December 9, 2009 at 4:09 pm
General Mills just announced that they will be reducing the amount of sugar in their cereals that are advertised to children. These cereals will soon have less than 10 grams of sugar in each serving. Over the last few years they have reduced the sugar in many of their cereals by as much as 20 percent. For example, a serving of Apple Cinnamon Cheerios had 13 grams of sugar per serving in 2007 and currently contains 11 grams per serving. In the future, a serving will have less than 10 grams. Here is a Fox TV Segment on kid-friendly, healthy cereals.
December 9, 2009 at 1:54 pm
The TV network world is buzzing about former Bill Clinton staffer George Stephanopoulos accepting the offer to co-host ABC's "Good Morning America," succeeding Diane Sawyer, who heads to the anchor desk of the network's "World News Tonight." Journalism Professor Bob Zelnick, a long-time ABC News correspondent, says he sees Stephanopoulos as smart, hard-working, and adaptable to the new show.
"Still, I have this nagging notion that he and Diane Sawyer are both landing with the wrong shows. He belongs at WNT, she at GMA. Watch for a charge by Katie Couric."
Contact Bob Zelnick, 617-353-5007, bzelnick@bu.edu
December 9, 2009 at 12:25 pm
Senate Democratic leaders have a tentative compromise on the "public option" part of the healthcare-reform bill which might be able to garner enough votes to get the whole package passed. Professor Alan Cohen, who heads BU's Health Policy Institute, thinks it's smart to offer private plans under the auspices of the federal-employee health program and to let middle-aged people buy into Medicare.
"These are reasonable, commonsensical concessions by the liberals to gain the support of the moderates in Congress, and a separate national public option would not be necessary unless these options failed in the short-term."
Contact Alan Cohen, 617-353-9222, abcohen@bu.edu
December 9, 2009 at 10:33 am
Tiger Woods has avoided the public since the Nov. 27 SUV crash at his home, even though he's become a staple of newscasts and late-night comedy put-downs. PR Professor Peter Morrissey, a crisis-communication expert who worked on the Tylenol case, suggests Tiger must carefully pick his public appearances, take care of family matters, don't blame the media, be humble and self-effacing, and keep winning golf tournaments.
"Tiger may actually benefit from this in that his image is not as a perfectionist, but as person that is mortal and fallible. He must remember that even the worse sins and faults are forgiven over time and this controversy will fade."
Contact Peter Morrissey, 617-353-1020, pmorriss@bu.edu
December 8, 2009 at 4:42 pm
Although they were integral to the economic collapse, rating agencies thusfar have been spared regulatory reform from Congess. Former deputy Comptroller of the Currency Robert Bench, now senior fellow at the BU law school's Morin Center for Banking and Financial Law, says overhaul is needed but it can wait.
"The dangers and weaknesses in the credit rating agency process remain, structurally, but I think we can afford not addressing them in current legislative proposals. At its simplest, the Congress already has too much on its plate with currently proposed financial regulation legislation to also tackle rating agencies just now."
Contact Robert Bench, 617-353-5428, bobbench@bu.edu
December 8, 2009 at 3:14 pm
With a key committee approving a gay-marriage bill, the New Jersey legislature faces a showdown when the issue hits the full state Senate Thursday. Law Professor Linda McClain, an authority on family law, says New Jersey lawmakers must beware of efforts to infuse the debate over civil marriages with religious arguments.
"Religious opposition may well end up defeating this effort to bring about civil equality, but this does not mean that it is appropriate for government to allow appeals to scripture and to religious tradition to suffice as arguments against a law to extend civil marriage."
Contact Linda McClain, 617-358-4635, lmcclain@bu.edu
December 7, 2009 at 6:13 pm
With Washington's "pay czar" setting limits for executives of bailed out Wall Street firms, five high-ranking execs at AIG reportedly are ready to quit if their compensation is cut significantly. Law Professor Tamar Frankel, an authority on securities law and legal ethics, says maybe its time to both change the guard and change the mores that presume top pay equals top-quality management.
“We need those who care about the economy and their contribution to their corporations. Most of all, we need to change our evaluation of management -- pay alone should not signify value.”
Contact Tamar Frankel, 617-353-3773, tfrankel@bu.edu
December 3, 2009 at 5:32 pm
Bank of America has received Fed approval to repay the $45 billion in Troubled Asset Relief Program bailout loans it got from taxpayers over the past year. Former Federal Reserve Bank examiner Mark T. Williams, who teaches finance in the School of Management, says the payback might be too early.
"Banks are beginning to earn their way back to health, and BofA is on much stronger financial footing than even six months ago. But banks still need to rebuild capital positions that were destroyed over a long period of wonton risk taking."
Contact Mark T. Williams, 617-358-2789, williams@bu.edu
December 3, 2009 at 1:17 pm
A GAO report to Congress about the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division during Bush years shows a significant drop in enforcement of several major antidiscrimination and voting rights laws compared with the Clinton years. Law Professor Robert Volk says the GAO report substantiates suspicions that the Bush administration had little interest in enforcing civil rights laws and had politicized the DoJ.
"Along with the well-publicized firings of United States attorneys during the Bush administration, as well as the politicization of the hiring process, this report paints a very sad picture of law enforcement during those eight years."
Contact Robert Volk, 617-353-3156, rvolk@bu.edu
December 2, 2009 at 6:23 pm
Only eight months after General Motors' new owners -- the U.S. government -- replaced the old CEO, the GM board canned that CEO in an effort to accelerate paying back taxpayers for the loans that kept the automaker afloat. School of Management Dean Lou Lataif, a former Ford Motor Company senior executive, says the moves reflect the government's impatience.
"What we are seeing is that the U.S. government, as a direct investor, may be even more impatient that private investors because of political pressures to repay the taxpayers."
Contact Lou Lataif, 617-353-2668, lelataif@bu.edu
