Blogs

Research on Journalists' Role in Democracy

Submitted by Kettering Blog on Fri, 03/29/2013 - 08:00

Talia Stroud of the University of Texas is embarking on a study for KF focusing on the current attitudes of journalism students toward citizens and citizenship.

Gun Regulation Prey to Same Distrust of Government as Other Major Public Issues

Submitted by Kettering Blog on Wed, 03/27/2013 - 13:06

On “This Week with George Stephanopoulos,” conservative columnist Peggy Noonan made an observation that echoes a finding that KF has found in much of its research about citizens’ judgment on major issues.

NIFI Releases Issue Advisory for Deliberations on Stopping Mass Shootings In Our Communities

Submitted by Kettering Blog on Tue, 02/05/2013 - 12:55

The National Issues Forums Institute has released an Issue Advisory that contains materials that communities might wish to use in deliberating over the issues raised by the tragic events in Newtown, CT, in December last year. It's not a full issue guide, but a basic outline of the options, entitled "How Can We Stop Mass Shootings in Our Communities?"

Ray C. Minor joins Kettering Foundation as program officer

Submitted by Kettering Blog on Thu, 01/31/2013 - 09:45

Ray C. Minor, a veteran executive with experience in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors, has joined the Kettering Foundation as a program officer. In his position as program officer, Minor will take a lead role in the Kettering Foundation’s research with public administrators and on the political engagement of college students.

Brad Rourke to join Kettering Foundation as program officer

Submitted by Kettering Blog on Thu, 01/31/2013 - 09:31

Brad Rourke will join the Kettering Foundation as a program officer, effective February 1. Rourke has worked with Kettering in various ways since 1998 and has been an associate of the foundation since 2005.

Kettering Conversations: Bringing Public Judgment In, A Conversation with John Doble

Submitted by Kettering Blog on Mon, 12/17/2012 - 09:36

One of the problems of democracy is the tendency for citizens to make hasty decisions or poor judgments.  Kettering’s long-running experiments with deliberative forums were designed, in part, in response to this challenge. Each year Kettering and NIFI commission issue guides and reports offer a frame that can support public deliberation about a specific public challenge. These reports help illuminate how the public thinks about an issue when they are confronted with tensions in making a decision about a wicked problem, such as healthcare. To better understand this process I recently sat down with John Doble to discuss the state of opinion polling and public judgment.

New KF Occasional Paper: Philanthropy and the Regeneration of Community Democracy

Submitted by Kettering Blog on Thu, 12/06/2012 - 09:01

The inquiry described in this Kettering Foundation occasional paper is located within a current debate in philanthropy and among its critics about the behavior of public foundations (including community foundations) and private foundations alike.

New Working Paper - Framing for Democracy: Exploring the Impacts of Adversarial and Deliberative Framing, Understanding the Longer-Term Benefits of Deliberation

Submitted by Kettering Blog on Thu, 12/06/2012 - 08:58

This Kettering Foundation Working Paper describes a project by researchers from Public Agenda and the Colorado State University Center for Public Deliberation that examined the impacts of framing and experience with deliberative issue framing.

"Shaping Our Future" Moderator Trainings Now Available Online

Submitted by Kettering Blog on Thu, 12/06/2012 - 08:43

Archived version of “Shaping Our Future” Moderator Training webinar, conducted by Ellen Knutson.

New Report on Citizen Deliberations on the Debt Now Available

Submitted by Kettering Blog on Thu, 11/29/2012 - 15:36

While pundits say that most Americans are unrealistic about the scope of the debt problem and unwilling to support needed changes,  Jean Johnson reports that deliberations by groups of citizens around the country suggest that, in fact, this is an issue where solutions exist and are within reach.