News Sources: Muslim Charity Mistrial

A U.S. judge has dealt a stunning blow to the government's legal battle in the "war on terror," declaring a mistrial in the case of a Muslim charity accused of aiding Palestinian militants. U.S. district judge Joe Fish declared the mistrial after jurors failed to reach a unanimous verdict in the trial of the Texas-based Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development after 19 days of deliberations. Reporters looking for experts to intervivew on this topic can find them online at the collegenews.org database of news sources and subject matter experts from America's leading liberal arts colleges, including the following (click on names for contact information):

Fawaz Gerges - Professor of Middle East Studies, Sarah Lawrence College - A MacArthur Fellow, Gerges studies Arab politics, militant Islamic movements, the Arab-Israeli peace process and America's relations with the Arab world. Gerges is the author of America and Political Islam: Clash of Cultures or Clash of Interests? and The Far Enemy: Why Jihad Went Global. He has contributed to major foreign affairs publications and newspapers.

Bradford Dillman - Assistant Professor, International Political Economy - University of Puget Sound - Dillman teaches courses in Middle East politics and illicit global economies. He spent a number of years teaching in Turkey and Egypt. In addition, his research has taken him to Algeria and Morocco. Current research includes Middle East political economies and democratization. He's written and edited numerous publications.

Omid Safi -Asst. prof of philosophy and religion, Colgate University - Safi is co-founder of the Progressive Muslims.

News Sources: Downloader Loses Lawsuit

The music industry has won a key legal victory in a US civil trial on illegal downloading, a case likely to send a strong message on piracy through cyberspace. In the first US trial to challenge the illegal downloading of music on the Internet, a single mother from Minnesota was ordered Thursday to pay more than $220,000 dollars for sharing 24 songs online. Reporters looking for experts to interview on this topic can find them online at the collegenews.org database of news sources and subject matter experts from America's leading liberal arts colleges, including (click on names for contact information):

Zorina Khan -Assistant Professor of Economics, Bowdoin College - Zhan has published articles on technological change in the 19th century, including patenting and patent law; changes in patterns of litigation and the settlement of economic disputes; and antitrust litigation dealing with technology. Peter Christenson - Professor of Communication, Lewis & Clark College - Christenson is the co-author of It's Not Only Rock: Popular Music in the Lives of Adolescents, covering 30 years of research on teenagers and their music. He has completed a study of impact of video game ratings and the only study to date on music warning labels. His interests are in mass media and socialization of children and adolescents.

Raymond Riley - Associate Professor of Music, Alma College - A classical pianist and a first-prize winner in the Society of American Musicians competition, Dr. Riley has also conducted extensive research in the area of computer technology and new media that is reshaping the music industry today. He teaches several courses in MIDI composition, digital recording techniques, and multimedia development.