ABOUT THE EVENT:

In Spring 2023, the UCR School of Public Policy began a project with AllSides, an organization that "strengthens our democractic society with balanced news, media bias ratings, diverse perspectives, and real conversation.” Three UCR public policy students who have been part of the collaboration - Divya Bharadwaj, Andrew Shannon, and Samuel Shroff - discussed how they navigate partisanship while trying to mend political divides during their time as research assistants for AllSides.

Divya Bharadwaj is an undergraduate Public Policy major at UC Riverside. As a Research Assistant for AllSides, she works to create balanced information on issues, such as GMOs, abortion, and gun control, to expose people to information and ideas from all sides of the political spectrum. Bharadwaj embraces her inner graphic designer by creating engaging media to publish alongside each article, whether that be posts for social media or a survey to collect feedback. Along with her position at AllSides, Bharadwaj is a Dean’s Brand Ambassador for the School of Public Policy, where she interacts with guests of the school, emcees or moderates SPP hosted events, and assists with marketing and communication efforts, including writing press releases. In her free time, she enjoys trying new restaurants, visiting the jewelry section of antique shops, reading, and spending time with her family and friends.

Andrew Shannon is a second year, junior standing Public Policy student focusing on Policy Institutions and Processes and Environmental policy. He is a Dean’s Brand ambassador and is a committee member of the official podcast of the School of Public Policy, Policy Chats. Andrew is on track to receive his Bachelors and Masters degree at UCR. Andrew hopes to work in some form of government in the future as he has a passion for the sphere of politics. As an All Sides Student assistant, he gets to curate his love for politics through writing All Stances where he utilizes research and AI tools to delve into all the perspectives on political issues facing our country.

Samuel Shroff was born in Alton, Illinois, but has lived in Charlotte, Omaha, Fresno, and San Diego. He is a sophomore studying at the School of Public Policy with the goal of working as a legislative staffer, journalist, or lawyer. He is particularly interested in how partisan politics impacts the passage and implementation of United States policy and how citizens choose their representatives. He participated in Mock Congressional Debate for four years during high school, is now a Dean’s Brand Ambassador for a School of Public Policy, and also works as a Student Assistant for the school.

-