Social Science Research Council
For Support Of The Anxieties Of Democracy Program
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Amount$500,000
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Program
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Date Awarded7/14/2014
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Term32 Months
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Type of SupportGeneral Support/Program
Strategies
Overview
This grant will support the Social Science Research Council’s Anxieties of Democracy program. Developed initially with a previous grant from the Hewlett Foundation, the program "seeks to strengthen and integrate social science research and analysis on the obstacles to democracy’s capacity to address big problems and induce both younger and more experienced colleagues to work on the themes of citizenship, governmental capacity, and the substance of policy." The Council seeks to transform how the academy approaches problems of democracy and to better inform the public debate. This grant will enable the Council to execute its ambitious plans and includes a matching component to encourage other funders to support this important work.
About the Grantee
Grantee Website
www.ssrc.org
Address
One Pierrepont Plaza
15th Floor
Brooklyn, NY 11201
15th Floor
Brooklyn, NY 11201
Grants to this Grantee
for support of the Social Media and Democracy Research Initiative
The Hewlett Foundation recently launched a fund to research how digital disinformation is affecting political polarization and undermining U.S. democracy, and what can be done about it. One challenge has been securing data access from online platforms. In April, an agreement was reached with Facebook to make data available to scholars, in privacy-protected ways, to better understand how Facebook is impacting elections, and democracy, globally. The agreement brings together seven funders from across the ideological spectrum. The Social Science Research Council will play a key role. The council is one of the most respected institutions working globally to foster research on important public issues and will be engaged at every stage of this work: announcing requests for proposals, selecting and awarding funds to scholars, and translating learnings to the public.
