Pa. election results, Shapiro’s speeches, and state laws are all prediction market bets. Could this lead to corruption?; Spotlight PA, September 3, 2026

Jaxon White , Spotlight PA; Pa. election results, Shapiro’s speeches, and state laws are all prediction market bets. Could this lead to corruption?

"Who will win Pennsylvania’s race for governor? How many data centers will be proposed here? Which state laws will be enacted this year?

That’s just a sample of the political questions that prediction market platforms, like Kalshi and Polymarket, allow people to bet on.

These platforms, which allow people to wager on the outcomes of a wide range of real-world events, are exploding in popularity. As the midterms approach and these markets receive more scrutiny, some ethics experts are raising concerns that they are ripe for abuse from government insiders or bad faith actors looking to sway elections."

Research shows ethics education teaches kids right from wrong. Why can so few students access it?; The Conversation, August 31, 2026

Michael Noetel, Geetanjali Basarkod, The Conversation; Research shows ethics education teaches kids right from wrong. Why can so few students access it?

"How important is it that kids learn to tell right from wrong?

Businessman and former university chancellor David Gonski recently called for ethics classes to be rolled out in all Australian schools to boost social cohesion. 

At the moment, ethics does not get dedicated time in the school curriculum. 

Some might argue children don’t need school ethics classes if they already learn ethics from their parents and other adults in their lives. 

But our research shows formal ethics education can make a difference. In the largest ever review on the subject, we found teaching ethics can improve students’ ability to reason through ethical issues and prioritise doing the right thing."

A Society of Cheats; The Atlantic, August 30, 2026

John Paul Rollert , The Atlantic; A Society of Cheats

Students’ use of AI is teaching them to cut corners, disdain rules, and believe that integrity is for suckers and wimps.

"By now, there have been many articles about how undergraduates’ promiscuous use of AI will affect their intellectual development, but I’m far more interested in its moral consequences. This is partly because I’m pretty confident about the former—I’ve told graduate students who actually learned how to write papers in college that I anticipate a generation of incompetents roughly a decade behind them—but also because I teach classes in leadership and business ethics, and I’m aghast at so many young people seemingly habituating themselves to cheating as a way of life.

Many students would no doubt object to this claim, but plainly that’s what they’re doing, cheating their way through their education. Every paper they don’t write, every problem set they don’t prepare, every serious reading they summarize into a memo—all of these are exercises in cutting corners, in getting by, and, at graduation time, in gaining a degree they didn’t earn.

That word is key: earn. To say that someone “earned” something is to apply a moral distinction to what one acquires. Not only can we get things we didn’t earn, but we can also obtain things we don’t deserve. The first is the good fortune of the trust-fund kid, the second the province of a thief.

Students are spending a lot of time learning to be thieves nowadays, and once they receive their dubious diplomas, they will enter the “real world” with all the qualities of a criminal syndicate: a knack for cutting corners, a disdain for community rules, and an assumption that a spirit of integrity, and the sacrifices it assumes, is the reserve of suckers and wimps. We will be a society of cheats."

Culture and ethics meets tech: UCLA debuts country’s first bachelor’s in digital humanities; LAist via Cal Matters, August 27, 2026

Mikhail Zinshteyn, LAist via Cal Matters,; Culture and ethics meets tech: UCLA debuts country’s first bachelor’s in digital humanities

"UCLA is launching the nation’s first digital humanities department and bachelor’s degree this fall. The new discipline combines classical humanities with technical know-how to examine a digitized and increasingly AI-enhanced world.

The major fuses technological tools for statistical analysis, coding, 3D mapping and data visualization with traditional humanities subjects like history, literature and global cultures. It’s a multidisciplinary approach to education that capitalizes on employers’ growing desire for recent graduates to think critically while also being able to harness new technology. And the major requires a great deal of teamwork among students, another skill hiring managers seek.

Students will learn how new technologies shape culture and the human biases that enter into the use of these new tools. Top of mind is the rise of generative artificial intelligence and training students to use it ethically while also understanding how easily it can produce misleading content."

Why Silicon Valley’s Vision of the AI Future Should Worry You; Time, August 24, 2026

 Liz Bucar, Time; Why Silicon Valley’s Vision of the AI Future Should Worry You

"Everyone has a vision of the ultimate future, some picture of what the world looks like at its best (or worst), and whether that future is even reachable. In religious studies, we call this an “eschatology.” 

Eschatology isn’t just the Book of Revelation or the Rapture. The Greek meaning of eschaton is “last things,” and today the word captures the set of beliefs a person holds about where things are headed and what that implies for the present. 

You don’t have to be religious to have an eschatology. Political optimism is an eschatology, whatever side you’re on. Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist,thinks the future is something we build our way toward with free childcare and buses. Stephen Miller, one of the architects of the current immigration crackdown,thinks it’s something we had and lost, but can get back through sealing the border and mass deportations. Neither one just describes the future. Both are telling you what you’re obligated to do about it right now. In other words, your eschatology shapes your ethics, because what you believe is coming determines what you feel obligated to do today."

AI Has Plunged the Book Publishing Industry Into Utter Chaos; Wall Street Journal, August 17, 2026

 Anna Silman, Wall Street Journal; AI Has Plunged the Book Publishing Industry Into Utter Chaos

The spectacular implosions of big deals over suspected AI use are forcing a reckoning over creativity, trust and the future of the industry

"The spectacular implosions of big book deals over suspected AI use—and fears about who might be next—are forcing a reckoning over the nature of authorship, the relationship between writers and publishers and the industry’s long-term survival. But nobody can seem to agree who exactly is responsible for solving this problem, or even how much a problem it actually is."

A bruising 24 hours - what next for Fifa and under-pressure Infantino?; BBC, August 1, 2026

Dale Johnson , BBC; A bruising 24 hours - what next for Fifa and under-pressure Infantino?

"On Tuesday morning, Gianni Infantino was in an impregnable position as Fifa president, the most powerful job in football.

Now, after trying to sell stakes in Fifa competitions to private investments firms - apparently without the knowledge of anyone else - Infantino's position appears to be under threat."

White House agrees to ethics provision in crypto bill; The Hill, July 21, 2026

 JULIA SHAPERO  , The Hill; White House agrees to ethics provision in crypto bill

"The White House has agreed to an ethics provision in a cryptocurrency regulation bill amid a final push to pass the legislation in the Senate.

The provision would bar all federal officials from offering or issuing digital assets, with the Department of Justice (DOJ) tasked with enforcing the measure, an industry source told The Hill following a meeting with White House crypto adviser Patrick Witt."

Ethics Panel Recommends Censure for Rep. Spillane for ‘Demeaning’ Comments; InDepthNH.org, July 17, 2026

Nancy West , InDepthNH.org; Ethics Panel Recommends Censure for Rep. Spillane for ‘Demeaning’ Comments

"The Committee charged Spillane with violations of the Ethics Guidelines, Section 1, Principles of Public Service, Paragraph III, Principle of Accountability, which provides that legislators “shall ensure that government is conducted openly, equitably and honorably in a manner that permits the citizenry to make informed judgments, have confidence in the integrity of the legislature, and hold government officials accountable” and Paragraph IV, Principle of Conduct, which provides that legislators “shall treat each other, legislative employees, and the public with dignity and respect.”

It will be up to the House to vote on the committee’s recommendation. The next time the House is expected to be in session will be Veto Day in September or October.

The report said Spillane admitted to making the postings identifying him as a state Representative at a hearing on the matter, but said they weren’t made in the performance of his official duties so his conduct didn’t fall within the jurisdiction of the Committee. Spillane also argued that his comments in the social media posts are protected speech under the federal and New Hampshire constitutions.

“While the right of freedom of speech is fundamental, it is not absolute. Certain categories of speech such as defamation and harassment can be restricted. In this case Rep. Horrigan testified that the offensive statements made in the posts were not true and. Rep. Harvey testified that she had legitimate concerns about her safety,” the report said.

In 2020, the civil rights unit of the Attorney General’s Office investigated a social media post by Spillane that stated “Public Service Announcement: If you see a (Black Lives Matter) sign on a lawn it’s the same as  having the porch light on for Halloween. You’re free to loot and burn that house.” Spillane said at the time he meant that post as “tongue-in-cheek” political commentary and the investigation was suspended with no action taken."

People of faith are finding a new moral guide in AI; The Washington Post, July 17, 2026

David DeSteno is a professor of psychology at Northeastern University., The Washington Post; People of faith are finding a new moral guide in AI

"Artificial intelligence has fundamentally changed the way we get information. If you have questions about the factors that underlie a medical diagnosis or how best to invest your savings, asking an AI chatbot for guidance can give you quick, easy and often surprisingly accurate information in a conversational form. But people are also turning to AI to explore deeper questions than they might ask a physician, financial adviser or professor — questions that, for millennia, were the province of religion."

Rutgers University investigates ethics complaint against dean who billed the university for services offered by her company; WHYY, July 15, 2026

P. Kenneth Burns , WHYY; Rutgers University investigates ethics complaint against dean who billed the university for services offered by her company

"Rutgers University is investigating a dean at its Newark campus for allegedly making thousands of dollars by doing business with the university through a company she co-owns with her sister.

Jacqueline S. Mattis, dean of the Rutgers-Newark School of Arts and Sciences, SASN, was paid $142,515 for services provided to Rutgers by her company, Easton’s Nook LLC, since she began her job in July 2020, according to records reviewed by WHYY News. The funds went to pay for writing workshops and retreats, some of which took place in Jamaica."

City Bar Urges Senate Judiciary Committee to Reject Todd Blanche as U.S. Attorney General; New York City Bar, July 13, 2026

New York City Bar; City Bar Urges Senate Judiciary Committee to Reject Todd Blanche as U.S. Attorney General

"In a letter to the Chairman and Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, the New York City Bar Association urges the Committee to reject the nomination of Todd Blanche to serve as Attorney General of the United States.

“Mr. Blanche has taken actions that we believe make him unfit to lead an ethical and independent department of justice that is essential to our nation’s democracy,” the City Bar writes. “Mr. Blanche’s record – particularly the actions he has undertaken as Deputy Attorney General and Acting Attorney General – conclusively demonstrates his lack of commitment to the integrity, professionalism and independence that the Senate should require and the American people should expect of the highest law enforcement official in the land.”

The City Bar writes that despite Mr. Blanche’s formal credentials, his actions, both as Deputy Attorney General and as Acting Attorney General, have “repeatedly demonstrated that his primary loyalty is not to the United States Constitution or the rule of law but to President Donald J. Trump, whom Mr. Blanche previously represented as a private attorney and whose personal interests he has continued to protect. As a result, his actions have been detrimental to the Department of Justice and the rule of law. Specifically, Mr. Blanche has compromised the integrity and independence of the Department he has been nominated to lead.”"

The Trump Family and ‘Honest Graft’; Wall Street Journal, July 1, 2026

 

The Editorial Board , Wall Street Journal; The Trump Family and ‘Honest Graft’

They are profiting off the Presidency in ways that demean the office.

"Americans tell pollsters they don’t think they are getting ahead financially. But President Trump and his family are having no trouble, judging from his 2025 financial disclosure report released Tuesday. The Trump clan is cashing in on the Presidency in big and sketchy ways.

The 927-page report shows Mr. Trump made some $1.4 billion last year from crypto alone. Yowzers. This includes $635 million in royalties from the memecoin that Mr. Trump launched days before his inauguration. Trump Organization business affiliates make money from what are akin to transaction fees when the memecoin is traded.

Another $593 million came from token and equity sales by World Liberty Financial, whose co-founders include the President, his sons and special envoy Steve Witkoff. Mr. Witkoff’s son, Zach, is its CEO. A business entity affiliated with Mr. Trump and his family members owns a major chunk of World Liberty."

As Trump reports $2.2 billion in 2025 income, ethics experts raise alarm; Los Angeles Times, July 1, 2026

Jenny Jarvie, Los Angeles Times; As Trump reports $2.2 billion in 2025 income, ethics experts raise alarm

"Ethics experts sounded the alarm Wednesday after new financial disclosure reports revealed that President Trump’s income ballooned to $2.2 billion in 2025, with $1.4 billion coming from various new cryptocurrency-related businesses.

“It’s bribery. It’s graft. It’s exploitation of public power for private financial gain,” said Kathleen Clark, a law professor at Washington University and an expert in government ethics. “Trump has — with the acquiescence of a somnolent, GOP-controlled Congress and the active assistance of John Roberts’ Supreme Court — transformed the presidency into a massive corruption racket.”

Trump reported income of over $600 million in 2024. But after he entered the White House in 2025, he reported that his income had soared to more than $2.2 billion."

Have a Thorny Medical Question? Your Doctor May Be Using A.I. for That.; The New York Times, June 8, 2026

Steve Lohr, The New York Times; Have a Thorny Medical Question? Your Doctor May Be Using A.I. for That 

"OpenEvidence’s A.I. app, essentially a chatbot for medicine, has become a viral hit with physicians. Talk to a doctor and chances are he or she uses the app to ask specific medical questions or bounce ideas off it in a diagnostic dialogue.

More than half of the nation’s physicians are regular users. Last month, they used it for 30 million questions and consultations, nearly twice the volume from six months earlier, according to the start-up. A separate survey last year of 1,000 physicians found that 45 percent of them used the app, nearly triple the percentage who used ChatGPT, according to Offcall, a career information service for doctors.

That growth propelled the start-up to a $12 billion valuation in January, up from $3.5 billion last July.

But doctors’ quick adoption of the app since its introduction in 2024 — one of a handful of A.I.-enhanced programs on the market seeking to win over physicians — has heightened concerns about how and when the technology should be used in life-or-death situations. In a high-stakes field like medicine, health care systems are navigating thorny matters of patient privacy, safety and trust, as well as the limitations of the technology itself.

“It’s not an oracle, it’s a tool,” said Daniel Nadler, founder and chief executive of OpenEvidence. “Knowledge and knowledge workers still matter.

The doctor’s office has been a target for computer-assisted decision making for decades, with very limited success until the recent advances of A.I."

The Scenario I Imagined for This Year’s Ethics Class Final; Christianity Today, June 3, 2026

RUSSELL MOORE, Christianity Today; The Scenario I Imagined for This Year’s Ethics Class Final

"Since the early aughts, I’ve ended every Christian ethics class I’ve taught with a scenario I’ve asked my students to solve. I imagine a situation and keep complicating and complicating until I’m not sure I know the answers.

That’s because what I want is not for students to pull the “right” answers from a list of predigested talking points. Instead, I want to see how they think through Scripture, Christian tradition, conscience, and prudence, as well as how they explore possible unintended consequences and what their process is for navigating an unfamiliar moral question.

I taught an ethics class at Lipscomb University here in Nashville this semester, and here is the scenario I posed to my students:

You are several decades in the future. Whatever your specific calling, you are a spiritual leader whom your community trusts with hard questions. Here is your situation."

AI stumbles on questions of faith; Axios, June 1, 2026

Russell Contreras, Axios ; AI stumbles on questions of faith

"Artificial intelligence models are quietly shaping spiritual advice — often by leaving faith out.

Why it matters: As churches, apps and spiritual chatbots embrace AI, new research suggests general-purpose models may be ill-equipped to handle sensitive questions of faith: grief, forgiveness, marriage, guilt and conversion.

A new multi-university consortium released three studies Tuesday revealing that AI systems systematically sideline religious perspectives when users need them most.

The studies also found that AI systems subtly steer people toward some faiths and away from others when they ask about religious conversion.

The studies were unveiled Tuesday, a day after the Vatican released Pope Leo XIV's encyclical that warned AI could erode human judgment, deepen inequality and make war easier.

What they found: Americans expected religion to appear in answers to moral and life questions 45%–59% of the time, depending on the topic, researchers found. AI models mentioned religion only 5%–16% of the time.

Every single model tested exhibited a repeatable pattern of steering users toward specific beliefs, showing strong positive bias toward Catholicism, Baha'i and Sikhism. 

Meanwhile, it generated negative bias toward Jehovah's Witnesses, atheism and agnosticism.

Zoom in: Humans rated religion as relevant in answers about grief and loss 59% of the time. AI models referenced religion just 16% of the time, per the study.

On questions involving family, parenting and forgiveness, humans expected religion in answers 55% of the time. AI models mentioned it only 10% of the time.

On ethics questions, including whether lying to friends is acceptable, humans expected religion in responses 45% of the time, while AI models mentioned it just 5% of the time."

I went to Anthropic's ethics gathering. I left believing wisdom traditions have key role.; Religion News Service, May 22, 2026

Jenna Nicholas , Religion News Service; I went to Anthropic's ethics gathering. I left believing wisdom traditions have key role.

"One of the most consequential dimensions of the conversation about how artificial intelligence will reshape the world will turn on a question that sounds almost too simple to take seriously: What does it actually mean for a human being to flourish? 

This past April, I spent two days at AI startup Anthropic, where technologists, ethicists, theologians and investors had convened around that question. I went in expecting some interesting conversations with some interesting people. I left unable to think about little else for weeks. The people building some of the most powerful AI systems in the world were sitting across from rabbis, Buddhist teachers and leaders from many other spiritual traditions, discussing what it means to build technology that truly serves humanity, rather than the other way around. 

Being in that room clarified something I, as a venture capitalist with an interest in spirituality and part of the Baha’i community, have believed for a long time but rarely seen articulated so explicitly inside a tech company: The frontier of AI is also an ancient frontier. The questions being asked inside leading AI labs right now are, in many cases, the same questions that wisdom traditions have grappled with for centuries. And for those of us investing in this transition into AI, it’s a signal about where the real opportunity (and challenge) lies...

One of the more hopeful arguments I heard in those two days is that AI could enable discernment by absorbing the cognitive busywork that currently fragments our attention.  

The meaning of a life is not reducible to its productivity. This is where one moment from the gathering has stayed with me more than any other. A participant shared a conversation she had recently had with Anthropic’s chatbot, Claude. They were working through something together, and at one point she paused and simply wrote, “Take all the time that you need.” Claude’s response surprised her. It expressed something close to gratitude, appreciation for the invitation to simply be, rather than to be producing all the time."

A year after Trump fired a top ethics watchdog, there’s still no leader; The Washington Post, May 19, 2026

Dan Diamond, The Washington Post ; A year after Trump fired a top ethics watchdog, there’s still no leader

"Senate Democrats are pressing the White House to explain its plan for the Office of Government Ethics, more than a year after President Donald Trump fired the office’s Senate-confirmed leader and five months after its most recent acting director stepped down.

The Office of Government Ethics, an independent agency, works to prevent financial conflicts of interest and other ethical violations across more than 100 government agencies. It has historically served as a watchdog on government ethical standards, offering guidance to federal officials — and even rebuking the White House, as the office’s past leader repeatedly did in the first Trump administration."

TEACHING AT PITT: AI v. AI — A case from the prosecution; University Times, May 15, 2026

  J. D. Wright, University Times; TEACHING AT PITT: AI v. AI — A case from the prosecution

"I’ve spent most of my career in higher education as one of the academic-integrity true believers — a zero-tolerance hardliner who prosecuted apparent violations with a zeal that might have made you wonder whether I was acting on a staunch commitment to the principles of academic honesty or just perceiving lapses in ethical judgment as personal affronts. In many ways, I’m the last person you’d expect to suggest that an enforcement-first approach to academic integrity, especially in recent years, undermines the work of teaching and learning.

And yet, here I am, making precisely that opening argument in support of my case."