Last modified: Tuesday, April 1, 2003
War with Iraq: More perspectives from Indiana University
EDITORS: In addition to tipsheets we distributed on March 18 and 20, here are additional faculty experts at Indiana University who can provide insights about the war in Iraq and related issues, including politics, health and journalism. Contact information is provided so you can contact these experts directly.
Politics and policy
-- Lee Hamilton, director of the Center on Congress at IU Bloomington and the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C., served for 34 years as a U.S. congressman from Indiana. During his tenure, he served as chairman and ranking member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs (now the Committee on International Relations), and chaired the Subcommittee on Europe and the Middle East from the early 1970s until 1993. Hamilton also served as chairman of the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. He established himself as a leading congressional voice on foreign affairs, with particular interests in promoting peace and stability in the Middle East. His service enabled him to become an astute observer and participant in many significant historical events, including the Arab/Israeli peace negotiations and the Gulf War. He can be reached by calling 202-691-4202.
-- Matthew Auer, an associate professor in the School of Public and Environmental Affairs at IU Bloomington, has expertise in foreign aid politics and international environmental affairs. He can comment on short-term humanitarian assistance in Iraq and long-term developmental aid prospects for Iraq. In terms of environmental impacts, he can discuss the destruction caused by burning oil wells and the impact of the war on the environment and terrain of Iraq. Auer can be reached at 202-501-2922 (office), 703-960-4765 (home) or mauer@indiana.edu.
-- Michael McGinnis, associate professor of political science at IU Bloomington, can comment on the problems of dealing with the refugees of war and delivering food and other supplies to civilians in Iraq. He also has a general research interest in international conflict and can discuss the situation in Iraq in those terms. He can be reached at 812-855-8784 (office), 812-339-9668 (home) or mcginnis@indiana.edu.
Health and family
-- Kathleen Gilbert, associate professor of applied health science at IU Bloomington, is a leading expert on death and grief and the effect of trauma on families. She is available to discuss the long-term effects of war on families, the trauma facing battle combatants and their families, and what parents can say to their children about the war. She can be reached at 812-332-3404 (home), 812-855-5209 (office) or gilbertk@indiana.edu.
-- Kathleen L. O'Connell, associate dean of IPFW's School of Health Sciences and director of the Behavioral Health and Family Studies Institute, can discuss the effects of war on families, as well as the permanent or temporary loss of a family member. She can be reached at 260-481-5795 (office), 260-396-2412 (home) or oconnell@ipfw.edu.
-- Ingrid Ritchie, associate professor of public and environmental affairs at IUPUI, is available to discuss potential health problems facing Baghdad residents as a result of oil and other fires being set intentionally by the Iraqi government. She can discuss building safety, air quality and hazardous materials as a result of bio-terrorism. She is co-author of The Healthy Home Kit, which provides consumers with knowledge about indoor air and other environmental hazards related to real property. She can be reached at 317-274-3752 or iritchie@indiana.edu.
Media coverage
-- Maria Elizabeth "Betsy" Grabe, associate professor of journalism at IU Bloomington, has a research focus on the content and effects of audiovisual messages. She has been closely monitoring television coverage of the war. She can discuss issues relating to the use of "embedded" journalists and their efforts to report from a personalized perspective. She also can discuss the increasing use of rhetoric by journalists in telling their stories and which journalists are being the most objective in their coverage. She can be reached at 812-855-1721 (office), 812-323-1699 or mgrabe@indiana.edu.
-- David Weaver, the Roy W. Howard Professor in journalism and mass communication research at IU Bloomington, has researched and written award-winning books on journalists as people and how their personal views affect news coverage. On April 10 at the American Society of Newspaper Editors convention, he will present the results of a third major national survey of U.S. journalists funded by the Knight Foundation. He also is the author of The Global Journalist: News People Around the World and The American Journalist: A Portrait of U.S. News People and Their Work. While Weaver has not done a content analysis of the war coverage, he can address questions about political and personal backgrounds of journalists. He can be reached at 812-855-1703 or weaver@indiana.edu.
-- Christine Ogan, professor of journalism at IU Bloomington, studies the intersection of communication technologies and international communication. She has written extensively about relationships among the media, political organizations and religion in Islamic communities. She contributed a chapter to the forthcoming book, Communication, Politics and Religion in an Islamic Community. She can respond to questions regarding Turkey in particular and other general questions about the region, and on the media of the entire region, including Al Jazeera. She can be reached at 812-855-1699 or ogan@indiana.edu.
