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EXPERT ALERTS
- Bank Downgrades: Late but Irrelevant
- Tips for Preparing and Proofreading the Perfect Resume
- Shale Gas to Fuel Long-Term Boom
- ADA Discrimination Lawsuits Spiking
- Pinning Employees Can Leave Company Stuck
- Cellphone Radiation Study Takes Wrong Approach
MEDIA JOBS
- Assistant Metro Editor - Louisville, Ky.
- Courts Reporter - Palo Alto, Calif.
- Reporter - Rutherford, N.J.
- Editor - Effingham, Ill.
- Deputy Editor - NYC
OTHER NEWS & RESOURCES
- Spotlight: Deborah Skolnik, Parenting
- Tool Spotlight: MightyText
- Grammar Hammer: There 'May Be' or 'Maybe' a Shark in the Water?
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EXPERT ALERTS
Expert Alerts are listings of ProfNet members who are available to discuss timely news topics. If you are interested in interviewing any of the experts, please contact their media representative at the end of the listing. You can also find Expert Alerts online at bit.ly/pncalerts
Bank Downgrades: Late but Irrelevant
Charles Trzcinka
Professor of Finance
Indiana University Kelley School of Business
Trzcinka can discuss the recent downgrades of 15 major banks by Moody’s Investors Services. According to Trzcinka, the downgrades of banks are overdue and Moody’s has been to slow adjust. But in the end, the downgrades won’t matter to investors and consumers -- and possibly even regulators.
“The world has seen through these ratings companies and understands how slow and irrelevant they are. They are useful as communications tools, quickly summarizing a bond or a company, but the market just doesn’t use them to price securities. The government uses them to determine the risk of bank assets, but even this use is under pressure.”
Trzcinka previously served as senior economist with the Office of Economic Analysis of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. He has also been a consultant to a variety of investment organizations, including the Virginia Retirement System and the New York State Attorney General's Office. He has been published extensively in well-respected financial academic journals such as the Journal of Finance, and Journal of Financial Economics.
Bio: bit.ly/KwJ7DL
Website: www.kelley.iu.edu
News Contact: Brianne O’Donnell, brianne.odonnell@gabbe.com or +1-212-220-4444
Tips for Preparing and Proofreading the Perfect Resume
Amanda Rajotte
Director of Career Services at Brown Mackie College in Hopkinsville, Ky.
"In today’s competitive job market, employers can receive literally hundreds of responses to a posted job. A resume often creates the first impression a prospective employer will form about each candidate, and that first impression forms quickly. Business Insider (bit.ly/NjS9HH) reports that research shows 'recruiters spend about six seconds before they make the initial ‘fit/no fit’ decision.' The resume is a gateway to an interview. It’s worthwhile to put time and effort into creating it. If a resume contains mistakes, all the effort after that is wasted, no matter how many you send out."
Rajotte can provide several important tips for preparing and proofreading the perfect resume.
News Contact: J. Stephen Dobbins, stdobbins@brownmackie.edu or +1-513-830-2005
Shale Gas to Fuel Long-Term Boom
Arthur Wright
Attorney
Thompson & Knight in Dallas
"Even as some energy companies cut back on production, a recent study forecasts that the ongoing development of shale-gas resources will account for nearly 1.5 million new jobs by 2015. At the same time, major projects, including several multibillion-dollar petrochemical plants in the works in Texas, likely will increase demand for natural gas. Despite current low natural-gas prices and potential for the oversupply of liquefied natural gas (LNG), I believe over the long haul we’ll continue to see an increase in investment and supply as consumption increases. New markets and demand will be created, while new facilities and outlets such as expanded use of LNG will create the growth to support ongoing shale production. According to the study, cumulative investments in unconventional gas development will reach nearly $3.2 trillion during the next 25 years."
News Contact: Barry Pound, barry@androvett.com or +1-800-559-4534
ADA Discrimination Lawsuits Spiking
Michael Baum
Employment Litigation Attorney
Munck Wilson Mandala in Dallas
"Employment discrimination lawsuits under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) have nearly doubled in the last five years. The 90 percent increase follows changes to the ADA in 2008 that significantly broadened the range of workers protected under the statute and simultaneously made it harder for employers to obtain summary judgments for frivolous complaints. The broader definitions of who qualifies as 'disabled' under the ADA, coupled with an economic downturn in which out-of-work employees are more likely to sue their former employers, has resulted in a significant uptick in these types of lawsuits across the country."
News Contact: Robert Tharp, robert@androvett.com or +1-800-559-4534
Pinning Employees Can Leave Company Stuck
Audrey Mross
Employment Attorney
Munck Wilson Mandala in Dallas
"As Pinterest continues to grow in usage and popularity, it’s probably a good idea to remind employees of a few key rules related to intellectual property. Whenever someone posts or ‘pins’ an image or photograph that doesn’t belong to them, they risk violating someone else’s copyright. And if it happens on a work computer, there may be problems not only for the person posting, but potentially for the company as well, as the company may have some liability for its employees' actions. Employers need to make certain their company’s electronic communications policy includes language that prohibits violating laws with regard to patents, trademarks and copyrights, and make sure employees are following the policy."
News Contact: Mark Annick, mark@androvett.com or +1-800-559-4534
Cellphone Radiation Study Takes Wrong Approach
Papool Chaudhari
Attorney
Reyes Browne Reilley in Dallas
"The problem with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)’s recently announced plan to review its standards for radiation emitted by cellphones is that it’s not looking at the problem the right way. The FCC is starting with an assumption that cellphones are safe, rather than presuming that they may actually pose a danger. If you remember, early on people thought tobacco was safe to use. How many lives might have been saved if we had started with a belief that tobacco was dangerous and worked to disprove that, rather than the other way around? The fact is, cellphones emit radiation and people hold them near their brain. We should presume they pose a danger and work to disprove that before allowing the public, especially children, to use them."
News Contact: Mark Annick, mark@androvett.com or +1-800-559-4534
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MEDIA JOBS:
Following are links to job listings for staff and freelance writers. You can view these and more job listings on our Job Board: bit.ly/pncjobboard
- Assistant Metro Editor - Louisville, Ky.
- Courts Reporter - Palo Alto, Calif.
- Reporter - Rutherford, N.J.
- Editor - Effingham, Ill.
- Deputy Editor - NYC
See more listings here.
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OTHER NEWS & RESOURCES:
Following are links to other news and resources we think you might find useful. If you have an item you think other reporters would be interested in and would like us to include in a future alert, please drop us a line at profnetalerts@prnewswire.com
- SPOTLIGHT: DEBORAH SKOLNIK, PARENTING: ProfNet Editor Evelyn Tipacti interviews Deborah Skolnik, senior editor at Parenting magazine: bit.ly/KRj3IA
- TOOL SPOTLIGHT: MIGHTYTEXT: ProfNet Editor Jason Hahn highlights MightyText, an Android app and browser extension that allows users to send and reply to text messages from a computer or tablet: bit.ly/LWeIU5
- GRAMMAR HAMMER: THERE 'MAY BE' OR 'MAYBE' A SHARK IN THE WATER?: ProfNet Editor Grace Lavigne explains when it's correct to use "may be" and "maybe": bit.ly/MARvVB
