Each year, USC programs and faculty research are highlighted in print, broadcast and online stories throughout the world. Highlights of recent news coverage are compiled by USC Media Relations.
USC in the News 4/21 to 4/23/2012
Featured Stories
Los Angeles Times featured the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books at USC, at which USC Provost Elizabeth Garrett and Judge Widney Professor of Poetry and Public Culture at USC Dana Gioia helped unveil a new series of stamps depicting 20th century American poets. The Times ran video of the festival and covered panels featuring Deborah Harkness of the USC Dornsife College and Susan Enguidanos of the USC Davis School. The Times also highlighted events featuring author Judy Blume; on memoirs; on the DIY revolution; on the 20th anniversary of the 1992 riots (additional links here and here); on young adult fiction; on the public fascination with the Titanic; featuring chef Chris Cosentino; with actors from "The Sound of Music"; and featuring author Robert Crais. Los Angeles Times also ran two stories on the Los Angeles Times Book Prizes given out during the festival, and mentioned an article that Leo Braudy of the Dornsife College wrote in conjunction with the event. USC alumna and author Susan Straight wrote an op-ed noting that she was at the USC Government and Civic Engagement booth giving out free books, as part of a project supported by USC. Los Angeles Times also highlighted its free Festival of Books phone app and mentioned that safety officials inspected an abandoned package that turned out to contain newspapers. C-SPAN's "Book TV" aired portions of the festival and interviewed Richard Reeves of the USC Annenberg School and Steven Ross of the Dornsife College. The festival was also covered by L.A. Observed, KPCC-FM, Daily Pilot, Glendale News-Press and The Rafu Shimpo.
Los Angeles Times reported that the USC School of Theatre will change its name to the School of Dramatic Arts, effective July 1. "Theater is our artistic home, but we know that our students want and will succeed within different platforms," said School of Theatre Dean Madeline Puzo. She added that areas of study now include TV, film, Webisodes and sketch comedy. The school's alumni include Forest Whitaker, LeVar Burton and Eric Stoltz.
Fox News featured research by Gerard Tellis of the USC Marshall School, finding that online user reviews can affect stock prices. Tellis and a colleague examined data from 2006 to 2010 for 15 branded products, and found that online reviews seemed to predict market returns a few days ahead of time. Toronto Star (Canada) also featured the study.
Forbes featured research by Cyrus Shahabi of the USC Viterbi School, who is studying Los Angeles traffic using video analysis. "The most important commodities of the 21st century are time and energy. And traffic, unfortunately, wastes both of them," Shahabi said.
Deccan Herald (India) featured research by Berokh Khoshnevis of the USC Viterbi School involving 3-D printing, which could revolutionize the way homes are built. Khoshnevis' technology, called "contour crafting," could construct homes with quick-setting, concrete-like material. The technology could eventually be used to build a home in a single day, creating little construction material waste and reducing the environmental impact of construction.
VentureBeat ran a column by Leslie Saxon of the Keck School of USC on how digital monitoring of the human body could improve global health, highlighting the USC Center for Body Computing. Saxon wrote that the center conducted a study using a device that connected to a patient's iPhone. Saxon was able to diagnose a man in Mumbai from her home in Los Angeles, by reviewing data the device collected on his iPhone. "Helping this person was personally gratifying and represents a brilliant example of leveraging our experts across the globe," she wrote. GigaOm highlighted Saxon's column.
The Huffington Post ran a column by Martin Kaplan of the USC Annenberg School about Senator Orrin Hatch's reelection campaign against former state senator Dan Liljenquist. "Going into the convention, Hatch held a big lead over Liljenquist in statewide polls, but millions of dollars of anonymously-funded attack ads could well make Hatch sweat bullets," Kaplan wrote.
Experts Quoted
The New York Times quoted Jonathan Taplin of the USC Annenberg School about the value of international markets to entertainment entrepreneurs.
The Wall Street Journal, in an Associated Press story, quoted Manuel Pastor of the USC Dornsife College about the immigration issue and its impact on national elections.
Los Angeles Times quoted Jerome Lucido of the USC Rossier School about California students going to college in other states.
The Guardian (U.K.) cited Manuel Castells of the USC Annenberg School regarding power in society shifting from being hierarchical to operating within networks.
Reuters quoted Cecil "Chip" Murray of the USC Dornsife College about police-community relations two decades after the Los Angeles riots.
The Huffington Post quoted Anupam Jena, a senior fellow at the USC Schaeffer Center for Health Policy and Economics, about factors that drive up medical costs.
News at a Glance
Los Angeles Times cited a research study by USC and UCLA finding that feed-in-tariff programs have been used to successfully create a solar power market in Spain and Germany.
The Telegraph (U.K.) reported that USC, Harvard University, the University of Cambridge, the University of Manchester and several other institutions are collaborating on an ovarian cancer screening and prevention program.
Bloomberg Businessweek highlighted research by Alexandra Michel of the USC Marshall School finding that Wall Street bankers suffered from a list of ailments, including insomnia, alcoholism and eating disorders.
China Daily (China) covered the deaths of two USC students, and the memorial service held last week in their honor. The news was also covered by a second China Daily story and L.A. Observed.
Los Angeles Times mentioned that Michael Peyser of the USC School of Cinematic Arts is attending the second annual Beijing International Film Festival.
Fast Company reported that Jonathan Taplin of the USC Annenberg School debated Reddit founder Alexis Ohanian about copyright and pay vs. free models at an event organized by Fast Company.
Associated Press reported on the shooting and arrest of a robbery suspect near USC. The story was also covered by LAist.
The Orange County Register mentioned a Latina women's leadership initiative sponsored by the USC Marshall School.
Scientific American ran a blog by USC student Inaki Pedroarena-Leal about his involvement in the USC Dornsife College's Guam and Palau Program.
Financial Times (U.K.) noted that the ZBoard weight-sensing electric skateboard was originally developed as a student project at USC.
San Jose Mercury News ran a photo of a USC student protest. CBS News St. Louis affiliate KMOV-TV also ran photos.
Ventura County Star noted that USC has signed a deal under which ESPN Radio will broadcast USC home football games nationwide.