Ukraine’s Crimea region officially became a part of Russia on Friday--in the eyes of Russian president Vladimir Putin--when he signed the official document to annex the region. Along with confusing cartographers, Putin’s actions over the past weeks have prompted talk that this could be the start of a new Cold War. While relations between the US and Russia have grown tepid to say the least, the current status quo is not about military might, but about economic influence. As the sanction lists continue to grow on both sides of this conflict, join us Saturday for a discussion on the power of economics in geopolitics.
Think you’re going to win big in this year’s March Madness college basketball tournament? The NCAA certainly will as it gets set to earn millions from the broadcast of this year’s men’s tournament. But as March Madness kicks into full gear, another battle is brewing for the NCAA. On Monday, high profile sports labor attorney Jeffrey Kessler along with a group of former college athletes filed a class-action lawsuit against the NCAA and the five richest conferences. The allegation? That players are not fairly compensated for their performance on the court.
To quote Beyonce, “I’m not bossy, I’m the boss.” That’s the idea behind "Lean In" author Sheryl Sandberg’s new campaign that seeks to ban the word “bossy” when describing young girls and help enrich girls’ leadership skills. On Saturday’s show, we’ll take a closer look at the power language has to shape society.
What do William Randolph Hearst, John Updike, and Conan O’Brien all have in common? All were members of Harvard’s legendary comedy magazine The Harvard Lampoon which just elected its first black woman president. On Saturday, Alexis Wilkinson will join us on set to discuss the importance of her new role as well as shed light on a new student based campaign that raises the awareness of racism on campus.
Be sure to read what we’ve linked above, and watch Melissa Harris-Perry Saturday at 10am ET on msnbc! Jonathan Capehart, opinion writer for the Washington Post, will be in for Melissa. Also, don’t forget to join us on Facebook and Twitter with the hashtag #nerdland. And don't forget to sign up and join the #Nerdland Scholar Challenge!