Jan. 25, 2007

Carolina in the News

Here is a sampling of links and notes about Carolina people and programs cited recently in the media:

International Coverage

Contraceptive side effects study needed: panel
Reuters
Manufacturers should collect more data on the potential side effects of birth control pills and other hormonal contraceptives after they reach the market, a U.S. advisory panel said on Wednesday. ..."These are clearly going to be expensive studies," Dr. Herbert Peterson of the University of North Carolina said.

Model's anorexia comments spark debate
The Associated Press (Australia)
Supermodel Gisele Bundchen added fire to an already heated debate when she said families, not the fashion industry, were to blame for anorexic models. ...Professor of eating disorders, Cynthia Bulik, of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, says there's a need to understand all the factors that influence eating disorders, both genetic and environmental.

National Broadcast Note

Tonight's CBS Evening News is scheduled to run a story about federal cuts in funding for cancer research. The story features patients from the Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center and the center's director, Dr. Shelton Earp. The CBS Evening News with Katie Couric airs on local station WRAL at 6:30 p.m.

National Coverage

2 More Public Flagship Universities Start Aid Programs for Needy Students
The Chronicle of Higher Education
Joining the ranks of several other public flagship institutions and elite private colleges, the University of Texas System has announced a program to guarantee financial aid covering tuition and fees for students who come from low-income families. ...Other public flagship institutions that have devised similar plans include Arizona State University, the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and the University of Virginia.

Almost 3,000 Applicants to UNC-Chapel Hill Mistakenly Receive E-Mail Acceptance Letters
The Chronicle of Higher Education
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill mistakenly sent 2,703 applicants an e-mail message this week congratulating them on their acceptance to the institution, even though the applications for the students are still pending.
Related link: http://insidehighered.com/news/2007/01/25/qt

Nifong faces more charges
The Associated Press (National)
The state bar lodged new and more serious ethics charges Wednesday against the district attorney in the Duke lacrosse sexual assault case, accusing him of withholding evidence from the defense and lying to both the court and bar investigators. ...“If these allegations are true and if they don’t justify disbarment, then I’m not sure what does,” said Joseph Kennedy, a law professor at the University of North Carolina.

Side-Effects Determine Antidepressan
PsychCentral.com
A new study has found that the 12 most commonly prescribed second-generation antidepressants have similar efficacy for treatment of acute-phase depression. However, side effects among the drugs varied, causing many patients to have to try more than one before settling on long-term therapy. ...“Based on our review of the available research, we found very little difference in the effectiveness of various antidepressants,” said Dr. Gerald Gartlehner, lead author of the report and a research associate at UNC’s Sheps Center for Health Services Research.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/jan07/sheps_ahrq_antidepressants012307.html

State and Local Coverage

UNC trustees to vote on tuition increase
The Herald-Sun (Durham)/The Chapel Hill Herald
Despite some UNC leaders' recommendation that tuition for out-of-state undergraduates increase by $500 next year, rates would more than double that for those students under a plan approved by a trustees' committee on Wednesday.
Related link: http://www.newsobserver.com/1366/story/535981.html

Freshman reading book is selected
The Chapel Hill Herald
"The Death of Innocents: An Eyewitness Account of Wrongful Executions," by Sister Helen Prejean, is the university's summer reading book selection for incoming students. UNC asks all new students to read a book over the summer and come prepared to participate in small group discussions led by trained faculty and staff.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/jan07/summerreadchoice012307.html

Iona Rozeal Brown
"The State of Things," WUNC-FM
UNC-Chapel Hill visiting artist Iona Rozeal Brown paints vivid images of ancient Japanese subjects, but with a twist. Her courtesans and geisha wear cornrows, afros and Adidas. She joins host Frank Stasio to discuss cultural appropriation of hip-hop among Japanese youth sub-cultures and its impact on her art.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/dec06/stonespring122106.htm

Ex-Black Panthers to talk Saturday
The Chapel Hill Herald
Former members of the Black Panthers Party and the Young Lords Organization of the 1960s and 1970s will speak Saturday at the opening of an exhibit that traces their connected histories. The Sonja Haynes Stone Center for Black Culture and History at UNC will present the panel from 5 to 7 p.m. A reception will begin at 4 p.m.
Related links: http://www.newsobserver.com/703/story/535846.html
http://www.indyweek.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A43179
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/jan07/pantherslords011907.html

Ex-Va. governor to speak at UNC
The Chapel Hill Herald
Former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner will deliver a speech to inaugurate UNC's new Center on Law and Government at 5 p.m. next Tuesday in the UNC School of Law's Rotunda. The event is open to the public. The center, which is based at UNC's law school, is directed by Michael Gerhardt, the Samuel Ashe Distinguished Professor in Constitutional Law.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/jan07/warnerlawschool012307.html

UNC Applicants Told Congratulations E-mails a Mistake
WRAL-TV (CBS, Raleigh)
About 2,700 potential freshmen at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill found out they were accepted one day. Then found out the next day they were not. "I’d give anything to go back to 3 p.m. yesterday and change what happened,“ said Stephen Farmer, director of undergraduate admissions at UNC-Chapel Hill. “We can’t do that, so, we’re trying to do right by kids as best we can.”

Nifong goes on the defense
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
When Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong took his seat at the N.C. State Bar defense table Wednesday, the role-reversal became complete: The hunter is now the hunted. ..."Lying is really at the top of the list in terms of things lawyers just can't do. The whole thing is premised on integrity," said Joseph Kennedy, a UNC law professor."

City aims to trash garbage cheats
The Charlotte Observer
Sanitation workers aren't emptying some residents' full garbage cans this week, and city workers say they're prepared for the angry phone calls. ...The goal is to get more Concord residents to recycle. About 37 percent of Concord residents recycled some of their trash between July 2005 and July 2006, according to statistics collected by the School of Government at UNC Chapel Hill.

Teen shot at close range
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Deputy Christopher Long stood so close to Peyton Strickland when he fired his submachine gun through a door at the unarmed teenager that gunpowder peppered Strickland's chest, according to an autopsy report released this week. ..."It's just 12 citizens in there with an oath of office," said James Drennan, a professor at UNC-Chapel Hill's School of Government. "It's a black box in some ways."

Biltmore Farms interested in ‘Heart of Fletcher’
Pisgah Mountain News
Fletcher officials have been talking about the Heart of Fletcher, the proposed town center, for years. ...But creating a downtown from scratch is not easy, according to Tom Campanella, professor of urban design at the UNC Chapel Hill.

Beware the BMI
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Carolina Hurricanes' captain Rod Brind'Amour is a fitness fanatic, often stretching, riding a stationary bike and lifting weights -- on the same day the team practices. ..."BMI should always be used as a screening tool, not a diagnostic tool," says Dr. Eliana Perrin with UNC's School of Medicine.

Issues and Trends

You Can’t Eat Prestige
Inside Higher Ed
Conventional wisdom has it that private universities are better places to work than public universities. The pay can be significantly better and tight state budgets have forced many public institutions to minimize raises and enlarge classes.

University must remain a liberal arts haven (Editorial)
The Chapel Hill Herald
Although he's made variations of the speech many times since he took office as the president of the UNC system a year ago, Erskine Bowles nevertheless spoke with passion about his chosen subject the other day.

UNC attack suspect pleads not guilty
The Herald-Sun (Durham)/The Chapel Hill Herald
Although he publicly proclaimed his guilt in attempting to kill people at UNC in letters and during court appearances, Mohammed Taheri-Azar pleaded not guilty Wednesday to 18 felony charges.

Produced by News Services, Carolina in the News is an e-mail sampling of current news media coverage about Carolina people and programs, as well as issues and trends that affect the university. Stories usually will be online and available free for a limited time - often one to two weeks. Expiration dates before stories move to archives vary by media outlet. Some outlets require free user registration or a subscription.

Carolina in the News is also posted daily to the News Services Web page, http://www.unc.edu/news/clips/index.shtml.

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