Rice University faculty and fellows appeared across national, state and local news outlets in the latest edition of Dateline Rice, a periodic roundup of where the university has been in the news, published Monday, Sept. 21, 2026.
In national coverage, John Diamond, a fellow at Rice's Baker Institute for Public Policy, was quoted in a CNN Online report examining President Donald Trump's claim that "almost every item" is getting cheaper. Rice political science professor Mark Jones was quoted in an MSN article, originally published by the Los Angeles Times, and in a KTRH-AM (Houston) segment. Rice history professor Douglas Brinkley was interviewed on MS NOW's The Weekend Podcast about Trump's treatment of the press.
Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, a fellow at the Baker Institute, was quoted in India Today about UAE Crown Prince Khaled, while a Fair Observer article cited a Baker Institute study into the Persian Gulf oil industry.
In Houston and Texas coverage, Aaron Pomerantz, assistant director of research and evaluation at Rice's Doerr Institute for New Leaders, co-authored a Houston Chronicle op-ed. Baker Institute fellow Richard Sindelar was interviewed by Fox 26 News about the Iran War and U.S. foreign policy, and fellow Ed Emmett was quoted by Click2Houston.com and KPRC-TV about the stalled Houston-Dallas high-speed rail project. Fellow Bill King was quoted by Click2Houston.com and KPRC-TV on Harris County's property tax rate hike.
Daniel Potter of Rice's Kinder Institute for Urban Research was interviewed by Houston Public Media about growth on the greater Houston area's west side, and Baker Institute fellow Tony Payan was quoted by MyHighPlains.com on Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum's stop in Juarez. Fellow Zoabe Hafeez was interviewed by KUHF-FM about a study into making travel to school safer. Chron.com cited a Kinder Institute study on Asian American residents, and Hoodline Houston cited a Kinder Institute study on the housing market. An ABC 13 Eyewitness News broadcast featured a Baker Institute interactive map tracking U.S. data centers.
In trade coverage, a Medical Xpress article featured Rice research using a new screening method to identify leukemia drug candidates from more than 4 million compounds, quoting professor of biosciences Natasha Kirienko and graduate student Bernadetta Meika. Industrial Equipment News featured research by mechanical engineering professor Vanessa Sanchez on programming sensing and movement into knitted structures.
In sports, Rice's football team fell to Western Michigan University 28-21 on Sept. 19 and is scheduled to play Fresno State on Sept. 26. The volleyball team lost to Southern Methodist University 3-0 on Sept. 18 and to Texas Christian University 3-1 on Sept. 19.