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​Performer Bad Bunny on stage.

Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl Halftime Show Sparks National Controversy As Trump Announces Boycott

Trump’s Plan to Gather Data on Every Voter Will Cripple Democracy

Trump’s Plan to Gather Data on Every Voter Will Cripple Democracy

The Insurrection Act, Revisited: Power That Waits in the Margins

The Insurrection Act, Revisited: Power That Waits in the Margins

​Donald Trump speaking at the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting.

America Stands Alone As Trump Undermines NATO and Our Allies

Alex Pretti’s Death Is a Code Blue for the U.S.

Alex Pretti’s Death Is a Code Blue for the U.S.

What is an American Hero?

What is an American Hero?

Statue of Liberty


Grant Faint/Getty Images
The Fulcrum
By The FulcrumSep 20, 2021
The Fulcrum
The Fulcrum staff.
See More Writings by author

What is an American Hero? Sometimes American Heroes are famous people. However, not all famous people are heroes.

As we recently honored the 20th anniversary of 9/11, let us celebrate American heroes. These American heroes are ones that we may not know the names of; the first responders, victims, and their families.

September 11th is forever etched in the souls of those of us who witnessed the event.

Ten days after September 11th, Enrique Iglesias performed 'Hero' for the 'America: A Tribute to Heroes'telecast on Sept. 21, 2001. It is a profoundly moving rendition of a beautiful song.

The Fulcrum will be exploring American Heroes in greater depth in the coming months. Who is your American hero? What does the term American hero mean to you? What are the characteristics of a hero that you admire and aspire to? We would love to hear from you.

Please feel free to share your thoughts via email to: pop-culture@fulcrum.us

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Bad Bunny Super Bowl Clash Deepens America’s Cultural Divide

Bad Bunny performs on stage during the Debí Tirar Más Fotos world tour at Estadio GNP Seguros on December 11, 2025 in Mexico City, Mexico.

(Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images)

Bad Bunny Super Bowl Clash Deepens America’s Cultural Divide

On Monday, January 26th, I published a column in the Fulcrum called Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl Halftime Show Sparks National Controversy As Trump Announces Boycott. At the time, I believed I had covered the entire political and cultural storm around Bad Bunny’s upcoming Super Bowl performance.

I was mistaken. In the days since, the reaction has only grown stronger, and something deeper has become clear. This is no longer just a debate about a halftime show. It is turning into a question of who belongs in America’s cultural imagination.

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Springsteen’s ‘Streets of Minneapolis’ Demands Justice Now

Bruce Springsteen on October 22, 2025 in Hollywood, California.

(Photo by Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images for AFI)

Springsteen’s ‘Streets of Minneapolis’ Demands Justice Now

Bruce Springsteen didn’t wait for the usual aftermath—no investigations, no statements, no political rituals. Instead, he picked up his guitar and told the truth, as he always does in moments of moral fracture.

This week, Springsteen released “Streets of Minneapolis,” a blistering protest song written and recorded in just 48 hours, in direct response to what he called “the state terror being visited on the city of Minneapolis.”

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A woman typing on her laptop.

North Carolina's Project Kitty Hawk, an online program-management system built by the government, has been beset by difficulties and slow to grow despite good intentions.

Getty Images, Igor Suka

Online Learning Works Best When Markets Lead, Not Governments. Project Kitty Hawk Shows Why.

North Carolina’s Project Kitty Hawk is a grand experiment. Can a government entity build an online program-management system that competes with private providers? With $97 million in taxpayer funding, the initiative seemed promising. But, despite good intentions, the project has been beset by difficulties and has been slow to grow.

A state-chartered, university-affiliated online program manager may sound visionary, but in practice, it’s expensive, inefficient, and less adaptable than private solutions. In a new report for the James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal, I examined the experience of Project Kitty Hawk and argued that online education needs less government and more free markets.

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medical expenses

"The promise of AI-powered tools—from personalized health monitoring to adaptive educational support—depends on access to quality data," writes Kevin Frazier.

Prapass Pulsub/Getty Images

Your Data, Your Choice: Why Americans Need the Right to Share

Outdated, albeit well-intentioned data privacy laws create the risk that many Americans will miss out on proven ways in which AI can improve their quality of life. Thanks to advances in AI, we possess incredible opportunities to use our personal information to aid the development of new tools that can lead to better health care, education, and economic advancement. Yet, HIPAA (the Health Information Portability and Accountability Act), FERPA (The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act), and a smattering of other state and federal laws complicate the ability of Americans to do just that.

The result is a system that claims to protect our privacy interests while actually denying us meaningful control over our data and, by extension, our well-being in the Digital Age.

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