AU Newsmakers 8.28-9.4, 2020

People Magazine featured a new report, co-authored by Associate Professor of Public Affairs Bradley Hardy, that found that the coronavirus is now the third leading cause of death amongst Black Americans. (8/28)

AU's School of Education Implements Initiatives to Foster Antiracist Environment

Diverse: Issues In Higher Education featured intiatives that the School of Education has implemented to help foster an antiracist environment on campus. Cherly Holcomb-McCoy said the intiatives came about this year because “we felt that we had to do more.” (9/2)

Additional Feature

Campus Conversations With President Sylvia M. Burwell

President Sylvia M. Burwell spoke to Washingtonian Magazine as a part of the magazine's Campus Conversations series. Burwell discussed AU's response to the pandemic, as well as her own background in dealing with pandemics. (8/31)

Faculty Authors

The Milwaukee Bucks Led the Way as Athletes Took a Stand Over Jacob Blake. Players Decades Ago Helped Win Them the Power to Speak Up

Associate Professor of History Theresa Runstedtler wrote an article for TIME about how professional atheletes won the power to speak up about racial injustice. Runstedtler wrote, “If players today can simply refuse to play a game in the name of racial justice, it is because their forebears made them more secure as workers.” (8/29)

Why Polling Failure Is Often Journalistic Failure

Professor of Communication Joseph Campbell wrote an article for The Hill about polling failure. Campbell wrote, “When polls misfire, journalism can falter too.” (8/30)

NATO's Never-Ending Struggle for Relevance

Professors in the School of International Service James Goldgeier and Garret Martin wrote an article for War on the Rocks about the future of NATO. They wrote, “[NATO] has consistently proven its durability since completing its original Cold War mission of deterring Soviet aggression.” (9/3)

Expertise

AU Experts: Elections 2020

AU experts discussed issues related to the 2020 Elections. Director of the Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies David Barker spoke to USA Today about Trump's appeals to suburban voters, and Capri Cafaro, executive-in-residence in the School of Public Affairs, spoke to USA Today about the removal of mailboxes. Professor of Public Affairs David Lublin spoke to Bloomberg News about Joe Biden's lead in the polls, and to the Wall Street Journal about Black candidates winning in traditionally white districts. Alex Clayton, adjunct instructor of public affairs, spoke to Voice of America about the Republican National Convention, and Bob Lehrman, adjunct professor of communication, wrote an article for The Hill about whether both conventions achieved what they aimed to. (8/28, 8/29, 8/30, 8/31, 9/1, 9/2)

AU Experts: Kenosha Violence

AU experts discussed the violence in Kenosha. Carolyn Gallaher, professor in the School of International Service, spoke to Buzzfeed News and Wisconsin Watch. Cynthia Miller-Idriss, director of the Polarization and Extremism Research and Innovation Lab, appeared on CNN, and Joseph Young, professor in the School of International Service and School of Public Affairs, spoke to Insider News. (8/29, 8/31, 9/3)

Pandemic Drives Millions from Latin America's Universities

Eric Hershberg, director of the Center for Latin American and Latino Studies, spoke to The New York Times about how the coronavirus has affected universities in Latin American. Hershberg said that growth in the region is dependant on higher ed enrollment. (9/4)

Is It Safe to Go to College? Health Experts Weigh In

Melissa Hawkins, director of the Public Health Scholars Program, spoke to CNN about the safety concerns around re-opening colleges. Hawkins said, “It could be possible to bring students back without large outbreaks; however, it is not possible or feasible to prevent all cases… the primary route of transmission on college and university campuses is most likely to be social gatherings.” (8/30)

Global Trade's Dependence on Dollars Lessens Its Benefits

The Economist featured research conducted by Valentina Bruno, professor in the Kogod School of Business, about the reliance of global trade on the dollar. *Story requires a subscription to read* (8/29)

Recycle This, Trash That: How to Recycle in the DMV

Megan Litke, director of sustainability programs, appeared on WAMU-FM's The Kojo Nnamdi Show to discuss recycling in the Washington, D.C. area. Litke also discussed AU's commitment to being green, such as zero waste programs, and the steps AU took to become carbon neutral. (9/1)

Remembering Actor and 'Superhero' Chadwick Boseman

Professor of Communication Russell Williams appeared on WAMU's 1A to discuss late actor Chadwick Boseman's legacy. (9/3)

Comedy Can Change How We Think About Social Justice

Caty Borum Chattoo, executive director of the Center for Media & Social Impact, spoke to WDET-FM about the role of comedy in social change. Chattoo said: “When we look around at movements for equity and justice, one thing we thought was that movements were not taking comedy seriously.” (9/1)

Prepared by University Communications

American University's faculty, staff, students and programs appear in regional, national and international print, online and broadcast media regularly. Each week, AU Newsmakers provides highlights of AU in the news. For prior weeks, go to: http://www.american.edu/media/inthemedia.cfm

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