Lecture to reveal myths behind Russian influence

This year's Stanley Erikson Lecture in Public Affairs will address the timely topic of the influence of Russia in American politics and elections.

Dr. Heather Tafel will present "Mythbusting Russia's Reasons for Election Meddling" at 7 p.m. Oct. 17 in room 304 of Hanson Hall.

She is an associate professor of political science at Grand Valley State University in Michigan.

"I will be discussing common assumptions many people have about U.S.-Russian relations and how those assumptions often do not reveal the reasons behind the Russian government’s attempts to influence the 2016 election," she said.

"I will then discuss what I think are the reasons for Russia’s involvement, with a view to providing prescriptions as to what can be done going forward."

Her research interests include politics, democracy promotion, and more recently, U.S. media depictions of Russia, and she is working on a book about the U.S. media's depictions of post-Soviet Russia.

Dr. Tafel earned a B.A. in international studies and modern languages (German and Spanish) from Eckerd College, and a Ph.D. in political science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

She also speaks Russian, having learned it as an exchange student, and has traveled to Russia on several occasions. She maintains a news-oriented Facebook page called Democracy Resurgent?!  

The lecture is sponsored by Augustana's department of political science and made possible through the Stanley Erikson Lectureship Fund. Dr. Erikson was a professor of political science at Augustana from 1948-1974. He founded the department and was its chair until his retirement.