ProfNet Experts Available on NSA Surveillance, FAFSA, More

NEW YORK, Dec. 18, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Below are experts from the ProfNet network that are available to discuss timely issues in your coverage area. If you are interested in interviewing any of the experts, please contact them via the contact information at the end of the listing. To receive these updates by email, send a note to [email protected] with the industries you cover, and we'll add you to the appropriate edition. 

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EXPERT ALERTS

• Decision Rules NSA Surveillance of Metadata Unconstitutional
• The Five Essential Documents Every Senior Citizen Should Have
• Sign Language Interpreting as a Profession
• Urgency of FAFSA for College Students

MEDIA JOBS

• Sports Reporter – La Grande Observer (OR)
• Editor – The Cassville Democrat (MO)
• Web Producer – Newsday (NY)

OTHER NEWS & RESOURCES

• Blog Notes: Cooking and Men's Product Blogs
• Where's the Print Industry Going?
• Media 411: Revealing Confidential Sources

EXPERT ALERTS:

Decision Rules NSA Surveillance of Metadata Unconstitutional
Fred Cate
C. Ben Dutton Professor of Law
Indiana University Maurer School of Law
"This is an extraordinarily significant decision, and it is certain to be appealed so it is just the beginning of a longer process. It raises the bar for government surveillance today, and I suspect we will look back at this decision in the future as marking a key turning point in reestablishing some balance between the rights of the people and the power of our government."
Cate, an internationally recognized expert in on cybersecurity law and policy and personal privacy, is available to discuss the U.S. District Court Judge Richard J. Leon's decision that the NSA's surveillance of metadata from billions of Americans phone calls to be unconstitutional. He is director of the Center for Applied Cybersecurity Research, a member of the inaugural U.S. Department of Homeland Security Data Privacy and Integrity Committee Cybersecurity Subcommittee and one of the founding editors of the Oxford University Press journal International Data Privacy Law. He is available to discuss the NSA, metadata, cybersecurity and other related stories.
Bio: http://bit.ly/1kT3FqV
Website: http://www.cacr.iu.edu; http://www.law.indiana.edu
Media Contact: Brianne O'Donnell, [email protected]

The Five Essential Documents Every Senior Citizen Should Have
Ronald Fatoullah, Esq.
Ronald Fatoullah & Associates
"As we grow older, it is imperative that we make sure to have certain legal documents in place for our protection and security. The five essential legal documents that senior citizens should have are: health care proxy, living will, last will and testament, power of attorney with a statutory gifts rider and living trusts. It is important to note that these documents can only be signed when an individual has capacity. Therefore, seniors shouldn't procrastinate. An experienced elder law attorney will be able to guide you with the preparation and execution of these essential documents."
Fatoullah is a certified New York elder law attorney and the founder of Ronald Fatoullah & Associates. Highly recognized and honored for his community service, he also has an eight-year inclusion as one of "the New York area's Best Lawyers" in the fields of elder law and trusts & estates. Ronald Fatoullah & Associates Focuses exclusively in the areas of; elder law, Medicaid law, estate planning and trusts and estates.
Website: http://www.fatoullahlaw.com
Media Contact: Carol Schell, [email protected]

Sign Language Interpreting as a Profession
Kim Kurz
Director of American Sign Language and Interpretation Education
Rochester Institute of Technology's National Technical Institute for the Deaf
"South African officials are embarrassed after recently learning a man sharing a podium with speakers at Nelson Mandela's funeral was a fake sign language interpreter. How would organizers know whether an interpreter is legitimate?"
Kurz is available to discuss interpreting as a profession graduates can find jobs anywhere. NTID has the largest and oldest sign language interpreting program in the country. Several dozen students not only are skilled at sign language, but they learn ethics and signing specialties, such as court and medical interpreting. Graduates from the program have been in the news recently, including Lydia Callis (Mayor Bloomberg's interpreter during Super Storm Sandy), and Holly Maniatty, who interprets for hip-hop concerts including the Wu-Tang Clan. We also have more than 1,250 deaf and hard-of-hearing students on campus (until the holiday break Dec. 20).
Media Contact: Greg Livadas, [email protected]

Urgency of FAFSA for College Students
Steven Sirot
Co-Founder
College Benefits Research Group
"It is critical that families with students applying to college fill out the FAFSA forms. These forms come out in early January and need to be filled out promptly to ensure they are in the best position to maximize financial aid opportunities.  What many people don't know, is that once the financial aid forms are received, financial aid is awarded right away -- so the longer you delay, the harder it is to get your best award, so it is prudent to be proactive."
Sirot is available to discuss the urgency of FAFSA and how timely/important the discussion is for college students and parents.
ProfNet Profile: http://profnetconnect.com/stevensirot
Website: http://www.cbrg.info
Media Contact: Amy Delman, [email protected]

MEDIA JOBS:

Following are links to job listings for staff and freelance writers, editors and producers. You can view these and more job listings on our Job Board: http://bit.ly/pncjobboard

• Sports Reporter – La Grande Observer (OR)
• Editor – The Cassville Democrat (MO)
• Web Producer – Newsday (NY)

See more listings here.

OTHER NEWS & RESOURCES:

Following are links to other news and resources we think you might find useful. If you have an item you think other reporters would be interested in and would like us to include in a future alert, please drop us a line at [email protected]

• BLOG NOTES: COOKING & MEN'S PRODUCT BLOGS. Blog notes is a weekly helping of blogs recently reviewed by Christine Cube. In this week's installment, Cube reviews blogs that cover cooking and men's products: http://bit.ly/1gDArPm  
• WHERE'S THE PRINT INDUSTRY GOING? It's no secret that we are in the digital age of media. What used to be a train full of newspaper-reading commuters has since turned into a sea of iPhones and e-readers. How are publishers handling this situation? And is there any turning back? Find out in a recap of a recent New York Women in Communications panel with editors from some of the top media outlets in the industry: http://bit.ly/1iXJhJH 
• MEDIA 411: REVEALING CONFIDENTIAL SOURCES. Imagine writing an investigative story with confidential sources only to be told you have to reveal your sources or go to jail.  As a journalist, there are a few things to consider in this situation. What would you have done? http://bit.ly/1dbvnMA  

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