DePaul University Experts Available to Comment on Presidential Debates, Election

CHICAGO, Sept. 30 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- DePaul University faculty experts are available to provide expert analysis of the presidential debates, including how the candidates did on key issues, who lost or gained ground, and how voters will respond to these developments. DePaul University, the largest Catholic university in the United States, has an array of experts available to provide context and insight on the presidential debates, election, as well as the election-year political landscape. They also can discuss many issues emerging in the presidential race, including the economy, foreign and domestic policy, the impact of Sarah Palin on the race, and potentially the first African-American president.

Professors available to speak with reporters are:

Molly Andolina, assistant professor of political science. Andolina is an expert on American government, political behavior, campaigns and elections, political socialization and culture, and public opinion. Her research fields include American civic engagement, generational politics (youth, GenX and the DotNet Generations) and youth activism. She can be reached at 773/325-4709 or mandolin@depaul.edu.

James E. Block, professor of political science. He is an expert on American political culture, American religion and politics. He wrote the book "A Nation of Agents: The American Path to a Modern Self and Society." Block can be reached at 773/325-1976 or by e-mail at jblock@depaul.edu.

Mike Conklin, journalism instructor. A former Chicago Tribune reporter, Conklin believes the final debate will be the most important. "Barring some miraculous recovery, everyone will be paying attention to the final one Oct. 15, when domestic policy (and presumably economic policy) is debated," Conklin said. "Also, the final one is a chance to leave a lasting, positive impression before the respective campaigns resume negativity of historic proportions that figures to worse in the final stretch." Conklin believes the vice presidential debate is very important "not because of substance, but simply because the ratings figure to be very high." During the primaries, Conklin took some of his students to Iowa to cover the caucuses for some local Iowa newspapers. Several students worked at the Cedar Rapids Gazette, and others worked at the Marion Sentinel. Conklin can be reached at 773/325-8651 or mconkli2@depaul.edu.

Zachary Cook, political science instructor. Cook can speak about American government and politics, media and politics, public opinion, state politics and statistics. He can be reached at 773/325-8679 or by e-mail at zcook@depaul.edu.

Bruce Evensen, professor of communication. He can discuss public perception of the press and the political process, the link between press credibility and voter confidence, and the effect of negative attack ads on public perception. He also can discuss media coverage of the campaign and the role of religion in the political race. A former Middle East news bureau chief for Christian Broadcasting, he has written three books on media ethics. Evensen can be reached at 773/325-2894 or bevensen@depaul.edu.

David Franklin, assistant professor of law. He is an expert on presidential power, separation of power, separation of church and state, and the United States Supreme Court. Franklin is a former law student of Barack Obama and a former clerk for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. He can be reached at 773/510-5923 or by e-mail at dfrankl2@depaul.edu.

Valerie Johnson, assistant professor of political science. She can talk about American, African-American and urban politics, and the politics of urban education. Johnson teaches a class titled "Black Political Organizations in the Post-Civil Rights Era." She can be reached at 773/325-4731 or by e-mail at vjohnso5@depaul.edu.

Azza Salama Layton, associate professor of political science. An expert on public policy analysis and the presidency, Layton teaches a course at DePaul titled "The American Presidency." She can be reached at 773/325-1987 or by e-mail at alayton@depaul.edu.

Michael L. Mezey, professor of political science. He can discuss congressional and presidential elections and processes, public policymaking and the Electoral College. He is an editorial board member of Legislative Studies Quarterly, appears regularly on Chicago television news programs, and gives frequent interviews to local and national news media. He can be reached at 773/325-7318 or by e-mail at mmezey@depaul.edu.

Bruce Newman, professor of marketing. Newman believes the debates are "critical, probably the most important in many decades, because of two key issues: Iraq and the economy." The vice presidential debate will be a wash - Biden and Palin will each hold their own, he said. "This is the first opportunity for both candidates to appeal to the key 'swing' voters who up until now may have not paid as much attention to the words coming from the mouth of the candidate himself, but from his opponent," Newman said. Voters will watch to see who comes across as a stronger leader, who looks more presidential, as well as who is most in touch with Americans' pain and suffering as the country goes deeper into a recession. Viewers want to see if McCain really does have a temper and whether he can keep it in check in a high-pressure situation. They also want to see if Obama is really arrogant and somewhat aloof or cold, or if he's just a very cerebral person who has a hard time coming across in the "smooth" way that someone like Bill Clinton did. Newman is an expert on presidential candidate image-making and advertising, voter behavior and the role of emotions in voter choices, marketing of presidential candidates, the use of the Internet in presidential marketing, volunteer and grass-roots voter solicitations, and campaign finance reform. He was a communication adviser to the senior staff of the Clinton White House in 1995 and 1996, is the author of several books on the subject, including "The Marketing of the President," and is editor of the Journal of Political Marketing. Newman can be reached at 312/362-5186 or by e-mail at bnewman@depaul.edu.

Christina Rivers, assistant professor of political science. Her areas of expertise focus on the intersection of race and law in American politics, including voting rights law and equal protection law, as well as black political thought from abolition through the civil rights movement. She can be reached at 773/325-4593 or by e-mail at crivers@depaul.edu.

David J. Roberts, associate professor, School of Accountancy. He has written extensively on tax policy, tax cuts, and proposals to change the tax structure; the federal budget and deficits; and Social Security. He can be reached at 312/362-8388 or by e-mail at droberts@depaul.edu.

Craig Sautter, visiting faculty, School for New Learning. Author of 10 books, including "Inside the Wigwam: Chicago Presidential Conventions 1860-1996," Sautter can talk about presidential conventions and campaigns. He has created television and radio campaigns for political candidates as co-owner with his brother Chris of Sautter Communications: Political Strategy & Media, based in Washington, D.C., and Chicago. On his Web site, www.presidentialconventions.com, reporters can find written histories of the previous Democratic National Convention in Denver, and the previous Republican National Convention in Minneapolis. He can be reached at (773) 262-5806, (cell) (773) 655-7169 or via e-mail at rcsautter@aol.com.

Jeffrey Shaman, Vincent de Paul Professor of Law. He is an expert on constitutional law and the Second Amendment. He can be reached at 312/362-8143 or by e-mail at jshaman@depaul.edu.

H. Peter Steeves, associate professor of philosophy. He can discuss legitimacy and ethics of elections and the electoral process, war and post-war politics, environmental issues, Latin-American issues and local vs. federal issues as they relate to the election. He can be reached at 773/325-1153 or by e-mail at psteeves@depaul.edu.

Wayne Steger, professor of political science. He can speak about public policymaking, media coverage of presidential elections, election forecasts and outcomes, endorsements/party behavior, voter behavior and evaluating presidential success in Congress. He can be reached at 773/325-4240, 773/677-5328 (cell) or by e-mail at wsteger@depaul.edu.

Laura S. Washington, Ida B. Wells-Barnett University Professor. The award-winning Chicago journalist and columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times is available to discuss African-American voters, race and social justice issues in the upcoming elections. She has covered the career of presidential candidate Barack Obama since the early 1990s. She is attending the Democratic Convention in Denver. She can be reached at 773/325-4675 or by e-mail at lwashin3@depaul.edu.

James Wolfinger, assistant professor of history and education. He has written extensively about race and politics in 20th century American. He is the author of the recently published book, "Philadelphia Divided: Race and Politics in the City of Brotherly Love," and is currently working on a history of black Chicago titled, "Building the Black Metropolis." He can bring a historical perspective to journalistic discussions of race and politics. He can be reached at 773/325-4290 or by e-mail at jwolfing@depaul.edu.

J. Harry Wray, professor of political science. He is an expert on political parties, elections and political culture. He can be reached via phone at 773/325-1975 or by e-mail at hwray@depaul.edu.