UB in the News

David Schmid, professor of English, was interviewed on the CBS Sunday Morning for a story about the popularity of television crime shows and how that reflects on America post-9/11. Based on U.S. crime shows, "from the perspective of people in other countries, America is an extremely violent culture," which reinforces what they already think of the U.S., he said.

An article in the Baltimore Sun about using self hypnosis to deal with pain caused by breast cancer quotes Lisa Butler, associate professor of social work. The article also appeared in a number of news outlets, including the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

An article in University Business reports that UB President John B. Simpson was among the educational leaders in Albany yesterday to push for passage of a bill that would give SUNY more flexibility. WBFO-FM also covered the story.

Makau Mutua, dean of the Law School, is quoted in an article in today's New York Times that looks at the problem of political succession among African nations, particularly Nigeria, whose succession problems have led to ethnic polarization and heightened competition among other identity lines. "Instead of a tool for governance, the office of the president becomes a tool for domination, in which the resources of the nation are husbanded for the benefit of a family, a clan or an ethnic group," he said.

An article in The New York Times about the Web site Rate My Professors, which allows real-life students taking real-life classes to rate real-life professors in a virtual forum, quotes Jim Javor, adjunct instructor of mathematics, who currently ranks No. 10 among university professors.

Elayne Rapping professor of American studies, is quoted in an article in the New York Post about celebrities who use their name recognition to launch lifestyle websites. "They're creating an even bigger media persona than they would have when all the publicity came from outside sources," she says.

UB wrestler Dan Bishop's journey from a potentially life-threatening broken neck sustained in March to his graduation walk across the stage yesterday in Alumni Arena is the subject of a front page story in Sunday's Buffalo News. His remarkable recovery and participation in Sunday' commencement ceremonies in Alumni Arena received considerable coverage in the local press including WGRZ, WIVB and WKBW and national press, including CBS Albany and an article distributed by the Associated Press that appeared in news outlets that include Sports Illustrated, ESPN, and USA Today.

An article on Technologizer.com, a popular technology website, about competition between Facebook and Zynga, maker of the popular social games Farmville, Café World and Mafia Wars, quotes A. J. Patrick Liszkiewicz, a student in the Department of Media Study. The article also appeared in PC World.

An article about UB's falcons, whose lives are being chronicled on a webcam perched 124 feet up on the chimney of the Mackay Heating Plant, went out over the AP wire, and was picked up by news outlets that include the Albany Times-Union, Newsday, Hartford Courant, Stamford Advocate and Worchester News Telegram. WBFO-FM also aired a story on the falcons.

An article in the Washington Post chronicles the life of UB alumnus Jelani Freeman, who grew up in foster care in the Rochester area, but persevered, beat the odds and on Saturday will graduate from Howard University Law School. His friends, the article reports, say they cannot forget one poignant detail from Freeman's story: When he graduated from UB in 2002, no one came to watch him cross the stage.