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University Relations Tip Sheet - June 26, 2008

A brilliant tactic: Obama fights the smears
Is Barack Obama hiding his birth certificate? Did Michelle Obama say “whitey” on a tape? These are just a few questions answered on Barack Obama’s “Fight the Smears” Web site, which Georgia State professor Mary Stuckey says is a web-based version of what Former President Bill Clinton pioneered as the “fax attack.” “It is a truism in national campaigns that the most deadly attack is the one that goes unanswered,” said Stuckey, an expert in presidential communication. “Obama seems to be taking this to the next level, by establishing a venue where supporters can post examples of rumors, innuendoes and charges that are making their way around the political world. This is unprecedented, as no campaign that I know of has ever been so bold about publishing both the charges and the rebuttal. It seems to me to be a brilliant tactic.” The Web site is keeping with Obama’s "new kind of politics" claims; it allows for, and depends upon voter participation; it enables his campaign to label all such charges as "smears," and to rebut them, Stuckey says. “The only potential downside is that it risks spreading the rumors even while denying them.” To speak with Stuckey, contact Leah Harris at 404-413-1354 or lvh@gsu.edu.

Measuring obesity
Nearly 65 percent of adults in the U.S. are considered obese or overweight, many of whom were likely indicated for the condition based on their body mass index (BMI). The simple formula, a person’s body weight divided by the square of his or her height, has become the universal gauge for obesity. But Georgia State kinesiology professor Jerry Brandon questions whether BMI is an appropriate tool to use, particularly for African-Americans who have denser bone structure and muscle mass than their white counterparts. He is currently researching the physiological and structural differences among the two population groups. Using a dual energy X-ray absorptiometry instrument, Brandon is analyzing the bone mineral density and percent body fat of 500 African- American and 500 white men and women. Brandon will then compare these results to the BMIs of each group. He hopes the project will provide population-specific standards, allowing for more accurate measurements of obesity. For more information, contact Liz Babiarz at 404-413-1356 or lbabiarz@gsu.edu.

Public financing an impediment to Obama
Taking public campaign funding puts Barack Obama at a disadvantage, says Daniel Franklin, an associate professor of political science at Georgia State. Obama, who recently decided to opt out of the public campaign finance system, has set presidential campaign fundraising records. By opting out, instead of being subjected to limitations on funds from public financing, “he now can spend as much as he can raise,” says Franklin. To speak with Franklin on how Obama’s decision might affect the presidential race, contact Lisa Spires at 404-413-1353 or lspires@gsu.edu.

Fewer fast food ads, fewer overweight children
How do you curb childhood obesity? Eliminate fast food ads, says one researcher at Georgia State University. Banning the barrage of television fast food ads would reduce the number of overweight children ages 3-11 by 18 percent in a given population, according to research by Georgia State Assistant Economics Professor Inas Rashad and colleagues from Lehigh and City University of New York. Perhaps more palatable than an outright ban, eliminating advertising as a tax-deductible expense would mean 5 percent to 7 percent fewer overweight children, they found in a study forthcoming in the Journal of Law and Economics. “In economics, we like to assume that advertising is a benign [provider] of information, yet often this is not the case, especially when it doesn’t provide information but rather aims to capture loyal customers at a young age,” said Rashad, whose research centers around the economics of obesity. To speak with Rashad, contact Michael Davis at 404-413-1361 or e-mail mdavis6@gsu.edu.

Happenings at Georgia State University

Faculty and alumni art on display
“Intersections of Nature and Industry,” an exhibit exploring the relationship between human enterprise and the environment, will be featured at the Welch School of Art and Design Gallery through Aug. 7. The gallery is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. For more information, visit www.gsu.edu/artgallery or call 404-413-5230.

 

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