“Newsmakers” acknowledges College faculty and staff members with expertise in a given field who have been noted in various media outlets.
To submit an entry, contact Chris Machado, periodicals writer, at via e-mail or at Ext. 2879.
Spring 2008 Semester
Dr. Anthony D. Affigne, professor and chair of the Department of Political Science, was mentioned in an April 6 Providence Journal story entitled “Local Green Party backs ex-Georgia legislator for president.” The story noted that Affigne was one of eight Rhode Islanders designated to serve as a delegate at the party’s national convention in Chicago.
Dr. Alice H.R.H. Beckwith, professor of art history, was interviewed as an expert on Italian Renaissance art for an ABC 6 (Providence) television segment that ran on Friday, May 2. The news segment was a precursor to a 20/20 broadcast later that evening entitled "Secrets of the Sistine Chapel: Michelangelo's Mystery." The 20/20 close-up focused on a new book entitled Secrets of the Sistine Chapel.
Dr. Joan R. Branham, associate professor of art history, was interviewed by Newsweek.com about the "Holy Land Experience" theme park in Orlando, Fla. The five-minute video began running on May 23 on the front page of the Religion section of Newsweek.com. Branham also wrote a short article to accompany the video. The article, "The Crucifixion and Ice Cream: Inside Orlando's most unusual theme park, the Holy Land Experience," appears adjacent to the video announcement and link. The video and article were teased in the print edition of Newsweek. They can be accessed at http://www.newsweek.com/id/138347.
Branham currently is serving as the acting director of the Women's Studies and Religion Program and as a visiting associate professor of early Christianity and Judaism at Harvard Divinity School.
Dr. John H. Costello, professor of biology, was interviewed for a Channel 10 WJAR (Providence) story entitled, “Watch Out for the Jellyfish.” The story, which aired on May 1, was in regard to the recent influx of the stinging jellyfish, Cyanea capillata, in Narragansett Bay.
Dr. Mark DeFanti, assistant professor of marketing, was quoted extensively in “Advertisers have their own Super Bowl,” an article appearing in the January 31 edition of The Providence Journal. DeFanti discussed the importance of Super Bowl commercials, the balance between humor and successful marketing, and the challenge faced by smaller companies looking to increase visibility.
Dr. Charles F. Duffy, professor of English, was a commentator during a Channel 36 WSBE (Providence) presentation of an adaption of Pulitzer Prize-winning author Edwin O’Connor’s short story “The Greatest Salesman in Rhode Island .” The one-act play was shown on March 26.
Major John J. Leyden, Jr., executive director of safety and security, and Koren Kanadanian, director of emergency management, appeared in a Channel 12 WPRI (Providence) story about the one-year anniversary of the Virginia Tech shooting on April 16.
Paul J. Maloney, C.P.A., CFP, assistant professor of finance and department chair, was quoted in an April 14 Providence Business News story entitled “Financial literacy down among R.I., U.S. teens.” The article focused on Rhode Island Financial Literacy Month and efforts by the Rhode Island Jump$tart Coalition to increase youth financial education.
Dr. Cornelius H. Riordan, professor of sociology, was quoted in a March 2 New York Times story entitled “Teaching Boys and Girls Separately.” The article centered on single-sex education in the United States.
Dr. Josephine A. Ruggiero, professor of sociology, was a guest on Family Secrets, a weekly radio program on WARL. Ruggiero was interviewed in February about her book Eastern European Adoption: Policies, Practice, and Strategies for Change (Transaction, 2007) and about current issues in international adoption.
Rev. David L. Stokes, Jr., assistant professor of theology, had an editorial entitled “The 20th Century’s Central Poetic Voice” published in the January 8 edition of The Providence Journal. The article examined the life journey of English poet W.H. Auden, particularly his thoughts on love in the forms of eros and agape.
Father Stokes authored an opinion column, "The Vision of Cormac McCarthy," that was printed in the May 11 edition of The Providence Journal.
Father Stokes also wrote another opinion column, "Pomp and Narcissism," which appeared in the Friday, May 23, edition of The Providence Journal. This piece examined the celebrity influence on annual commencement addresses.