Media and Public Relations
We started to produce a series of short, snappy, “Buzzfeed-style” videos to highlight the University’s groundbreaking faculty research – from a new technique used to kill pancreatic cancer cells to a study that revealed that babies who look like their fathers are healthier one year after birth than those who do not. These videos perform well on social media and are regularly re-used by major media outlets when spotlighting our research. Two of these videos, “Scientists discover oldest known modern human fossil outside of Africa” and “Self-healing fungi concrete could provide sustainable solution to America’s crumbling infrastructure,” have already garnered 18,000+ views and 10,000+ views on YouTube, respectively.
The work of our faculty continues to draw the attention of news outlets across the globe. Meredith Coles, Rolf Quam, Oscar Gil Garcia, Anne Bailey, Matthew Johnson and many others were featured in a wide variety of national news outlets, ranging from U.S. News & World Report to Reader’s Digest, reaching an audience of millions. In January, two of our biggest research stories of the year were featured in one broadcast of the BBC World Service Radio Program “Science in Action.” The program looked at the discovery of the oldest modern human fossil outside of Africa, which Rolf Quam was involved in, and spotlighted the fungi concrete research led by Congrui Jin.
We produced the “Snowy Bing Aerial Tour” video, which offers a sky-high view of our campus blanketed in snow.
Binghamton in the news
Rolf Quam, associate professor of anthropology, was featured in The Huffington Post, Newsweek, History, Fox News, The Conversation, The Chicago Tribune, Popular Mechanics, The Boston Globe, The New York Times, USA Today, CNET, MSN, Yahoo, World News, Gizmodo, The Scientist, The Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post and others for his work in identifying the oldest known modern human fossil outside of Africa. Analysis of the fossil suggests Homo sapiens left Africa at least 50,000 years earlier than previously thought. Total circulation: Over 605.2 million.
Meredith Coles, professor of psychology, was featured in Forbes, Reader’s Digest, Men’s Health, Newsweek, Prevention, MSN Lifestyle, The New York Times and others for her research which showed that people who sleep less than eight hours a night ate more likely to suffer from depression and anxiety. Total circulation: Over 61 million.
William Eggleston, clinical assistant professor, was featured in Newsweek, The Washington Post, The Star Tribune, The Idaho Statesman, Tech Times and others for his insight on the FDA’s move to change packaging on over-the-counter anti-diarrheal products. He called it “a good first step,” but thinks that the drugs should be behind the counter. Total circulation: Over 52 million.
Matthew D. Johnson, chair and professor of psychology, was featured in Business Insider, Chron.com and others, where he explained that the maxim “opposites attract” is a complete myth. Total circulation: Over 26.2 million.
Congrui Jin, assistant professor of mechanical engineering, was featured in Scientific American, NBCNews.com, Smithsonian, Newsweek, IFL Science, Popular Mechanics and others for her research on a self-healing concrete that could provide a sustainable solution to America’s crumbling infrastructure. Total circulation: Over 24.2 million.
Oscar Gil Garcia, assistant professor of human development, was featured in The Conversation, The San Diego Tribune and Salon for his research in which he documented one man’s deportation, the impact on his family and his eventual return to the U.S. Total circulation: Over 19.5 million.
Anne C. Bailey, historian, associate professor and author of The Weeping Time, a book about the largest slave auction in America, was featured in The New York Times, The Star Tribune, The Seattle Times, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and many others for her research about the African-American tradition and the African-American contribution to the building up of the country and the world. Total circulation: Over 10.5 million.
Donald Nieman, executive vice president for academic affairs and provost, was featured in Salon.com for his article titled “Five lessons Trump could learn from Lincoln.” Total circulation: Over 11 million.
Social media
We expanded the ways in which we communicate through social media, implementing a “Week in Review” series for the story feature available through Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat. The “Week in Review” spotlights big news that took place in the Binghamton community – from groundbreaking faculty research to athletic achievements. This feature allows us to provide our audiences with engaging, informative content in an up-to-date, visually striking way.
Binghamton Blog
We published eight blogs, on topics ranging from notable alumni to fun things to do in winter around Binghamton. “29 alumni couples that are the definition of #RelationshipGoals” reached 17,000+ people on Facebook and garnered 244 reactions.
We launched a new Q&A blog series called “Life after Bing,” where we interview alumni who are leaders in their fields, find out how these alums got to be where they are now and how Binghamton shaped their lives.
Other blogs include:
• A Day in the Life of Kai Zhang: Table Tennis Master
• Why Binghamton University gives back on TAG (Thank a Giver) Day
• You know you went to SUNY Binghamton when…
Ask a Scientist
A total of five “Ask a Scientist” columns were published in the Press & Sun-Bulletin. Faculty, staff and graduate students from across various schools and departments at Binghamton contributed answers to questions ranging from “Can humans overcome global warming at this point?” to “How do clouds float?”
Videos
• Find out how people who sleep less than eight hours a night are more likely to suffer from depression and anxiety.
• Watch this video to find out why higher-ranked colleges don’t necessarily provide a better educational experience according to a new study.
• Watch this video to find out how self-healing fungi concrete could provide sustainable solution to America’s crumbling infrastructure. This new concept offers a low-cost, pollution -free and sustainable approach to fixing concrete.
• Snowy Bing Aerial Tour: Bundle up, grab a hot cocoa and join us for an aerial tour of snow-covered Bing.
• Scientists discover oldest known modern human fossil outside of Africa: A large international research team led by Israel Hershkovitz from Tel Aviv University and including Rolf Quam from Binghamton University has discovered the earliest modern human fossil ever found outside of Africa. The finding suggests that modern humans left the continent at least 50,000 years earlier than previously thought.
• Find out how even small changes within an ecosystem can have detrimental effects.
• Babies who look like their father at birth are healthier one year later than those who do not. Watch this video to learn more.
• Watch this video to find out how a combination of personality traits might make you more addicted to social networks.
High-profile University/President Harvey Stenger activities
On Jan. 24, the Southern Tier Regional Economic Development Council (REDC), co-chaired by President Harvey Stenger began meeting again for the new year (2018). The first meeting included a review of the awards from the previous December, as well as status reports from all of the REDC working groups: Building the Greater Binghamton Innovation Ecosystem, Transforming the Food and Agriculture Industry, Investing in Advanced Manufacturing, Promoting the Southern Tier Innovative Culture and, finally, Workforce Development. It is expected that there will be an eighth round of REDC (CFA/URI) funding, but until the budget is finalized, nothing is definite. The next full council meeting will take place in May.
The University held its eighth annual University Day at the Mall on Feb. 24 at the Oakdale Mall Center Court. More than 25 on-campus groups participated and provided displays and entertainment for the local community. There were musical performances, science demonstrations, educational displays and hands-on arts and crafts activities. The goal of the event is to bring the University and all it has to offer off campus and into the community. It is estimated that more than 500 people participated in the event.
Binghamton University’s Advocacy Day took place March 14. As has been done in recent years, Federal Relations Director Darcy Fauci traveled to Albany with students (five this year), who delivered Binghamton University related advocacy materials to all of the assembly members and senators. This year, in addition to our “20 facts” brochure, we also created a “Thank you” brochure, thanking legislators for the support they have provided public higher education in New York. The brochure summarized some of the many ways we have taken their investments and improved our campus, as well as attempted to catalyze positive change in the communities around us, specifically downtown Binghamton and Johnson City.
Other high-profile events:
On Jan. 4, Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul visited campus to deliver the governor’s State of the State message to a crowd of about 100 people in Symposium Hall at the Innovative Technologies Complex.
On Feb. 6, N.Y. Sen. Fred Akshar and two other senators, Amedore and Jacobs, held a Senate Task Force hearing on Heroin and Opioid Addiction. The event was held at the ITC Rotunda and included testimony from family members of addicts, service providers, law enforcement and the business community.