Study Finds Negotiations Solve Problems

A study in the Bren School of Environmental Science and Management has found that pollution negotiation between companies and the government has a higher rate of success in Europe than in the U.S.

Bren School Assistant Professor Magali Delmas and doctoral student AnnTerlaak, who wrote the paper, found that European non-governmental organizations work out details of an environmental dispute before litigation occurs – the opposite is true in the U.S.

Companies in the U.S. are also concerned with releasing information, which is more likely if an agreement with the Environmental Protection Agency takes place.

“The firm needs to trust to negotiate and it is not obvious that confidentiality can be kept,” Delmas said.

Companies could benefit from negotiations by allowing them to come up with their own innovative approaches to pollution control.

Professor Wins Top Award

After four years at UCSB, Anna Everett, director of undergraduate studies in the Film Studies Dept., has won the 2001 Harold J. Plous award for the university’s outstanding assistant professor. Everett has developed a new course and receives high evaluations from her students.

“Professor Everett’s contributions of original research are numerous,” English Dept. Chair Carl Gutierrez-Jones said.

Everett’s recent work includes a book titled “Returning the Gaze: A Genealogy of Black Film Criticism,” which looks at the black film criticism in the 1920s and 1930s, and its connection to audience reaction.

Everett came to UCSB in 1997 after earning her Ph.D. in critical studies from the University of Southern California’s School of Cinema-Television. She is interested in film and television, but also researches new media.

“More recently, I’ve been focusing my research on digital media,” she said. “At first glance, it may seem like a complete departure, but it really isn’t; it’s a continuum.”

Everett will give a public lecture on her research in Spring Quarter.

Professor Fills Endowed Chair

Edward Donnerstein, the Dean of the Division of Social Sciences for the College of Letters and Science, was recently appointed to the Arthur N. Rupe professorship, taking over for communication Professor Steven H. Chaffee, who died last year.

The Arthur Rupe Chair was established in 1998 to look at issues related to media and human behavior

“Mr Rupe’s generosity allows me and my colleagues to pursue those intellectual questions that have been at the forefront of the discipline of mass media inquiry for decades,” Donnerstein said.

Donnerstein has studied the influence of mass media on society’s attitude and behavior, and has also served as the head of the National Television Violence Study, which was recognized worldwide.

“Simply put, Ed is one of the most active and influential media-effects scholars worldwide, and his record and profile in this regard underscore his outstanding fit with the mission of the Rupe-endowed chair,” Communication Dept. Chair Dave Seibold said.

Donnerstein came to UCSB from the University of Wisconsin 1986. He is also the Director of the Center for Communication and Social Policy, and has published more than 200 scientific articles.