Duke in the news

For Scott Silliman, dealing with the media is almost a daily occurrence. He appears on CNN with Paula Zahn and on CNN International. He is interviewed on National Public Radio and quoted in USA Today. But Silliman is neither a politician nor a corporate spokesperson--the job that puts him in the spotlight is his position as a professor of the practice at the Law School, where he teaches national security law.

While it's rare to look through the sports pages during basketball season and not see mention of the Blue Devils, and research done at the Medical Center often appears in national news, the men and women on the basketball teams and at the Medical Center are not the only members of the University who make frequent appearances in the local and national press.

"To deal with the media is an important function for the faculty," says Silliman, one of many Duke professors who serve as expert commentators as well as academics. Experts from the University have recently been featured in the national media on topics such as Iraq, cloning and early decision.

In addition to interviews of professors as experts, the University also draws mention in stories that deal with issues in higher education. Sometimes, even students make national news.

In November of last year, freshman Eric Rogers found himself as the lead to a New York Times story. The story, "With Student Cheating on the Rise, More Colleges Are Turning to Honor Codes," discussed Duke's community standard and questions of academic integrity at other universities. Duke was not only mentioned in the story, but photographed as well--a picture of Kacie Wallace, associate dean for student development, standing in front of the Chapel completed the package.

"The reporter approached me in Alpine Atrium. I was doing a project, and she just came, sat down and talked to us," Rogers says. "I'm sure she interviewed a lot of people, but I guess she found what I said interesting."

In the story, Rogers is quoted on his confusion over what constitutes plagiarism. He is also recorded as saying, "Taking a paragraph and changing words, I've done that before; it wasn't a big deal."

Rogers feels the story left a false impression of his actions. "When I said, 'I've done that before,' I clearly was not referring to here at Duke, but that's what was implied," he says, choosing his words carefully this time. "As far as my beliefs on plagiarism and my confusion about it, the story was accurate, but I don't think she showed my words in a positive way."

The media appearances are not merely coincidental.

"We think it is important for Duke to make its work known to other audiences," says David Jarmul, director and associate vice president of news and communications. "Living in a country with lots of newspapers and cable networks, you can't expect that to happen without effort."

That effort is the job of the Office of News and Communications, where Jarmul and his staff have instituted a "Rapid Response" system. The system involves a team of people who get together every morning, look at the paper and plan out how Duke can respond to the issues. "We think, 'What does Duke have to say about North Korea? The Grammy awards?'" Jarmul says. "We are trying to plug us into the outside news cycle."

Lawrence notes that the new policy is more proactive. His office puts together lists of experts for different issues. "Rather than waiting for someone to call us, we try to line up Duke faculty members for reporters," he says. "Many of us in the office have news backgrounds, so we have an idea what the reporters are looking for."

In addition to setting up reporters with sources, the University has also made it easier to make television appearances. "Several months ago we opened a central television studio where Duke faculty and others can go at very short notice and get on the air," Jarmul says. "It has helped level the playing field for Duke in terms of geography. It's easy for reporters to get people in Washington, D.C., but it is tougher in Durham. This has equalized it."

Jill Neff, a guest booker for CNN, says CNN has been interviewing far more professors since schools have started using studios. "[Having a studio] is the big new trend, all the big universities have them, companies have them, even newspapers and magazines have them," she says. "It's been a big trend in the last four to five years."

There is also a radio studio outside of the Office of News and Communications, which used to be a garage and now allows professors such as Eric Jarvis and Silliman to appear on National Public Radio.

"Perhaps we're getting more people out there, there are more people quoted than there used to be," Lawrence says. "Once people know you have these services, they call you."

Communication from the schools plays a large role in the process. Neff says choosing which schools she books just depends on who gets to her first. "It's a win-win situation. For the networks, we have a bigger pool, and it's great for the universities."

For all the effort made to enable media coverage of the University, what's in it for Duke itself?

"The popular media--The New York Times, National Public Radio--are an important way in which the academic community communicates," Jarmul says. "[The media coverage] has a big impact collectively on Duke's reputation, it has an impact on everyone from prospective students to peers to donors.

"By a number of measures--Duke's rankings in numerous places, the number of applications to the University, the success of The Campaign for Duke--it's clear Duke is an institution on the rise," he adds. "What we do is part of that. It is our job to highlight and reflect what others are doing."

Silliman agrees, adding that he sees the frequent appearances by faculty members as effective. "[Coverage by the media] indicates to those who don't know us that that University has a faculty that is well versed, capable of teaching and that we have a student body of the very highest quality and caliber," he says. "I think it is vitally important.... The Duke faculty has greatly helped to inform the American public and the International public by informing the debate."

From a student perspective, Rogers sees coverage of the University as good for the school. "I think Duke is always portrayed in a positive manner--well, except for my quotes," he says. "We have a good reputation among students and other people."

In addition to benefiting the reputation of the University and informing the public, Silliman uses his media appearances in the classroom as well. "It is wonderful to walk into the classroom after a television interview and to talk about the questions raised during the interview with the students," Silliman says. "We have a wealth of expertise here, and I'm delighted that the media organizations have discovered that.

As much as the University tries to position itself in the news, in the end it is difficult to foresee what issue will grab the media's attention next.

"It's a hard thing to measure, it's so unpredictable," Jarmul says. "Look right up the road at [the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill] with the Qur'an. That was a huge story with tremendous amounts of coverage. You never know when the big story will hit."