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JUNE 2014

 

Welcome!  We are excited to announce a new case from Christopher Robichaud, HKS Lecturer in Ethics and Public Policy, on Edward Snowden and the NSA spying program. 

 

Also included are recent cases from the collection and an article highlighting an important case on health care reform in Massachusetts. 

 

Hero or Traitor? Edward Snowden and the NSA Spying Program

 

Christopher Robichaud and Laura Winig
34 pages 

 

On June 5, 2013, a London newspaper reported that the United States National Security Agency (NSA) was collecting the telephone records of millions of Verizon customers in the U.S. The story was the first of many top secret revelations about the NSA's spying programs, leaked by Edward Snowden, a former NSA contractor.


This important new case examines Edward Snowden's actions and motivations and asks students to consider the repercussions of whistleblowing/leaking on the general public, the U.S. government, the NSA and Snowden himself.  Students can employ moral reasoning to evaluate Snowden's acts and consider how they themselves might act when confronted with an ethical dilemma. 

 

Listen to an interview with 
Chris Robichaud on whether NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden was justified in leaking classified materials and exposing the breadth of the U.S. government's surveillance activities in a recent episode of the HKS PolicyCast.  
recentcasesNEW IN THE COLLECTION
 

The Hormone Therapy Controversy: What Makes Reliable Evidence

 

11 pages/teaching plan available

 

By closely analyzing the conflicting studies behind the hormone therapy controversy, students gain a deep understanding of the merits and limitations of observational studies and randomized experiments. 

Providing Pensions for the Poor: Targeting Cash Transfers for the Elderly in Mexico

 

5 pages/teaching plan available

 

Readers of this case will use real-world data to compute two commonly used targeting measures, leakage and undercoverage rates, to decide how best to target pensions for the elderly in Mexico. 

Primary Education in Pakistan: Show Me the Evidence

 

Asim Khwaja and Anjani Datla

5 pages/teaching plan available

 

This case traces the evolution of an evidence-based research study on the education sector in Pakistan and enables students to understand key factors of high-quality data such as reliability, validity and measurability as well as teaches them to apply an analytical framework when trying to influence policy spheres.

 
Arnold Howitt, adjunct lecturer, executive director, Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation
inthenewsIN THE NEWS

 

Doug Gavel of the Harvard Kennedy School recently reported on our new case, "Health Care Reform in Massachusetts: Impacts on Public Health."
 
"The Case cites statistics revealing that more than 400,000 Massachusetts residents who lacked health insurance before the reforms took effect were covered less than four years after enactment of the legislation, more than 123,000 of them through the Commonwealth Care program in which no premiums are paid." Read the full story.
Be sure to browse our complete collection online. We look forward to providing you with updates from the Case Program throughout the year. 

 

Sincerely,

 

 
Laura Madden
Harvard Kennedy School Case Program