April 21, 2005 — The public can learn more about consumer policy-challenges of advocacy, deceptive advertising claims, consumer scams and the bankruptcy debate-at a symposium, sponsored by the University of Utah Department of Family and Consumer Studies. The event, held in honor of the retirement of Associate Professor John Burton from the department, is free and will be held Monday, April 25, from 8 a.m. until 3:30 p.m., in rooms 220 and 320 of the Alfred Emery Building, 225 S. 1400 E.

Family and Consumer Studies Professor Robert Mayer notes that the symposium will “provide an excellent opportunity to learn about key issues in consumer policy from some of the nation’s leading scholars and advocates.”

The schedule for following lectures, which will be held in room 220 of the Alfred Emery Building, follows:

8 a.m.: Symposium opening.

8:15-8:20 a.m.: Welcome by Robert Mayer and John Burton

8:25-9:10 a.m.: The presentation of a paper, “Defining the Consumer Interest: Challenges for an Advocate,” by Stephen Brobeck, executive director of the Consumer Federation of America.

9:20-10 a.m.: The presentation of “Consumer Interest Revisited: Implications of Prospect Theory,” by Loren Geistfeld, professor of consumer science at Ohio State University.

10-10:15 a.m.: Coffee Break

10:15-11 a.m.: Ivan Preston, professor emeritus of journalism and mass communication at the University of Wisconsin, will present “Reflections on a Career in Communication Research as Used in Investigating Deceptiveness in Advertising Claims.”

The workshops will adjourn during the lunch hour.

Afternoon lectures will be held in room 320 of the Alfred Emery Building.

Noon-12:45 p.m.: Jeanne Hogarth, program manager at the Federal Reserve Board, will present “Consumer Protection: From Buyer Beware to What Part of ‘No’ Don’t you Understand? (and Points in Between).”

12:45-1:30 p.m.: “A Date with Dateline: A Psychologist Reports His Participant-Observer Experience with a TV Program on Consumer Scams,” will be presented by Monty Friedman, professor emeritus of psychology at Eastern Michigan University.

1:30-1:45 p.m.: Coffee Break

1:45-2:30 p.m.: Jean Lown, professor of family, consumer, and human development at Utah State University, will present “Where Is the Consumer Interest in the Bankruptcy Debate?”

2:30-3:15 p.m.: “When to Hold ‘Em; When to Fold ‘Em: Choosing Consumer Protection Battles,” will be presented by Michael Burton, associate professor of political science at Ohio University

3:15-3:30 p.m.: Symposium wrap-up.