Garry Emmons

Cognoscenti contributor

After three decades as an editor at Harvard University, Garry Emmons now writes for a variety of publications about business, sports, international affairs and life.

Recently published

Flirting With The Enemy: Why Is The GOP Courting Bad Guys — Again?

In 1980, GOP campaign manager William Casey saw Iran, however toxic, as potentially useful to his campaign, writes Garry Emmons. Did 2016 GOP campaign manager Paul Manafort see Russia the...

Cognoscenti

Apr 3, 2017

Two ‘sophisticated adversaries’ linked to the Russian government broke in to the Democratic National Committee’s computer networks and gained access to confidential emails, chats and opposition research on presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump, Tuesday, June 14, 2016, in Washington. (Paul Holston/AP)

Spies, Lies And Prying Eyes: Donald Trump, Russian Intelligence And Espionage In U.S. Elections

Garry Emmons on why the Russian hack of the Democratic National Committee's opposition research suggests that fears over a Donald Trump presidency have spread well beyond America’s borders.

Cognoscenti

Jun 17, 2016

Garry Emmons: "If people applied the same intelligent scrutiny and research to public policy questions as they did to sports, would Team USA be doing a whole lot better?" Pictured: New England Patriots fans stand behind a sign supporting quarterback Tom Brady during an NFL football training camp in Foxborough, Mass., in July, 2015. A federal judge deflated "Deflategate" Thursday, Sept. 3, 2015. (Charles Krupa/AP)

Sports Superfans, Deflategate Obsession And America's Collective I.Q.

If people applied the same intelligent scrutiny and research to public policy questions as they did to sports, would Team USA be doing a whole lot better?

Cognoscenti

Sep 9, 2015

The Biggest Smallest Tax: Or, Making The Case For A 'Robin Hood Tax'

Advocates say a Financial Transaction Tax could raise $300 billion annually from U.S. markets. So why aren't we doing it?

Cognoscenti

Apr 15, 2015

Is Football Acceptable In A 21st Century Society?

"The joy of manly contest” has become ever more bittersweet.

Cognoscenti

Jan 6, 2015

Garry Emmons: Perhaps a price we pay for the vigilance democracy requires is to tolerate the cuckoo theories to make room for those that merit further investigation. In this photo, President John F. Kennedy rides in a motorcade moments before he was shot and killed in Dallas, Tx., Nov. 22, 1963. (AP)

The Truth About Conspiracy Theories

Perhaps a price we pay for the vigilance democracy requires is to tolerate the cuckoo theories to make room for those that merit further investigation.

Cognoscenti

Dec 1, 2014

For The Love Of The Game, A Yellow Card For FIFA

Big-time soccer must evolve in order to get back to its beautiful roots.

Cognoscenti

Jul 14, 2014

This Dec. 11, 2012 photo shows a 1947 survey for the Gallup Poll. The document is part of the personal papers of the late George Gallup Sr., founder of the Gallup Poll, that have been donated to the University of Iowa, his alma mater, providing the public with an intimate glimpse into the development of nationwide public opinion polling. (Ryan J. Foley/AP)

The Sad State Of Public Opinion Polling

And a modest proposal for how to fix it.

Cognoscenti

Jan 29, 2014