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Is he the right person for the job?
By Alice Kelly — Written on Apr 30, 2021
President Biden’s son just got a new gig. Hunter Biden has been added as a guest speaker at a Tulane University class about media polarization.
Biden is a polarizing figure in his own right. He's experienced first hand the ways in which people with different political allegiances author his reputation in the media.
For the past several years, Biden has been under intense scrutiny from conservative media over his business dealings in Ukraine.
Why is Hunter Biden teaching a class on Fake News at Tulane University?
Biden’s professional and personal life has been poked and prodded by former President Trump and his supporters as a means of discrediting his father’s political career.
So, who better to speak to the nuances of media polarization than someone who has been the victim of it? Well, Biden’s critics might not agree, nor would anyone looking for a neutral take on divisive media.
Biden, arguably, doesn’t have any credentials to teach university students apart from personal experience. However, hearing from someone who has had the media’s teeth in his neck for years will certainly be interesting, albeit somewhat biased.
Equally, Biden is just one of many speakers on the course who can, hopefully, provide a well-rounded perspective on differing viewpoints within the media.
What will Hunter Biden be covering at Tulane University?
The online, 10-week course is titled “Media Polarization and Public Policy Impacts” and covers the current state of the media in the U.S. The class will reflect on polarization, fake news and the economics of public policymaking.
Tulane University stressed to YourTango that Biden will be a guest speaker, not a guest teacher or lecturer. This means he will likely speak at just one of the classes in a conversation that will be led by the course’s co-lecturer, Andrew Schwartz.
Tulane says Schwartz is “the communications director for the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the second-largest think tank in the United States.”
The class will also welcome a range of other speakers including Dr. Deborah Birx, White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator under President Donald Trump; Juan Williams, political analyst for Fox News Channel; Kylie Atwood, national security correspondent with CNN and Margaret Brennan, "Face the Nation" moderator.
Tulane did not reveal what exactly Biden will discuss during his guest appearance.
Why Tulane University is creating a class on fake news.
The phenomenon of fake news has been a heavily debated topic in the era of Trump and before. Used by all sides, disinformation can tarnish the credibility of the media and serve as a form of propaganda to advance political or personal agendas.
In the months leading to the 2016 presidential election, Russian bots were used to amplify pro-Trump messages. Then, in 2020, Trump claimed, with no evidence, the Democratic party was enlisting the help of Big Tech to attempt to influence opinions in their favor.
In rare cases, disinformation campaigns can even lead to criminal prosecution, as was the case when one Florida man used his social media following to encourage voter suppression in 2016.
From algorithmic bias to actual government-backed disinformation campaigns, we've all been targeted by fake news in some way. The spreading of misinformation is deeply harmful to truthful politics making it vital to interrogate fake news.
Hunter Biden is a divisive figure in the media
It was revealed after the 2020 election that Biden is under federal investigation over possible tax fraud. This was framed as a coverup by the right-wing media.
However, Biden has been trying to rewrite his redemption arc in recent months while appearing in the media to promote his book, “Beautiful Things.”
Biden has detailed his substance abuse and mental health problems that dominated his life after the death of his brother Beau. He has articulated how his lowest moments were unfairly weaponized against his father as a political ploy by the Republican party.
His appearance at Tulane University will likely reveal, in-depth, what media polarization looks like when you’re in the eye of the storm.
Alice Kelly is a writer living in Brooklyn, New York. Catch her covering all things social justice, news, and entertainment. Keep up with her Twitter for more.