Faculty experts at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill can provide knowledgeable commentary on the current economic situation, as well as related coverage of business and finance.
The Carolina News Studio is available for live and/or pre-recorded television interviews with our economics experts. We are also equipped with ISDN connectivity for radio interviews.
Faculty experts at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill can provide knowledgeable commentary on the current economic situation, as well as related coverage of business and finance.
The Carolina News Studio is available for live and/or pre-recorded television interviews with our economics experts. We are also equipped with ISDN connectivity for radio interviews.
For assistance in reaching any UNC-Chapel Hill experts or to schedule studio time, please contact News Services:
| Melissa Sowry | Susan Houston | |||||
| Studio Manager | Outreach Editor | |||||
| (919) 360-2425 | (919) 962-8415 | |||||
| melissa_sowry@unc.edu | susan_houston@unc.edu |
A list of experts by topic and their contact information follows:
- Current financial crisis
- Economic trends, black/Hispanic impact on N.C. economy
- Federal Reserve, monetary policy
- Mortgage foreclosures, housing policy
- Impacts of regulation, deregulation on the economy
- Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., banking perspective on crisis
- Securities and Exchange Commission, fair value accounting
- Global financial markets
To find additional experts on other economy topics that are not included on this tip sheet, please go to our searchable experts database. https://secure.dev.unc.edu/UNCExperts/
Stanley Black
Professor of economics
College of Arts and Sciences
(919) 966-5926
swblack@unc.edu
Online bio: https://s4.its.unc.edu/UNCExperts/
uncexperts/getperson?ID=RFEXCTDFF&name=Black
Topics: current financial crisis, national economic policy, monetary policy, the Federal Reserve as well as floating exchange rates and macroeconomic policy
Black previously served with the President’s Council of Economic Advisers, the Federal Reserve Board and the U.S. Department of State. He was a senior policy advisor at the IMF Institute of the International Monetary Fund during 2000-2001. His books include “Floating Exchange Rates and National Economic Policy,” “Europe's Economy Looks East,” “Competition and Convergence in Financial Markets” and “Globalization, Technological Change and Labor Markets.”
In a recent Think Fast forum on the economy at UNC, Black’s topic was the effect of the current crisis on the real economy and how to improve the situation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfC7QJ6jgwI
Jennifer Conrad
Professor of finance
Kenan-Flagler Business School
(919) 962-3132
jennifer_conrad@kenan-flagler.unc.edu
Online bio: https://s4.its.unc.edu/UNCExperts/
uncexperts/getperson?ID=RTWEXDRFE
Topics: financial management and investments, patterns in returns and their potential applications, asset pricing models to explain predictable patterns in returns, institutional investing
Conrad teaches financial management and investments. She conducts research in the investments area. Her earlier work analyzed patterns in returns and their potential applications, such as contrarian investment strategies. More recently, she is researching the ability of asset pricing models to explain predictable patterns in returns. She also studies the execution strategies and execution costs of institutional investors.
In a recent Think Fast forum on the economy at UNC, Conrad’s topic was what precipitated the financial crisis: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FnDQYUDWLC8
Media citation:
National Public Radio Marketplace
“To vote or not to vote”
http://marketplace.publicradio.org/display/web/2007/11/02/to_vote_or_not_to_vote
Don Hornstein
Professor of law
School of Law
(919) 962-4133
dhornste@email.unc.edu
Online bio: http://www.law.unc.edu/faculty/directory/
Topics: insurance law, the design of regulatory regimes, the behavior of administrative agencies, the use of science and risk analysis in governmental decisions, the design of regulatory systems to govern complex economic- and environmental systems.
In his career as an attorney, Hornstein specialized in environmental and products liability matters. He joined the School of Law faculty as a visiting associate professor of law in 1987 and was appointed an associate professor in 1989, a full professor in 1993, and associate dean of faculty in 1994. For the 1996-97 academic year, Hornstein was a visiting professor of law at the University of Asmara in Eritrea, Africa, under the auspices of the Fulbright Scholar program. Hornstein often teaches an undergraduate class in environmental law and policy for the environmental studies major and has won the University Teaching Award for Post-Baccalaureate Instruction. I currently serve on the General Assembly’s Special Select Committee on the Effect of Category 3, 4, and 5 Hurricanes on the NC Insurance Industry.
In a recent Think Fast forum on the economy at UNC, Hornstein’s topic was insurance and the roles of agencies in regulation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TAwDQS3MNFI
Publications:
“The Road Also Taken: Lessons from Organic Agriculture for Market- and Risk-Based Regulation”
56 DUKE L.J. 1541
http://heinonline.org/HOL/Page?handle=hein.journals/
duklr56&men_hide=false&men_tab=citnav&collection=journals&page=1541
“Complexity Theory, Adaptation and Administrative Law”
54 DUKE L.J. 913
http://www.heinonline.org/HOL/Page?handle=hein.journals/
duklr54&men_hide=false&men_tab=citnav&collection=journals&page=913
Chris Roush
Director, Carolina Business News Initiative
School of Journalism and Mass Communication
(919) 962-4092 (office); (919) 932-3690 (home); (919) 593-3921 (cell)
croush@email.unc.edu
Online bio: https://s4.its.unc.edu/UNCExperts/
uncexperts/getperson?ID=RRWXTDWWF
Topics: Wall Street and the economy, how stocks, bonds and economic indicators interact and how this information is reported in the media
Roush has vast experience in business journalism as a former business reporter for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Bloomberg News, BusinessWeek, Sarasota Herald-Tribune and Tampa Tribune and Editor-in-chief of SNL Financial LC, publisher of investment newsletters and magazines. He was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize in 1993. His books include “Show Me the Money: Writing Business and Economics Stories for Mass Communication” and “Profits and Losses: Business Journalism and its Role in Society.” His economics reporting class emphasizes coverage of the Federal Reserve, labor, consumer, manufacturing and inflation, as well as certain industries.
Media citations:
UNC TV
“North Carolina Now”
Periodic guest commenting about state business issues
CNBC
“Money Talk”
Appeared as part of joint venture with BusinessWeek.
Also guest on radio shows around the country to discuss articles written in BusinessWeek.
James H. Johnson
Director, Urban Investment Strategies Center, Frank Hawkins Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise
Professor of strategy and entrepreneurship
Kenan-Flagler Business School
(919) 962-2214
jim_johnson@unc.edu
Online bio: http://www.kenan-flagler.unc.edu/Faculty/search/detail.cfm?person_id=83
Topics: downsizing, emerging markets, entrepreneurship, labor issues, off-shoring, outsourcing, political economy, urban issues
Johnson’s research interests include community and economic development, the effects of demographic changes on the U.S. workplace, interethnic minority conflict in advanced industrial societies, urban poverty and public policy in urban America, and workforce diversity issues.
Johnson’s research focuses on the causes and consequences of growing inequality in American society, particularly as it affects socially and economically disadvantaged youth; entrepreneurial approaches to poverty alleviation, job creation, and community development; interethnic minority conflict in advanced industrial societies; and business demography and workforce diversity issues. With John Kasarda (below), he has co-authored two studies on the economic impact of minority groups on the state economy: “The Economic Impact of the African American Population on the Sate of North Carolina” in 2007 and “The Economic Impact of the Hispanic Population on the Sate of North Carolina” in 2006.
Media citations:
Johnson’s research has been widely cited in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Detroit Free Press, Newsweek, Time, U.S> News & World Report and BusinessWeek. He also has appeared on a number of national television shows, including the Today Show on NBC, CNN Headline News, DBS Evening News, ABC Nightly News, Sunday Morning on CBS, Inside Politics on CNN and This Week in Review on ABC.
John D. Kasarda
Director, Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise and Carolina Entrepreneurial Initiative
Professor of strategy and entrepreneurship
Kenan-Flagler Business School
(919) 962-8201
john_kasarda@unc.edu
Online bio: http://www.kenan-flagler.unc.edu/Faculty/search/detail.cfm?person_id=85
Topics: airline industry/aviation, economic trends, entrepreneurship, off-shoring, supply chain management and logistics, outsourcing, real estate, transportation, urban issues, how the current crisis is linked to such areas as air travel, airports and demographics (such as Mexicans going home and aging boomers postponing retirement)
Kasarda is an acknowledged expert on aviation infrastructure, logistics, demographics, urban development and commercial real estate issues. He has published more than 80 scholarly articles and nine books on the subjects, and he is considered the leading developer of the aerotropolis concept defining the roles of aviation and airports in shaping 21st century urban growth and form.
Kasarda has offered numerous executive programs on logistics, firm siting, global supply-chain management and new air transportation infrastructures to multinational firms such as FedEx, DHL, Caterpillar, Prudential Real Estate, Bank of America and Deloitte & Touche. Under his leadership, the Kenan Institute was named the worl’'s top air logistics educational institution by The International Air Cargo Association for its work on airports and industrial development.
Media citations:
The Los Angeles Times
“Longtime Republican Voters Are Airing New Views”
http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-na-exurbs12-2008aug12,0,7724249,full.story
Crain’s Detroit Business
“A Conversation with: John Kasarda”
http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20080825/SUB/808250306/1068
National Post
“All Aboard for Terminal City”
http://www.nationalpost.com/life/story.html?id=726546
Federal Reserve, monetary policy
Gregory W. Brown
Chair, finance department
Kenan-Flagler Business School
(919) 962-9250
gregwbrown@unc.edu
Online bio: https://s4.its.unc.edu/UNCExperts
/uncexperts/getperson?ID=RTDFVTCFE
Topics: Federal Reserve, financial risk management for business and/or investors
Brown’s research focuses on financial risk management. He is co-editor of the book, "Corporate Risk: Strategies and Management,” with Donald Chew, and once worked for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System in the Division of Research and Statistics.
Media citations:
Reuters
(carried in Economic Times of India, Saudi Gazette, Gulf Times in Qatar, SABC News in South Africa)
“Bush Keeps Low Profile in Market Crisis”
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/International_Business/
Bush_keeps_low_profile_in_market_crisis/articleshow/3497361.cms
The (Durham) Herald-Sun
“Wal-Mart Style Banking”
http://heraldsun.southernheadlines.com/archives/URNDetail.cfm?
URN=0572972874&QSearchInfo=wal-mart%20style%20banking
Christian Lundblad
Associate professor of finance
Kenan-Flagler Business School
(919) 962-8441
lundblac@kenan-flagler.unc.edu
Online bio: http://www.kenan-flagler.unc.edu/Faculty/search/detail.cfm?person_id=859
Topics: asset pricing, capital markets, derivatives, econometrics, emerging markets, Federal Reserve, finance, liquidity, globalization, hedge funds, international finance and investments, mutual funds
Lundblad researches empirical asset pricing issues and international finance, with a specialization in emerging market development. He served as a financial economist at the Federal Reserve Board in Washington, where he advised the Board of Governors on international financial market developments. He joined Kenan-Flagler after holding a faculty position at Indiana University. He received doctorate in financial economics and master’s degree in economics from Duke University.
In a recent Think Fast forum on the economy at UNC, Lundblad’s topic was investment strategies during challenging times: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FnDQYUDWLC8
Media citation:
The Wall Street Journal’s Real-Time Economics blog
“Secondary Sources: Innovation, Liberalization, FDR to the Rescue”
http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/?s=lundblad&x=0&y=0
UNC TV
“Focus on the Economy”
http://flash.unctv.org/specials/FocusOnEconomy.html
Adam Reed
Associate professor of finance
Kenan-Flagler Business School
(919) 962-9785
adam_reed@unc.edu
Topics: short selling and short selling regulation, including securities lending, equity lending, capital markets and mutual funds
Reed has worked as a research assistant for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. His research has been published in the Journal of Finance and the Journal of Financial Economics, and it has been cited in The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times.
Media citation:
The New York Times
“Maybe Short-Seelings Isn’t So Bad, After All”
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/28/business/
28stra.html?_r=2&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&ref=business
&adxnnlx=1222877131-TuMuyGxCVguqDdRkCNuoPw&oref=slogin
The New York Times
“DealBook”
http://dealbook.blogs.nytimes.com/
2008/09/29/maybe-short-selling-isnt-so-bad-after-all/
Marketwatch
“The blame game: It’s fashionable, but probably wrong, to blame short sellers”
http://www.marketwatch.com/m/story/dea40bf1-0a37-47d3-a7ab-a34fe7481c6a/0
Richard Froyen
Professor of economics
College of Arts and Sciences
(919) 966-5375
froyen@email.unc.edu
Topics: monetary policy, interest rates, models of monetary policy under uncertainty, and how the economy responds to actions taken by the Federal Reserve
Once a visiting economist at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve, Froyen is the author of“Macroeconomics: Theories and Policies” (8th ed., 2005) and of articles on macroeconomics and monetary policy in various economic journals. Froyen’s book “Optimal Monetary Policy under Uncertainty” (2007, paperback December 2008) directly links his research to the current economic situation.
In a recent Think Fast forum on the economy at UNC, Froyen’s topic was the Federal Reserve Bank response: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TAwDQS3MNFI
See also Stanley Black, Chris Roush above.
Mortgage foreclosures, housing policy, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
David Hartzell
Director, Center for Real Estate Development
Professor of real estate and finance
Kenan-Flagler Business School
(919) 962-3160
dave_hartzell@unc.edu
Topics: mortgage-backed securities (residential and commercial), subprime mortgages and what causes the current real estate market conditions
Professor Hartzell is the Director for the Center for Real Estate Development, which offers the only program in real estate education from a top-ranked business school that is based in the context of real estate development.
Hartzell is a former vice president at Salomon Brothers Inc. in New York where his primary focus was on institutional real estate finance and investments. He also worked for the Urban Institute and for the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of Currency.
Media citation:
The News Journal
Financial analysts study history as economic crisis mounts
http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20081101/NEWS/811010332
Roberto Quercia
Director, Center for Community Capital
Associate chairman and professor of city and regional planning
College of Arts and Sciences
(919) 962-4766
quercia@email.unc.edu
Online bio: https://s4.its.unc.edu/UNCExperts/
uncexperts/getperson?ID=RCXTFWRFE
Topics: Mortgage foreclosures and how to prevent them, housing policy, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
Quercia is conversant on housing finance and housing policy and can answer questions regarding affordable housing and lending. He has published numerous articles, primarily on the topics of low-income homeownership, affordable lending and the assessment of lending risks, and homeownership education and counseling. Earlier this year, he testified before the U.S. House Select Committee on Rising Home Foreclosures. He has also done sponsored research for government agencies, such as the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Congressional Budget Office and General Accounting Office, municipalities and community organizations.
Media citation:
The (Raleigh) News & Observer
“Fannie, Freddie Didn’t Start Mortgage Mess” (Commentary)
http://www.newsobserver.com/business/story/1218032.html
Impacts of regulation, deregulation on the economy
Tom Hazen
Professor of law
School of Law
(919) 962-8504
tomhazen@email.unc.edu
Online bio: http://www.law.unc.edu/faculty/directory/
Topics: securities regulation (including derivatives such as credit defaults), commodities regulation, broker-dealer law, corporate law, mergers and acquisitions, regulation/deregulation.
Hazen’s writings have been concentrated in the areas of corporate, securities, and commodities law. He has authored leading treatises in those areas and numerous law review articles focusing on securities regulation, corporate law, and corporate governance. He has also written casebooks on securities regulation, broker-dealer law, business organizations, corporate finance and mergers and acquisitions.
In a recent Think Fast forum on the economy at UNC, Hazen’s topic was regulation, or lack thereof, of credit default swaps: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1pzu1-2VHyY
See also Don Hornstein, above.
Lissa Broome
Director of the Center for Banking and Finance
Wachovia Professor of Banking Law
School of Law
(919) 962-7066
lissa_broome@unc.edu
Online bio: http://www.law.unc.edu/faculty/directory/default.aspx
Topics: FDIC, banking law
Before she joined the UNC faculty, Broome practiced law in the banking area with the Atlanta firm of King & Spalding. In 1984, she joined the UNC-Chapel Hill faculty. Her teaching interests include contracts, commercial law and banking law. Broome co-authored “Regulation of Bank Financial Service Activities” (West, 2001) with Jerry W. Markham and its accompanying statutory supplement. She is also the co-author of “Securitization, Structural Finance and Capital Markets” (LexisNexis, 2004) with Steven L. Schwarcz and Bruce A. Markell. Broome serves as faculty adviser to the North Carolina Banking Institute Journal.
In a recent Think Fast forum on the economy at UNC, Broome’s topic was the bank perspective on the current crisis, including FDIC insurance coverage: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1pzu1-2VHyY
Securities and Exchange Commission, fair value accounting
Wayne Landsman
KPMG Professor of Accounting
Kenan-Flagler Business School
(919) 962-3221
wayne_landsman@unc.edu
Online bio: http://www.kenan-flagler.unc.edu/Faculty/search/detail.cfm?person_id=146
Topics: Securities and Exchange Commission, fair value (“mark-to-market”) accounting, accounting standards
Landsman was the sole academic on the panel of experts at the Nov. 21 U.S Securities and Exchange Commission roundtable on the current economic crisis. He spoke on “mark-to-market” accounting and current market conditions in response to Section 133 of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), which requires the SEC to study and issue a report on fair value accounting to Congress. Fair value, also called “mark-to-market,” accounting is a way to measure assets and liabilities that appear on a company’s balance sheet and income statement. Measuring companies’ assets and liabilities at fair value may affect their income statement.
The SEC study should consider issues related to the standard-setting process for financial reporting, not the implications of accounting standards for bank regulation, Landsman said. He also agrees with the Financial Accounting Foundation, which sent a letter to President Bush in his role as host of the Global 20 summit urging leaders of the G-20 countries not to permit government interference in standard setting — and to continue to leave standard setting in the private sector.
Landsman’s research focuses on the role of accounting information in capital price formation. Topics of research include pensions, employee stock options, asset securitization, and fair value accounting. He has published more than 60 articles in leading scholarly and professional journals. He teaches courses in financial accounting and financial reporting. He served as chair of the accounting area at UNC Kenan-Flagler from 1991-1998.
Landsman was president of the Financial Accounting and Reporting Section of the American Accounting Association, and served on the Financial Accounting Standards Advisory Council, which advises the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), from 1998-2001.
Media citations:
Reuters Wire Service (International, Nov. 21)
“Fair value accounting should not be replaced – U.S. panel”
http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssFinancialServices
AndRealEstateNews/idUSN2148585220081121
Accountancy Age (United Kingdom, Oct. 30)
“When looking for scapegoats, anybody could be found”
http://www.accountancyage.com/accountancyage/features/
2229379/looking-scapegoats-anybody
Layna Mosley
Associate professor of political science
College of Arts and Sciences
(919) 962-0416
mosley@unc.edu
Online bio: http://www.unc.edu/depts/polisci/faculty_pages/mosley.html
Topics: links between global financial markets and government policies, the effects of government regulation on markets
Mosley specializes in international relations, international political economy and comparative political economy. Her research explores the impact of international investors on national policy choices in both developed and developing countries. She is the author of “Global Capital and National Governments” (Cambridge University Press, 2003) and her articles have appeared in European Union Politics, International Organization, and Review of International Political Economy. Mosley’s current research investigates the impact of foreign direct investors on workers’ rights in developing nations, and the role of the private sector in the global governance of financial markets.