August 20, 2024

UOW expert commentary (20 August)

UOW academics provide expert commentary, opinion and analysis on a range of ongoing and breaking news stories

NSW Liberal Party and local government nominations

Professor Greg Melleuish can discuss the NSW Liberal Party and their failure to submit around 140 nomination forms before the deadline in the upcoming local council elections. He is a lecturer and researcher with expertise in political theory, Australian politics, ancient history and world history. Professor Melleuish is from the School of Humanities and Social Inquiry.

Gambling advertising reforms

Dr Nadia Zainuddin is available for interviews about concerns the government is watering down gambling advertising reforms. Her work focuses on how marketing can influence social and behavioural change. Dr Zainuddin aims to understand the lived experiences of people in order to inform programs, interventions, and policy to improve well-being. Dr Zainuddin is a behaviour and social change researcher in the School of Business.

It Ends with Us isn’t a romance novel

It Ends with Us, by Colleen Hoover, is a novel TikTok loves to hate, gaining a lot of criticism for the stark contrast between its marketing and its subject matter. In an article for the Conversation Ms Lucy Rouse says the book is marketed – and shelved – as a romance novel, but It Ends with Us is a novel about domestic violence. She writes:

On sites like Goodreads, readers call the novel “confronting”, “triggering”, and “NOT romance”, warning future readers the novel is “not what [they] expect”. The film attempts to rectify the issues of its deceptive categorisation by making some major changes to its marketing. The abuse plot is revealed in the trailer, changing the way viewers will approach the narrative. It Ends with Us becomes a tale of resilience, rather than a romance.

Ms Rouse is a PhD candidate in the Faculty of the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities. Her research explores how digital media is changing literary reception, with a focus on affect, interactivity, and community-based reading practices.

Russia – Ukraine conflict

Dr Stephen Brown can provide commentary on recent developments in the Russia-Ukraine war. The Russian history expert says Putin has thrown out his own playbook with this conflict. Dr Brown is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Humanities and Social Inquiry.

International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition (Friday 23 August)

Associate Professor Claire Lowrie can talk about the International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition (Friday 23 August). Associate Professor Lowrie is a historian whose research explores the history of labour, migration, and colonialism in tropical northern Australia and Southeast Asia. She has also written extensively on the history of domestic service. Associate Professor Lowrie is an Associate Professor in the School of Humanities and Social Inquiry.

UOW academics exercise academic freedom by providing expert commentary, opinion and analysis on a range of ongoing social issues and current affairs. This expert commentary reflects the views of those individual academics and does not necessarily reflect the views or policy positions of the University of Wollongong.