Prof. Vavreck’s Fellowship to Shine Light on 2016 “Dark Funding”

Political Science Prof. Lynn Vavreck, as UCLA’s nominee for the new Andrew Carnegie Fellowship Award, has won one of 32 initial fellowships given nationwide (selected from more than 300 applicants) by New York’s Carnegie Corporation.  She will receive $200,000 to study how super PACs and other sources of “dark funding” in U.S. elections impact the outcomes of the 2016 presidential campaign.

Prof. Vavreck — who holds a joint appointment with the Department of Communication Studies here and is a regular contributor to the NY Times “The Upshot” column – said she will make use of the new funding to develop a “virtual focus room” for reviewing election advertising paid for by the type of nonprofits now allowed to accept unlimited donations from corporations, individuals, and unions, under our current election laws.