This semester, political science classes have seen higher than average enrollment. POL 117 has reached its cap for the first time since Professor of Political Science David Sturrock has started teaching at SMSU in 1996.

Sturrock says that there are many reasons for the increase of enrollment in government classes. The main reason is that the information environment has changed. It has become easier for people to gain access to information sources that align with their own political views.

Due to the creation of social media, people were able to share political news that was not necessarily correct. This led to a “feeding frenzy” as people watched the drama of recent political events occur, Sturrock said.

This ease of access to information has generated enough interest in government to boost the enrollment in political science classes.

Historically, this ease of access to information was not always the case. Politics and government were covered by only a few news outlets. Media outlets tend to stray away from the controversy that politics can spark according to Sturrock.

”People all over the world were watching our election,” Sturrock said. ”This is a standard case but this year especially.”