Scott Althaus
Joshua Kertzer @jkertzer.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
🚨 Now out in @bjpols.bsky.social w @busbyj2.bsky.social @jordantama.bsky.social @ckafura.bsky.social: Do American foreign policy elites know what the public wants? Partnering with @global-affairs.bsky.social, we show that elites systematically misread the room 🧵 www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
27728 0
Reposted by Scott Althaus
Cline Center @cline-center.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
The Illinois Accountability Commission’s final report incorporates data and analysis from the Cline Center’s Firewatch project documenting societal instability events involving federal actors during Operation Midway Blitz. Our full report and methodology:
buff.ly
Overview of Societal Instability Events Involving Federal Government Actors in the Chicagoland Area from September 1, 2025 through January 30, 2026 | IDEALS
https://hdl.handle.net/2142/133156 Copy
121 0
Reposted by Scott Althaus
Nick Valentino @nickvalentino.bsky.social · 03/03/2026
Dear ANES community, the link below introduces our new Board of Advisors, led by Jamie Druckman. Jamie follows John Aldrich, who deftly chaired the Board for nearly 2 decades. This new group will guide us through the 2028 election cycle. Our deepest thanks to outgoing and incoming Board members!
electionstudies.org
Current Board Members - ANES | American National Election Studies
25219 0
Reposted by Scott Althaus
Curd Knüpfer @curdknupfer.bsky.social · 08/01/2026
✨Get yourself some FREE BOOK CHAPTERS!!! 🤩⤵️ (Temporarily open access)
096 0
Reposted by Scott Althaus
Ozan Kuru @ozankuru.bsky.social · 04/12/2025
"Instead of treating all individuals and groups equally with respect to their status, power, or ends, a group theory of political communication requires normative analysis of the positioning of groups vis-a-vis one another and liberal democracy."
053 0
Reposted by Scott Althaus
John Holbein @johnholbein1.bsky.social · 02/12/2025
"Prediction Markets? The Accuracy and Efficiency of $2.4 Billion in the 2024 Presidential Election" osf.io/preprints/so...
1114 0
Reposted by Scott Althaus
Jen Mercieca @jenmercieca.bsky.social · 29/11/2025
“They won’t insure you,” Ms. Rojas said. “No one will buy from you. You’re kind of stuck where you are.” www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
nytimes.com
A Climate ‘Shock’ Is Eroding Some Home Values. New Data Shows How Much. (Gift Article)
Changes in the insurance market have started to affect home prices in the most disaster-prone areas, new research finds, pushing some homeowners’ finances to the breaking point.
65534 0
Reposted by Scott Althaus
Mike Wagner @prowag.bsky.social · 04/11/2025
New work examining how people’s use of multiple platforms is associated in being exposed to ideas they might not agree with.
061 0
Reposted by Scott Althaus
Reuters Institute @reutersinstitute.bsky.social · 28/10/2025
We've just published the most comprehensive study of news creators to date covering 24 countries. Authored by Nic Newman @amyrossarguedas.bsky.social @mitalilive.bsky.social @richardfletcher.bsky.social, it identifies the most mentioned in each country 📱Report buff.ly/bL6y8Hj 🧵6 findings in thread
25233 0
Reposted by Scott Althaus
Jonathan Ladd @jonathanmladd.com · 29/10/2025
It is finally finished and released! I was proud to be a member of the Task Force on 2024 Pre-Election Polling, and to play just a small role in producing this report. Here is the report: aapor.org/wp-content/u... And here is the Executive Summary: aapor.org/wp-content/u...
aapor.org
57027 0
Reposted by Scott Althaus
Cline Center @cline-center.bsky.social · 27/10/2025
Join us on October 30th at 2:30 pm for the Annual Richard G. and Carol J. Cline Symposium. Experts will discuss “Accountable Policing after the SAFE-T Act” in a roundtable on Zoom. RSVP here: buff.ly/lKLRF2L
011 0
Reposted by Scott Althaus
David Darmofal @daviddarmofal.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
US soybean farmers have to be one of the strongest Trump-voting constituencies in the country.
173 0
Reposted by Scott Althaus
Center for Media Engagement - UT Austin @engagingnews.bsky.social · 13/10/2025
This shift is reshaping how we interact with information. Worth a read.
021 0