News agencies recently called on MTSU faculty and staff experts for comments on numerous issues, including car insurance, the Bill of Rights, criminal justice, job interviews and student loan forgiveness, among other topics.

Dr. Horace Johns

Lynda Williams

• Dr. Horace Johns, a professor of accounting, wrote a commentary about the important character traits to project while interviewing for a job. The opinion piece was published Dec. 9 by www.gcanews.com and can be read here.

• Lynda Williams, a professor of criminal justice administration, predicted a “hybrid” criminal justice system would emerge after the COVID-19 pandemic in a Dec. 10 story in The Crime Report. Her comments are available here.

Dr. John Vile

Dr. Benjamin Jansen

• Dr. John Vile, dean of the University Honors College and a political scientist, was interviewed for the Tennessee Voices podcast about the present and future of American politics. The video, which was posted Dec. 10, can be accessed here.

• Dr. Benjamin A. Jansen, an assistant professor of finance, answered questions about COVID-19’s impact on car insurance prices and celebrity endorsements for car insurance for a Dec. 10 story by WalletHub. His responses can be read here.

Kent Syler

Sarah Calise

• Kent Syler, a professor of political science and international relations, commented on the U.S. Supreme Court’s refusal to hear a lawsuit filed by Texas to postpone the vote of Electoral College members from four other states in a Dec. 11 report by WSMV-TV in Nashville. His remarks are available here.

• Sarah Calise, an archivist with the Albert Gore Research Center, discussed her pursuit of information about a 1970 cross burning on the MTSU campus in a Dec. 12 story in the Daily News Journal of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Her remarks are available here.

Ken Paulson

Dr. Jessica Gaby

• Ken Paulson, director of the Free Speech Center, said the Bill of Rights emerged from an environment full of vitriolic and biased media in a Dec. 15 editorial in the Journal Gazette of Fort Wayne, Indiana. His quotes can be read here.

• Dr. Jessica Gaby, an assistant professor of psychology, explained how intensely the olfactory system is tied in with emotion and memory in a Dec. 15 article in Wine Magazine. Her perspectives can be accessed here.

Dr. Daniel Smith

Dr. Murat Arik

• Dr. Daniel Smith, an associate professor of economics and director of the Political Economy Research Institute, wrote an editorial advocating against student loan forgiveness that was published Dec. 17 in The Ohio Star of Columbus, Ohio. His views are available here.

• Dr. Murat Arik, director of the Business and Economic Research Center, said Tennessee’s real estate market is moving upward despite the pandemic in a Dec. 18 story by WTVF-TV in Nashville. His comments can be accessed here.

Dr. Ben Stickle

• Dr. Ben Stickle, an associate professor of criminal justice administration, said porch piracy will be difficult to control until more police departments begin collecting data on the crime in a Dec. 20 article in the Toledo (Ohio) Blade. His remarks can be read here.

Reporters seeking expertise from MTSU personnel, as well as members of the campus community with expertise for media, may contact Gina Logue in the Office of News and Media Relations at 615-631-8322 or via email at gina.logue@mtsu.edu.