Top Story
| AU Experts Weigh in on State of the Union |
| Betsy Fischer Martin, executive director of the Women & Politics Institute, spoke to The Washington Post's The Lily, about why Democratic women in Congress wore white to the State of the Union, but GOP women didn't. Fischer Martin said, “Historically, the Republican Party has not embraced identity politics, particularly along gender lines.” David Barker, director of the Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies, spoke to Voice of America and WAMU's 1A. Leonard Steinhorn, professor of communication, and Distinguished Professor of History Allan Lichtman spoke to WWJ-AM and CTV. James Thurber, professor of public affairs, appeared on Plugged in with Greta Van Susteren, and Matthew Wright, assistant professor of public affairs, co-wrote an article for The Conversation. In addition, Capri Cafaro, executive-in-residence in the School of Public Affairs, discussed Stacey Abrams's response to the State of the Union address with USA Today, ABC News, Voice of America, Sinclair Broadcast Group, BBC News, and FOX Business. (2/5, 2/6) |
Additional Features
| How Car Pollution Hurts Kids Performance in School |
| CityLab featured research conducted by Claudia Persico, assistant professor of public affairs. Persico and her colleagues analyzed the effects of pollution on student performance and found that higher pollution levels could be enough to contribute to differences in academic achievement. Persico said, “We are only comparing kids in the same zip codes and within .4 miles of a highway, and they have different outcomes from each other based on the wind direction.” (2/4) |
| Remembering Revered D.C. Artist Michael B. Platt |
| Washington City Paper featured a piece about the late Washington artist and former Howard University Prof. Michael B. Platt, who passed away shortly before the opening of a joint exhibit with his wife, Carol Beane, at American University Museum at the Katzen Arts Center. A writer and artist who was mentored by Platt wrote, “Many of Platt's old students, longtime friends, and family came to the Katzen Arts Center for his and Beane's exhibition opening. A crowd of several hundred people assembled for the opening, breaking previously held attendance records. It was the only art show that I've ever seen that doubled as a funeral—filled with testimonials of how well he lived.” The Washington Diplomat also covered the show. (2/6) |
Faculty Author
Expertise
| The Newseum Was a Grand Tribute to the Power of Journalism. Here's How It Failed. |
| Associate Professor of Arts Management Andrew Taylor spoke to The Washington Post about next steps for the Newseum after it was confirmed that its Pennsylvania Avenue location had been sold to Johns Hopkins University. Taylor said, “It feels like a failure, and it's disappointing. But if they care about the mission, they need to regroup.” (2/1) |
| Amnesty Offer Could Oust Maduro. Critics Call It a Road to Impunity. |
| Juan Mendez, professor in the Washington College of Law, spoke to The New York Times about an offer made by opposition leaders in Venezuela to provide amnesty to the country's military officials in exchange for political support. Mendez said, “The military is always trying to gauge what way the wind is blowing before switching sides. In that sense this may be an effective tool.” (2/7) |
| The High-Paid D.C. Millennials Who Are Using Side Hustles to "Ball Out" |
| Caroline Bruckner, managing director of the Kogod Tax Policy Center, spoke to Washingtonian about the trend of young, well-off Washingtonians taking on “gig work.” Bruckner said, “People don't do this full-time. They do it typically as a supplemental source of income, and they cycle in and out.” (2/3) |
| Governance Crisis in Virginia: Systemic Racism |
| Ibram X. Kendi, director of the Antiracist Research and Policy Center, spoke to NPR affiliate WHRV-FM about the political crisis in Virginia and systemic racism. Kendi said, “One of the misconceptions is that a racist is a fixed category or identity. A racist is not necessarily who you are as much as what you are saying or doing in the moment. If you're supporting a racist policy, you're being a racist. It's critical for us to be very focused on what the person said or did.” (2/7) |
| The Historical Nexus Between Immigration and Health |
| Professor of History Alan Kraut spoke to Zocalo Public Square about the intersection of immigration and public health in American history. Kraut said, “Borrowing from abroad is part of the cultural history of the United States and it includes the world of medicine and therapeutics.” (2/4) |
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