In Egypt, the “Prayer for the Absentees” of Flight MS804 Still Resonates

Faith and Social Media Provide Comfort to Egyptians Mourning the EgyptAir Tragedy

When the news arrived that EgyptAir flight MS804 was missing, I was sitting in an ahwa, a small traditional local café, having morning coffee with two of my closest friends in Cairo: Aly Hamza, a law student, and Omar Hossam, a 23-year-old pilot.

Such a scene is familiar to Egyptians. And so was the bad news. This was the third instance of aviation disaster for Egypt in the past year, after the October 2015 explosion that brought down the Russian Metrojet leaving the Sinai and the hijacking of an EgyptAir flight …

Mourning Prince, Ziggy Stardust … and Oedipus

Social Media Brings an Ancient Greek Twist to a Previously Private American Ritual

After Prince died my Facebook news feed filled with mourning. My friends shared the time he sang “Starfish and Coffee” with the Muppets, told stories of going to concerts at …

Where Does FOMO Come From?

MIT’s Sherry Turkle, author of Reclaiming Conversation: The Power of Talk in a Digital Age, tells Zócalo Public Square Publisher Gregory Rodriguez how social media has heightened our fear of …

Why It’s So Funny That Republicans Are Upset With Facebook for “Censoring” News

The GOP Has Had Plenty of Opportunities to Preserve Freedom of Expression Online via Antitrust Regulation, and Thwarted Them All

America’s right wing is in a froth this week following allegations that Facebook has tweaked its “trending news” feed to reduce the visibility of conservative news sites. Maybe it’s true, …

Can We Close the Empathy Gap?

Sixth Annual Zócalo Book Prize Winner Sherry Turkle Thinks We Can Learn How to Talk—and Connect—Again as Humans

Zócalo Publisher Gregory Rodriguez said he was terrified as he opened a discussion onstage at MOCA Grand Avenue with MIT’s Sherry Turkle.

It wasn’t, however, because he was moderating in front …

Have Emojis Replaced Emotions?

As the Digital Age Expands Our "Connections," We’re Losing the Value of Face-to-Face Relationships

What could be more human than conversation, and what better time than now to converse? The desire to connect is a powerful force, technology a mighty conduit.

Last month, when …