I am available for media interviews or appearances on terrorism, the Middle East, and international religious politics. I can be contacted at peter.henne[at]uvm.edu. In addition to my academic research, I have over a decade’s experience working on these issues in Washington, DC with the Pew Research Center, the START Center, and as a consultant with the US government.
I have written numerous pieces for policy and general audiences. I have also written on religious politics, terrorism, and Middle East politics at the Washington Post’s Monkey Cage, Religion News Service, Political Violence at a Glance, the Berkley Forum, The Globe Post, and the Religious Freedom Institute’s Cornerstone blog. Earlier work appeared in Real Clear World, and Political Violence at a Glance. See my News page for more information on recent policy-relevant work. I am also an editor at the Duck of Minerva.
Additionally, I have discussed Middle East politics and international religious issues with several media outlets. Recent appearances include WCAX, Religion News Service, and the Associated Press. I have also appeared on NPR, The Atlantic, and Voice of America.
Finally, I have written more substantial work for policy audiences. This includes a report on religion and the foreign policies of America and Russia for a joint Brookings Institute/Berkley Center project, policy analysis on religious minorities in Iraq for the Center for American Progress, a research report on religious freedom and violent extremism with Georgetown University’s Berkley Center, a white paper I wrote with several colleagues at START on qualitative methods and terrorism studies, and a shorter piece (also with START colleagues) on the promise of “big data” for terrorism research. Additionally, I was the lead author on two reports with the Pew Research Center’s Global Religious Restrictions project, in 2015 and 2016.
Selected Media Appearances:
VT Media Appearances:
WCAX (Burlington, VT) appearances:
“Expert: Protests over woman’s death putting pressure on Iranian regime,” 30 September 2022
“Analysis: Inside the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,” 13 May 2021
“Expert analysis of the situation in Iran,” 8 January 2020
“What will be the impact of Iranian general’s death?,” 3 January 2020
“What do sanctions against Iran mean for us?” 7 August 2018
“What’s the next step in relations with Iran?” 9 May 2018
“Assessing the impact of airstrikes on Syria,” 16 April 2018
“Local lawmakers react to military strikes on Syria,” 14 April 2018
“What will Trump’s Jerusalem announcement mean for Middle East peace?” 6 December 2017
Dave Gram Show Appearances:
“Saudi Arabia and school sports,” 20 December, 2018
“Korea, bigotry in Vermont, and Business Networking,” 25 May 2018
Elizabeth Hewitt, “Senate tables Sanders-led effort to withdraw from Yemen,” VT Digger, 20 March 2018
Other media:
Adelle M. Banks, “State Department religious freedom summit ends with commitments, critiques,” Religion News Service, 27 July 2018
Adelle M. Banks, “5 faith facts about Sam Brownback,” Religion News Service, 27 July 2017
“Lawrence of Arabia, Rolls fans, say they have solved WWI mystery,” Associated Press, 4 July 2017
Recent Writing:
Contributor to the Duck of Minerva, September 2018-
“Pompeo investigation could undo religious freedom movement’s ‘success’,” Religion News Service, 20 May 2020
“Saudi Arabia made a secret deal with Iran to defuse regional tensions: is it holding back the United States?” Washington Post Monkey Cage, 14 December 2019
“It’s time for Democrats to start talking about international religious freedom,” Religion News Service, 21 November 2019
“Does the Russia-Turkey deal on Idlib signal a new era of relations in the Middle East?” Washington Post The Monkey Cage, 5 October 2018
“Remembering Robert Gilpin and his intellectual legacy,” The Duck of Minerva, 25 July 2018
“Trump Administration does little for international religious freedom,” The Globe Post, 24 July 2018
“Yes, the UN Human Rights Council helps dictators…and US withdrawal will make it worse,” The Duck of Minerva, 22 June 2018
“Is Trump v. Hawaii about Religious Liberty? An international perspective,” The Berkley Forum, Berkley Center for Religion, Peace and World Affairs, 16 May 2018
“Economic integration and political reconciliation in Iraq,” Center for American Progress, 17 April 2018
“Trump says Pakistan ‘harbors terrorists.’ The real story isn’t so simple,” Washington Post The Monkey Cage, 28 August 2017.
“What effect does religious freedom promotion have on counterterrorism?” Religious Freedom Institute Cornerstone blog, 26 June 2017
“How Trump’s Budget may harm US counterterrorism,” Political Violence at a Glance, 21 March 2017
Interviews about my book, Islamic Politics, Muslim States and Counterterrorism Tensions
“Peter Henne on religion-state relations and counterterrorism,” Research on Religion podcast series, 27 August, 2017
Zane Moses, “Where religion, politics and terrorism meet: Researcher Q&A with Peter Henne,” National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism, 1 August 2017