In 1976, Ronald Reagan found owning the soul of a party isn’t the same as taking home its nomination.
Victor Couto
Victor Couto is the Production Manager and former Associate Producer at Retro Report. He has produced a short documentary film and written for Newsday. Victor graduated from Purchase College with a B.A. in Journalism.
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Lessons from the 1924 Democratic Convention: An Immigration Debate’s Impact
Immigration has been a defining issue in a campaign before, and the consequences transformed the Democratic Party.
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Lessons From the 1964 Republican Convention: Declaring War on the Establishment
Donald Trump’s candidacy wasn’t the first time the Republican Party was split by an outsider declaring war on the establishment elite.
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The Birth of the U.S. Political Convention in 1831
In 1831, a radical third party had a new idea for selecting a presidential candidate, and it’s still in use today: the national nominating convention.
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Transgender Rights, Won Over Decades, Face New Restrictions
More than 50 years after the Stonewall uprising marked the birth of a movement for LGBTQ+ rights, transgender activists continue to push for inclusion.
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Lone Watchman to a Force of Thousands: A Brief History of the Capitol Police
Chief Steven Sund of the Capitol Hill police has resigned amid criticism about the lack of police preparedness for pro-Trump riots on Jan. 6 at the U.S. Capitol, above. By Friday, two Capitol Police officers had been suspended and at least 10 more were under investigation for their actions during the riot.After the Congress moved […]
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Enemies of the People: Trump and the Political Press
In this hour-long film, nominated for two 2021 Emmy Awards, journalists who covered Donald Trump during the 2016 race for the White House critique their role in the former president’s rise to power.
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Political Debates: What the Unforgettable Moments Reveal
High-stakes debates put candidates in the hot seat. But are they helpful to voters?
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Pandemics Go to the Movies
Last week “Songbird” became the first movie to begin filming in Los Angeles since the Covid-19 lockdown. The film, a pandemic thriller, is set in the future as the world awaits a coronavirus vaccine. Hollywood’s fascination with disease outbreaks has a long history. Pandemics in film aren’t always true to life. Sci-fi and dystopian films […]
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Coronavirus Has a Playlist. Songs About Disease Go Way Back.
Coronavirus songwriting has gone as global as the pandemic itself, creating a new genre called pandemic pop. It’s a tradition with a long history.
