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Tony Awards: CMU Experts Unpack Broadway’s Biggest Night

As Broadway prepares for the 2026 Tony Awards this Sunday, Carnegie Mellon University experts are available to help media explore the stories behind the stage, from the business of Broadway and the economics of major productions to costume design, theatre history and the behind-the-scenes teams that bring performances to life. CMU’s Tony Awards expert page brings together faculty and specialists who can provide timely commentary on the artistic, cultural and economic forces shaping Broadway’s biggest night. The Business of Broadway Production costs, commercial risk, tourism, jobs, touring productions and Broadway’s wider economic impact. Behind the Scenes The directors, designers, stage managers, technicians and production teams who turn a show into a fully realized theatrical experience. Costume in Theatre How costume design shapes character, period, mood and storytelling on stage. The History of Theatre and Broadway Broadway’s evolution, cultural influence and place within the broader history of theatre. Media can visit CMU’s Tony Awards page to explore available experts and connect directly with the right source for their story.

The World Cup Beyond the Pitch

As the FIFA World Cup kicks off this month across Canada, the United States, and Mexico, global attention will focus on the action on the field. But some of the most important stories surrounding the tournament may happen beyond the final score. A recent Hofstra University article 'Hofstra History Professor Plays Key Role in 2026 World Cup Antidiscrimination Efforts' highlighted the work of historian and soccer scholar Brenda Elsey, who has been involved in efforts to address discrimination, inclusion, and fan culture issues connected to major international football events. Her work examines how race, gender, politics, identity, and social change intersect with the world's most popular sport. Dr. Brenda Elsey is a leading soccer scholar whose research explores the intersection of football, politics, gender, and society in Latin America. She has written extensively on the history and cultural impact of the sport, including its role in shaping identity, social movements, and international events. View her profile here For journalists, the 2026 World Cup presents opportunities to explore topics ranging from fan behaviour and inclusivity to the social and cultural impacts of hosting one of the largest sporting events on the planet. Questions around accessibility, equity, nationalism, gender representation, and the evolving role of sport in public life are expected to be part of the broader conversation surrounding the tournament. Brenda Elsey is a leading expert on the history, politics, and culture of soccer, with particular expertise in issues of gender, discrimination, and social justice in sport. Her research has examined how major international tournaments reflect broader societal trends and challenges, making her a valuable source for media looking to provide deeper context beyond match results and standings. Whether covering host cities, fan experiences, emerging controversies, or the legacy of the tournament, journalists seeking expert insight into the broader cultural significance of FIFA World Cup 2026 should consider connecting with Brenda Elsey.

NBA Finals: Pricey tickets have fans debating the value of a memory

With the NBA Finals back in New York and San Antonio, some fans holding pricey tickets face an emotional and financial decision: Savor a major life memory or cash out for big money to spend on something else? The University of Delaware's Amit Kumar has conducted research on these types of choices. Kumar, an assistant professor of marketing and psychological & brain sciences, says that it may come down to a choice between material possessions that people often buy because they think those things are going to make them happy and a satisfying experiential purchase that tends to "last" in a psychological sense.  The Spurs haven't been to the Finals since 2014. It's been 27 years for the Knicks – and 53 years since the team hoisted the championship trophy. So, in this case, the decision comes down to a large lump of money to spend on, say, a kitchen remodeling project or a new watch; versus the memory of witnessing a rare NBA Finals home game.  "If there's a consumer deciding between buying antique living room furniture to replace the set they already have in their house or instead spending that money on the experience of seeing the Knicks play the Spurs, they are likely to derive more enduring satisfaction from the memories of being at the game, the stories they tell about going and having been there, and the social interactions they have as a result," Kumar said. He added that the lesson for people's everyday lives is really to tilt their spending in a way such that they spend a bit less on material goods and a bit more on experiences. To connect with Kumar directly and arrange an interview, visit his profile and click on the "contact" button. To reach him directly, send an email to mediarelations@udel.edu.

Expert Spotlight: Tiananmen Square - 37 Years Later, Why the World Still Remembers

Thirty-seven years after the events in Beijing's Tiananmen Square, the anniversary continues to spark global reflection on democracy, freedom of expression, state power, and the importance of preserving historical memory. While discussion of the events remains heavily restricted within China, commemorations continue around the world as scholars, journalists, policymakers, and human rights advocates examine the lasting significance of what occurred in the spring of 1989. The movement began in April 1989 following the death of reform-minded Chinese leader Hu Yaobang. What started as student-led gatherings evolved into a nationwide protest movement calling for political reform, greater transparency, accountability, and action against corruption. Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators occupied Tiananmen Square, while similar protests spread to cities across China. After weeks of escalating tensions, martial law was declared. On the night of June 3 and into June 4, Chinese troops and tanks moved into Beijing to clear the protests. The exact number of deaths remains disputed and unknown, with estimates ranging from hundreds to thousands. The Chinese government has never released a full accounting of those killed, injured, detained, or disappeared. Perhaps the most enduring image from the crackdown is that of the unidentified "Tank Man" who stood alone before a column of tanks on June 5, 1989. The photograph became a global symbol of individual courage in the face of overwhelming state power and remains one of the most recognizable images of the twentieth century. Why Tiananmen Still Matters Beyond its historical significance, Tiananmen remains relevant because it raises enduring questions about civil liberties, government accountability, censorship, collective memory, and the role of citizen activism. Researchers continue to study how societies remember contested events and how governments shape historical narratives. The anniversary also serves as a reminder of the importance of preserving documentary evidence and firsthand accounts for future generations. Today, remembrance efforts continue through archives, academic research, museums, oral histories, and public commemorations outside mainland China. Recent reports highlight ongoing attempts by scholars, journalists, and activists to preserve photographs, diaries, eyewitness accounts, and other records associated with the 1989 protests and crackdown. Expert Perspectives Available Journalists covering the Tiananmen anniversary may wish to connect with experts in: Chinese history and politics Human rights and international relations Collective memory and historical preservation Democracy movements and social protest Media censorship and information control East Asian studies and contemporary China The Tiananmen Square anniversary remains more than a historical milestone. It continues to influence conversations about freedom, political participation, historical accountability, and the power of memory in shaping the future. If you're covering - connect now! See all of our experts at www.expertfile.com

Georgia Southern recognized by Forbes on list of America’s Best Employers for Company Culture 2026

Georgia Southern University has received high honors from Forbes in recognition of its commitment to institutional culture with the recent announcement of the publication’s list of “America’s Best Employers for Company Culture 2026.” Out of 600 companies on the list, Georgia Southern impressively landed in the top tier at #33. “At Georgia Southern, we prioritize investing in our people, being accountable leaders, and fostering an environment of high performance, evidenced by results aligned with institutional goals and ultimately, student success. It is that alignment and commitment to continuous growth (growing ourselves to grow others) that creates a positive institutional culture at Georgia Southern University,” said Georgia Southern University President Kyle Marrero. “The successful implementation of our strategic plan and the achievement of our institutional goals, aligned with our strategic priorities, are only accomplished if each and every faculty and staff member is actively engaged.” This is the second year Forbes has published the list, and the University was recognized this year for the first time. Representing the education industry, Georgia Southern was second on the list behind Columbia University (#10). Marrero emphasized that persistent efforts to strengthen institutional culture must produce measurable results that positively impact faculty and staff. To support this, the institution tracks its initiatives, evaluates them through ongoing feedback, and uses key performance indicators to assess their effectiveness. “A positive culture is maintained through continuous communication and connecting to the ‘why’ and ‘how,’ empowering the collective intellect to help be part of solving the challenges (solve and evolve),” he added. “We are in this together, always focused on the ‘why’ of student success!” Georgia Southern University has also been recently recognized on the Forbes lists for America’s Best Large Employers 2026 (#171), America’s Best Employers by State 2025 (#58 – Georgia), and America’s Top Colleges 2026 (#243 in Research Universities and #100 in the South). Looking to know about these awards or Georgia Southern University?  Simply contact Georgia Southern's Director of Communications Jennifer Wise at jwise@georgiasouthern.edu to arrange an interview today.

MEDIA RELEASE: Hamilton's Barton Street East is named CAA’s Worst Road in Ontario for a third time

Ontarians have spoken, and the 2026 CAA Worst Road in Ontario is Barton Street East in Hamilton. This year marks the third time Barton Street East has taken first place. The 2026 list reflects feedback from thousands of Ontarians who experience the province’s roads every day, highlighting the roads drivers say need urgent repair and calling on all levels of government to prioritize investments for safer infrastructure. “The CAA Worst Roads campaign gives Ontarians a voice and helps shine a light on the roads that need attention most,” says Brian Pirvu, government relations consultant for CAA South Central Ontario. “When people speak up, it helps drive action and ensures governments understand where investments are needed to keep communities safe and moving.” Four of this year’s Worst Roads are located in Toronto, underscoring ongoing challenges in some of the province’s busiest corridors. Across both the city and the province, road users commonly cited potholes, poor maintenance, and uneven surfaces as top concerns affecting safety and mobility. “Reliable infrastructure isn’t just about convenience; it’s about safety, affordability and quality of life,” says Pirvu. “Investing in roads helps reduce repair costs for drivers and ensures people can get where they need to go safely.” CAA’s annual Worst Roads campaign helps spark dialogue with municipal and provincial governments and prioritize infrastructure improvements where they are needed most. “CAA will continue to advocate for stable, predictable investment in road maintenance and long-term solutions to address Ontario’s growing infrastructure needs,” adds Pirvu. Ontario’s Top 10 Worst Roads for 2026 1. Barton Street East, Hamilton 2. Hurontario Street, Mississauga 3. Notre Dame Avenue, Greater Sudbury 4. Sider Road, Fort Erie 5. Steeles Avenue East, Toronto 6. Sheppard Avenue West, Toronto 7. Panache Lake Road, Greater Sudbury 8. Bathurst Street, Toronto 9. Unwin Avenue, Toronto 10. 6th Line, Innisfil Ontario’s Worst Roads by Region for 2026 • Toronto Region - Steeles Avenue East • Halton, Peel, York, Durham Region - Hurontario Street, Mississauga • Hamilton Region - Barton Street East • Ottawa Region - Carling Avenue • Central Region - 6th Line, Innisfil • Eastern Region - Leveque Road, South Frontenac • Western Region - Ira Needles Boulevard, Waterloo • Southwestern Region - Blackwell Sideroad, Sarnia • Niagara Region - Sider Road, Fort Erie • Northern Region - Notre Dame Avenue, Greater Sudbury The annual list is based on nominations submitted by Ontarians and provides decision-makers with a snapshot of public priorities. Roads that appear on the list often receive accelerated attention as governments respond to community feedback. The Residential and Civil Construction Alliance of Ontario (RCCAO) has verified Ontario's top 10 list and is a technical partner in the CAA Worst Roads advocacy campaign. "People across Ontario have spoken. The CAA Worst Roads campaign gives voice to residents who experience firsthand the impact that deteriorating roads and aging infrastructure have on our lives daily," says Nadia Todorova, executive director at RCCAO. "The results underscore the importance of sustained investment in state-of-good-repair infrastructure.” For more information and regional results, visit caaworstroads.com.

Georgia Southern selected as Census Bureau hub

Georgia Southern University’s Statistical Consulting Unit (SCU) in the College of Science and Mathematics has been selected as the Census Bureau Higher Education Consortium – Southern Hub. The partnership places the University as an access point between regional experts and the public to make the vast data of Census reports usable for research, business and individual discovery. SCU director Divine F. Wanduku, Ph.D., says that cooperation is the key element of the program. “We want to facilitate high-level access to this data and the tools to apply it,” noted Wanduku. “We are the liaison between other universities, the government and those who could use this information if they can learn how it works.” As a regional Census hub, Georgia Southern will host a series of webinars. Experts from Georgia Southern, partner universities and the Census Bureau will address specific methods to access and analyze otherwise overwhelming data. Wanduku says the partnership opens up development opportunities for everyone involved. “This will help students prepare for jobs in the federal government or anywhere that uses government data because they get to try it out themselves,” said Wanduku. “It also helps to show how faculty are able to impart knowledge of research and then make recommendations to the Census Bureau about what works. So the federal government helps higher education institutions provide access to the raw material and then we help the Census Bureau by making recommendations on where our research is going and what data is most useful.” Beyond the webinar series, Wanduku sees the partnership as a stepping stone to future collaborations. “This expands our network with everyone from other universities to contractors,” said Wanduku.”We get to meet each other and find out what we’re all working on separately and turn it into projects we can work on together.” Looking to know more about the Census Bureau Higher Education Consortium or Gerogia Southern University? Simply contact Georgia Southern's Director of Communications Jennifer Wise at jwise@georgiasouthern.edu to arrange an interview today.

Seniors and AI (Part 2): Exercise Caution

If you haven't read Seniors and AI (Part 1) What Could Possibly Go Wrong?, catch up here. My friend Gloria told me she asked her AI assistant what to do about a “sore knee,” and it suggested she might be experiencing “symptoms consistent with early-stage gout, possible DVT, or referred pain from lumbar stenosis.” Gloria is 74, lives alone, and spent the next three hours convinced she was dying. She was not. She had slept on the couch in an awkward position. This is Part 2 of our look at Seniors and AI. If Part 1 was about the laughs, Part 2 is where we put on our reading glasses and pay attention. When technology moves from ordering groceries to offering medical advice or emotional support, the stakes get considerably higher than an accidental pineapple on your pizza. AI and Medical Advice: The Good, the Bad, and the “You Googled What?” Let’s give credit where it’s due. AI genuinely helps in healthcare in meaningful ways. It’s available at 2 AM without judgment. It translates medical jargon into plain English. It can help you walk into a doctor’s appointment with better questions instead of the usual panicked stare. But here’s what it cannot do: see you, touch you, or notice you’re limping. It can’t smell an infection, hear the wheeze in your chest, or detect the subtle signs that something is wrong. At its core, it is an elaborate and very polite Google search. Not a doctor. Takita et al. (2025), in a systematic review and meta-analysis published in Digital Medicine, found that the overall diagnostic accuracy of generative AI models is about 52 percent. Read that again. Fifty-two percent. Suitable for a second opinion, nowhere near sufficient to replace an experienced clinician. And yet, we hear a confident-sounding response and think, “Well, the computer said so.” Confidence and correctness are not the same thing, a lesson most of us learned the hard way in our thirties. When AI Is Safe (and When It Is Decidedly Not) Go ahead and ask AI about: What does that lab term on your bloodwork actually mean Common side effects of medications you’re already taking Questions to bring to your next appointment General information about a health condition Do not ask AI about: Anything you’d describe as “just making sure it’s not something bad”? Chest pain, sudden numbness, or anything that begins with “I’ve never felt this before” Whether to stop taking a medication Whether your symptoms are serious enough to go to the ER Think of AI as the helpful intern, not the chief medical officer. You’d let the intern look something up for you, but you wouldn’t let the intern prescribe your blood pressure medication. Bottom line: if you wouldn’t trust your toaster to measure your blood pressure, don’t trust a chatbot to diagnose your heart. AI Therapy: Comfort or Catastrophe? Mental health chatbots promise empathy. Let’s be precise about what that means: they simulate compassion, not feel it. There is a difference, and it matters. A Stanford University study (Moore & Haber, 2025) warns that therapy chatbots can reinforce stigma or provide genuinely unsafe responses. They can’t detect tone, see tears, read a room, or call for help when things turn dark. This is especially concerning for older adults. Loneliness and depression are common among seniors and are routinely dismissed as “just slowing down” or “getting older.” That’s not aging. Those are invisible illnesses that deserve real attention and real human connection. The Signs We Miss According to the National Institute on Ageing’s 2025 Ageing in Canada Survey, 57 percent of Canadians over 50 report feeling somewhat or very lonely, and 43 percent are at risk of social isolation. These figures haven’t changed since 2022. This is not a fringe problem. It is a quiet epidemic hiding in plain sight. Watch for these signs in yourself and in the people you love: Pulling back from activities they once loved Sleeping too much or not nearly enough Loss of appetite or unexplained weight changes Talking nonstop when the company finally arrives (that’s hunger or severe loneliness, not chattiness) Inventing reasons to call or visit Self-deprecating humour that feels a little too real. Here’s a small but important piece of advice: don’t ask, “Are you lonely?” You’ll get a cheerful “Of course not!” Pride and independence run deep, especially among a generation that survived things we can’t imagine. Instead, act as if. Drop by with coffee. Ask for help with something they are well versed in. Bring the dog. Go for a walk. Sit quietly and watch a show together. Share a meal. Loneliness doesn’t always need a conversation. Sometimes it just needs to know someone showed up. What Your Elder Is Thinking (But Will Never Tell You) Tread carefully here. These thoughts tend to live in the quiet spaces between sentences, felt but rarely spoken. How much time do I have? Have I done enough? Will my money run out before I do? Will anyone remember me? Do I still matter? Why do I feel so sad? Why are my friends getting sick and slipping away? Will I get sick? Who will look after me? Do my children know I love them? What if I start to forget? The creeping fear of losing names, faces, the stories that make life feel like mine. Am I a burden? (This one usually hides behind a joke.) What if my best days are already behind me? Some of these will surprise you. Some won’t. Some will make you want to pick up the phone right now. That’s the right instinct. You don’t need to fix these feelings. Sometimes, sitting quietly with someone in the silence between their words is the most healing thing you can offer. For the Family: What to Watch For and What to Do A quick note for the kids, grandkids, nieces, nephews, and anyone who forwards funny videos to their grandparents: your elders are going to experiment with AI. Probably the same way you experimented with your first beer or a regrettable tattoo: curious, enthusiastic, and occasionally overconfident. Watch for these warning signs: Increasing withdrawal from real-world activities and people Confusion about what is real versus AI-generated Replacing actual conversations with chatbot exchanges Acting on AI medical or financial advice without verifying it with a professional Being secretive or evasive about what they’re doing online Here is what you can do: Connect regularly. Ask what they’re learning or laughing about. Create opportunities for in-person time. FaceTime counts in a pinch, but in-person is irreplaceable. Know when to call the doctor. Know when all they need is your time. Don’t lecture. Don’t infantilize. Just stay connected. The best firewall against the risks of AI is not better technology. It’s better relationships. The Real Threat: Replacing Connection Here is the uncomfortable truth. AI is tempting. It’s always available, never interrupts, doesn’t judge, and responds instantly without getting distracted by its own problems. For someone who feels lonely, invisible, or like a burden, that can feel like a lifeline. But it’s a false one. AI cannot hold your hand or share a meal. It can’t laugh at your jokes in a way that truly counts. It cannot offer the warmth of human presence, which is what we need most, especially as we age. The danger isn’t primarily that AI will give bad medical advice, though it might. The danger is that it will replace human connection altogether. And that is a problem no algorithm can solve. CTRL ALT DEL: Now Go Call Someone AI is a tool. Part marvel, part mistake, and entirely dependent on who holds it. Use it wisely. Enjoy the entertainment. Stay curious. And remember who is actually in charge. Technology will keep getting smarter. It will not get warmer. It will not hear the sound of your laugh, remember the story you’ve told seventeen times, or show up at the door with soup when you’re not feeling well. That is still us. That will always be us. So yes, let Gloria ask her AI about her knee. But let’s also make sure someone calls Gloria on Tuesday. Key Takeaways Use AI for information, not diagnosis or treatment. Stay alert to signs of loneliness in yourself and in the people you love. Stay genuinely connected with older family members and friends. When in doubt, choose the human over the algorithm. The greatest upgrade to AI isn’t a newer version. It’s showing up. Sue Don't Retire...ReWire! My Book is Now Available for Pre-Order I hope you will consider pre-ordering a copy of Your Retirement Reset for you, a friend or loved one. It's available September 8, 2026 - You can now order on the ECW Press site here. And if you love supporting Canadian booksellers, please also check with your local independent bookstore. Most can easily order it for you.