{"id":636752,"date":"2025-01-22T15:27:48","date_gmt":"2025-01-22T20:27:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/?p=636752"},"modified":"2025-06-25T10:46:17","modified_gmt":"2025-06-25T14:46:17","slug":"what-can-movies-teach-about-us-government-636752","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/what-can-movies-teach-about-us-government-636752\/","title":{"rendered":"What can Back to the Future<\/em> teach us about US nuclear regulations?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Rebecca Frank\u2019s undergraduate internship taps into pop culture to boost civic engagement on social media.<\/h2>\n

Let\u2019s be honest\u2014what do you really know about how the US government regulates nuclear energy and materials? What exactly can be sold, bought, or stored\u2014legally\u2014and by whom?<\/p>\n

Thanks to Rebecca (Becky) Frank \u201925, who just completed the requirements for a bachelor\u2019s degree in political science<\/a> and Spanish<\/a> at the Ä¢¹½´«Ã½<\/a>, here\u2019s the 200-second Instagram version<\/a> to fill you in.<\/p>\n

Based on the 1985 sci-fi movie Back to the Future<\/em><\/a>, Frank\u2014tongue-in-cheek\u2014teases out what\u2019s possible and what may land you, well, on the FBI\u2019s wanted list. Or as Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox\u2019s character) put it succinctly: \u201cDoc, you don\u2019t just walk into a store and buy plutonium!\u201d<\/p>\n

Frank\u2019s video, performed by Civic Genius\u2019s<\/a> executive director Jillian Youngblood, is part of a series of social media clips produced by the national, nonpartisan organization that seeks to increase Americans\u2019 civic engagement. Using well-known movies from the ’80s and ’90s, the clips explain specific aspects of federal, state, and local government in the US.<\/p>\n

Frank wrote the script and produced the video as part of an internship offered in partnership between the Ä¢¹½´«Ã½\u2019s Democracy Center<\/a> and Civic Genius. Founded by a prominent Rochester area business leader, Howard Konar, Civic Genius\u2014now a program of the National Civic League<\/a>\u2014provides educational programming and facilitates discussions to try to help Americans engage as democratic citizens.<\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>This internship really helped me put together everything I have learned throughout my political science courses and see how they apply in the real world.\u201d<\/div>\n

Besides the Back to the Future<\/em> explainer, Frank also worked on three other blockbuster-based videos yet to be released: the movie Titanic<\/em><\/a> to explain maritime law, The Predator<\/em><\/a> to dive into the concept of executive action, and Die Hard<\/a><\/em> to delve into the US Department of the Treasury\u2019s bearer bonds.<\/p>\n

So far, six Rochester undergraduates have gone through the program that began in the fall of 2022.<\/p>\n

\u201cStudents who participate in the internship get hands-on experience in civic education,\u201d says Stuart Jordan<\/a>, the associate director of the Democracy Center and an associate professor in the University\u2019s Department of Political Science<\/a>. \u201cIt allows students to explore the practical implications of some of the conceptual puzzles they encounter in the academic study of democratic politics.\u201d<\/p>\n

Frank says she was intrigued to learn what factors can determine a person\u2019s civic participation and why it matters: \u201cIt\u2019s important for the general public to become involved in mixed-group discussion across political lines, in order to gain a greater understanding of others\u2019 perspectives.\u201d<\/p>\n

Going forward, Frank plans to attend law school and eventually practice family law.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis internship really helped me put together everything I have learned throughout my political science courses and see how they apply in the real world,\u201d she says. Frank wants to remain involved with organizations that focus on encouraging political participation and civic engagement, trying to play her part in reducing society\u2019s polarization, and helping to normalize productive political discourse.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs an organization,\u201d Jordan says, \u201cCivic Genius is a great partner for the Democracy Center because it focuses on increasing the civic capacity of all Americans, regardless of their partisanship or policy views.\u201d<\/p>\n

Great Scott! Watch Becky Frank\u2019s Civic Genius video<\/h3>\n
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A post shared by Civic Genius (@civicgenius)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n