Will China’s rise lead to the end of capitalism? Will armies of robots replace the world’s workforce? And will China be able to block Facebook and Google forever? Risk expert Ian Bremmer and Dr. Doom, Nouriel Roubini give their 2013 predictions for politics and the economy to Reuters Digital Editor Chrystia Freeland.

10 Jul 2012Thomson Reuters

A benchmark election looms for a politically divided nation, and bitter partisanship in Congress could threaten the financial stability of the U.S. government if lawmakers cannot agree on how to deal with tax increases and dramatic budget cuts that could kick in at the end of the year. Meanwhile, new campaign finance laws have changed the shape of elections, allowing wealthy, often anonymous donors to pour hundreds of millions of dollars into the presidential and congressional campaigns.

Against those backdrops, the Reuters Washington Summit shed light on the political and economic forces that are driving the debates in the nation’s capital and beyond. The Summit featured a range of key players in Washington, including U.S. Sen. Rob Portman, an Ohio Republican widely viewed as a top contender to be Mitt Romney’s vice presidential running mate; House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, who as House speaker was a key player in passing President Barack Obama’s landmark healthcare overhaul in 2010; and Grover Norquist, the anti-tax advocate whose influence in Washington is such that many see him as a key reason for conservative lawmakers’ reluctance to compromise on budget and debt issues.

Over three days, news from the Reuters Summit help to drive the political narrative in Washington. For a summary recap report of the Summit, click here.  (more…)

02 Jul 2012Adam Cohen

Issues surrounding gender, poverty, population growth, philanthropy, foreign aid and global health were addressed at this week’s Aspen Ideas Festival. A panel discussion titled “The Politics of Sex” was moderated by Monique Villa, CEO of Thomson Reuters Foundation, and featured Dr. Chris Elias of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Musimbi Kanyoro of the Global Fund for Women, and Ezekiel Emanuel of the University of Pennsylvania. The conversation started on a harrowing note, the fact that 215 million women in the world are without contraception.

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Adam Sharp, senior manager of government, news and social innovation at Twitter, talks with Reuters’ Anthony De Rosa about how political campaigns are using the micro-blogging service to get quick reactions to their messages and directly engage their opponents.

09 May 2012Thomson Reuters

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Sean Reardon, Associate Professor of Sociology at Stanford University says the growing divide between rich and poor in the U.S. will polarize the political process. He adds the Occupy Wall Street is an example of this process.

18 Nov 2011Thomson Reuters