June 7, 2026

EagleEye

A Newsletter for UMW Faculty and Staff

Larus Comments on Chinese Balloons Over the U.S.

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Professor Emerita of Political Science and International Affairs Elizabeth Larus

Professor Emerita of Political Science and International Affairs Elizabeth Larus

Elizabeth Freund Larus, Professor Emerita of Political Science and International Affairs, commented to WION news that China is using every tool in its kit to survey the US, including balloons. The U.S. needs to retrieve the remains of the balloons it shoots down, and show the world the goods. Access her commentary.

Professor Larus also commented to WION news, for a segment titled “Antony Blinken calls ‘Spy Balloon’ a clear violation of U.S. Sovereignty,” that the timing of China’s spy balloon appearance over the U.S. is curious, immediately preceding Secretary of State Blinken’s planned visit to Beijing and during China’s Lantern Festival, when thousands of lanterns are launched into the night sky. Watch the segment.

Other recent media mentions for Larus include:

Larus, a former Fulbright Scholar to Poland, commented to WION news that Biden’s trip to Poland is intended to signal resolve and unity but also to counter resistance to House Republicans who don’t want to continue to spend massive amounts of money on the war in Ukraine. WION news, Feb 10, 2023. Access her comments.

She commented to Vietnam News that new Chinese Ambassador Xie Feng has the opportunity to reset diplomatic relations with Washington, but given the US-China trade and chip war, China’s surveillance and theft of US corporate and government information, and tensions over Taiwan and the South China Sea, bilateral relations are not likely to improve in 2023. Comments begin at 12:30 minutes into the program.

Moon Receives Mention in ‘Falls Church News-Press’

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Professor of History and American Studies Krystyn Moon

Professor of History and American Studies Krystyn Moon

Professor of History and American Studies Krystyn Moon received a media mention in the article “Racist F.C. Past Unveiled In Land Covenants” published in the Falls Church News-Press. The publication set out to examine property deeds (stored in databases not in the city or nearby Arlington but at the Fairfax County Courthouse), the article states, but the work was already underway by a group of academics coordinated by Moon, along with Marymount University sociology professor Janine DeWitt and housing attorney Kristin Neun. Read more.

Rao Referenced in ‘Wall Street Journal’ Discussion of ChatGPT

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Professor of Communication and Chair of the Department of Communication and Digital Studies Anand Rao

Professor of Communication and Chair of the Department of Communication and Digital Studies Anand Rao

Professor of Communication and Chair of the Department of Communication and Digital Studies Anand Rao contributed to a Wall Street Journal article on ChatGPT titled “Professors Turn to ChatGPT to Teach Students a Lesson; The powerful paper-writing chatbot presents an educational challenge: Ban it or build on it?” published on Jan. 25, 2023. Rao discussed the impact the generative AI tools, like ChatGPT, will have on knowledge production. Read more.

The article also was published in Elite News. “It really seems to change the nature of knowledge production itself,” Rao said. Read more.

Rao also contributed to a webinar titled “Generative AI and ChatGPT: The Short and Long-Term Impacts on Education” on Wednesday, Jan. 18. His presentation focused on higher education and included discussion of how ChatGPT could be used by students to cheat, but also opportunities for use of ChatGPT in the classroom to support the student writing process. He also outlined broader concerns about generative AI, including algorithmic bias and AI’s use of other artist’s creative work. Discover information about the webinar, including a soon-to-be-released recording.

Whalen Shares Thoughts on ‘Last of Us’ With ‘Wired’

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Associate Professor of Digital Studies Zach Whalen

Associate Professor of Digital Studies Zach Whalen

Associate Professor Zach Whalen in the Department of Communication and Digital Studies contributed to a piece titled “The Last of Us: The Musical Transposition in the Series is a Revolution.” Whalen suggested that for both the game world and its characters to be as believable as the cinematic, they need distinct theme music attributed to locations and different characters within the game, the so-called sound theme or leitmotif, capable of recalling the narrated character through the chanting of short and impalpable notes. Read more in Wired and on Blog Flavio Perrone.

Rycroft Co-authors Book on Income Inequality

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Professor of Economics Robert Rycroft has co-authored Income Inequality in America: A Reference Handbook, published by ABC-CLIO. Inequality is the economic issue of our time. The United States is an extraordinarily affluent society compared to most others in the world today and to all others throughout human history, and that is news worth celebrating. But the dark underbelly of this news is that not everyone has shared in the prosperity, and inequality has only become more pronounced in recent decades. That is news worth lamenting and ought to command our full attention.

Gupta to Share Expertise on Indian Political Economy at Stanford

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Professor of Political Science and International Affairs Surupa Gupta

Professor of Political Science and International Affairs Surupa Gupta

Professor of Political Science and International Affairs Surupa Gupta is a scheduled speaker for “India’s Approach to Globalization in the 2020s” at Stanford University’s Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center. “Join two of the most insightful scholars of Indian political economy as we explore the feasibility and the implications of India’s policy approach to globalization.” Read more.

Farnsworth Presents Research at the Library of Congress

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Stephen Farnsworth, professor of Political Science and director of the University’s Center for Leadership and Media Studies, recently presented a research paper, “Late-Night in Washington: Political Humor and the American Presidency,” at the Library of Congress in Washington. Dr. Farnsworth was one of a dozen professors selected to present their research at a national conference on the Presidency and Popular Culture.

Farnsworth also has received several recent media mentions, including:

Va. Sen. Tim Kaine says he will seek another term (The Washington Post; The Record Patriot; Arlington Weekly Info)
A September University of Mary Washington poll tested a Youngkin Senate candidacy in a hypothetical matchup against Kaine, finding support for them was close among Virginia voting-age adults.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2023/01/20/virginia-senator-tim-kaine-third-term/
https://www.recordpatriot.com/news/article/Va-Sen-Tim-Kaine-says-he-will-seek-another-term-17730980.php
https://arlingtonweeklyinfo.com/va-sen-tim-kaine-says-he-will-seek-another-term/
Documents Found at Pence’s Home (YouTube.com; CTV News)
“Well, indications are there is no real criminal risk here. These documents were discovered in part because of the other documents discovered by other political figures, including Joe Biden,” said Stephen Farnsworth.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qncYN23NOY
https://www.ctvnews.ca/video?clipId=2615685
Virginia General Assembly-Abortion Bills (WMAL)
“I think the Republicans have recognized, based on the mid-term elections, that you might not want to be too aggressive talking about abortion if you want to keep your majority,” said Stephen Farnsworth.
Virginia General Assembly-Abortion and Guns (WMAL)
“The Republicans don’t have the votes to undo what the Democrats did,” said Stephen Farnsworth.

Gentry Comments on Employment Report in ‘The Free Lance-Star’

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Lance Gentry, Professor, College of Business

Lance Gentry, Professor, College of Business

Lance Gentry, a professor in the College of Business, commented on an employment report for an article titled “More people working locally than before the pandemic” in The Free Lance-Star. Summer 2022 statistics from the Virginia Employment Commission included people who live outside the Fredericksburg region and commute to the area for work, Gentry said. The statistics do not include an estimated 83,000 people who live in the area and commute outside the region — primarily north — to jobs. Read more.

The article also was published by Fredericksburg Today. The Fredericksburg Regional Alliance asked University of Mary Washington Business Professor Dr. Lance Gentry to explain an apparent discrepancy.

“The first set of numbers from the VEC [Virginia Employment Commission] includes people who live outside the region and commute here, but does not include an estimated eighty-three thousand people who lived inside the region and worked outside of it before the pandemic.” Read more.