Recently I went to Russia. I discovered that Russians view their president, Vladimir Putin, in a much different light than many of us from the West. Russian President Vladimir Putin during a friendly soccer match, Moscow, 28 June 2018. (AP Photo/Alexander Safonov)...
What if North Korean leader Kim Jong-un challenged U.S. President Donald Trump to a round of golf in a high-stakes gamble at a historic summit? Donald Trump hits out of the sand in Pebble Beach, California, 11 February 2005. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu) News-Decoder...
Autocrat or nation-builder? Malaysia’s Mahathir still stirs mixed feelings even as he stuns the world by regaining power and reuniting with his nemesis. Mahathir Mohamad, left, and Anwar Ibrahim in September 1997, a year before the prime minister sacked his...
Malaysia has stunned the world with a political tremor that has reunited two foes and which bucks a trend towards authoritarianism in Southeast Asia. Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, center, visits former Deputy Prime Minister and opposition leader Anwar...
Some U.S. firms have cut ties with manufacturers of guns following the mass shooting at a Florida high school. But the impact of the moves is unclear. Guns on display at Dick’s Sporting Goods in Danvers, Massachusetts, 28 February 2018(EPA-EFE/CJ Gunther) The mass...
In America, reactions to school shootings follow a numbing pattern: grief, outrage and unfulfilled calls for gun laws. This time, things are different. 7,000 pairs of shoes, one for every child killed by gun violence since the 2012 Sandy Hook school shooting, on the...
Are you interested in driving political change? Getting fired up about U.S. midterm elections this year? Here’s advice from a young man in the trenches. The author (second from right) with an animated U.S. Rep. Mark Takano (D-Cal), Washington, DC, May 2017...
By Robert Hart As a new year starts, Spain’s increasingly bitter constitutional crisis over a bid for independence by the separatist-led government of the northeastern region of Catalonia seems no closer to a solution and threatens to deepen divisions in Catalan...
Democracy and the post-war world order are under siege as populist and nationalist forces gain ground around the world. We must wake up and act. This story was co-winner in the high school division in News-Decoder’s Arch Roberts Jr essay/reporting contest. You...
This article looks at the potential impact that Spain’s current constitutional crisis over independence for Catalonia could have on some of the more significant separatist movements elsewhere in Europe. For more “decoders” explaining big issues, click...