NOTE: Faculty, if you are interviewed and quoted by news media, or if your work has been cited, and you have an online link to the article or video, please let us know. Contact us at news@csusb.edu.

CSUSB’s Francisca Beer discusses how credit card rewards work
WalletHub
Francisca Beer, associate dean of the Jack H. Brown College of Business and Public Administration’s Office of Academic Equity and professor of finance, was one of the experts the consumer finance website interviewed for an article on credit cards that give rewards.

Paleontology community grapples with Epstein connections
Danish News 24
April 28, 2026
A comment by Stuart Sumida, president of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology and CSUSB professor of biology, was cited in an article about paleontologists whose names are listed in files linking them to the late financier Jeffery Epstein. Many of them had accepted funding for their research after Epstein’s 2008 criminal conviction. Sumida acknowledged that the scarcity of research funding makes scientists susceptible to financial temptations. The SVP released a statement acknowledging the presence of its members in the Epstein files and emphasizing adherence to the organization’s ethics policy.

‘Speed running’ Scientology: TikTok trend causes havoc, church alleges ‘hate crimes’
Los Angeles Times
April 27, 2026
Brian Levin, professor emeritus at Cal State San Bernardino and founder of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism, was interviewed for an article about the viral videos of teens running through several buildings in Hollywood that belong to the Church of Scientology. Church officials say the incidents are “hate crimes” and have called on Los Angeles police to make arrests.

Video clip: Retired CSUSB professor cautions against pointing to extremists’ educational backgrounds as a common motivational factor 
CBS Los Angeles
April 29, 2026
Brian Levin, criminal justice professor emeritus at Cal State San Bernardino and founder of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism, was interviewed for a segment in which a defense attorney mentioned the educational background of at least two other extremists and a possible parallel characteristic they shared with the suspect in the April 25 attack on the White House Correspondence Dinner and how that may have played into the crimes they all are accused of. Levin cautioned against drawing such conclusions based on anecdotal examples. “So I think people can still hate, be irrational in their prejudices, and hit life stressors, which are far more, I think, diagnostic and predictive than their education. Someone like this who has an intellect is not a robot,” he said.

Retired CSUSB professor discusses the latest following weekend attack at White House Correspondents’ Dinner
LAist
April 27, 2026
Brian Levin, founder of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism and professor emeritus at California State University, San Bernardino, joined NPR White House correspondent Franco Ordoñez on “AirTalk” to discuss the attack on the White House Correspondence Dinner on April 25 in Washington, D.C.

D.C. gala gunman wrote ‘manifesto,’ traveled from California before attack, officials say
Los Angeles Times
April 26, 2026
Brian Levin, founding director of CSUSB’s Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism, was interviewed for an article about the man suspected of trying to attack the White House Correspondence Dinner in Washington, D.C., on April 25. He said “newer and real, but mostly loner” threats of “hard left violence” against public officials have been on the rise. “During this polarized era, self radicalization, psychological factors, weapons access, and the normalization of aggression have been recurrent recent themes as both extremist motivated homicides, threats against public officials, hate crime killings and aggravated bias assaults have all increased,” he said.

Torrance home becomes central to correspondents' dinner shooting investigation
NBC Los Angeles 
April 26, 2026
Brian Levin, founder of the Center for Study of Hate and Extremism at CSUSB, discussed a note allegedly written by the suspect in the attempted attack on the White House Correspondents Dinner on April 25. The note, he said, gave insight into a possible motive. "It wasn't just a political statement," said Levin. "It was an apology to people who knew him. It was looking at who he's targeting and why." The segment was also picked up by NBC Chicago on April 26: “‘Unbelievable': Ex students shocked after teacher ID'd as correspondents' dinner shooter.”

Video clip: Brian Levin discusses what may have motivated the attempted attack of April 25 White House Correspondence Dinner
NBC Los Angeles
April 27, 2026
Brian Levin, founding director of the Center for Hate and Extremism at CSUSB and retired criminal justice professor, was interviewed for a segment on the Torrance man suspected of trying to attack the White House Correspondence Dinner on April 25 in Washington, D.C. Levin commented on what federal authorities say is his manifesto in which the suspect’s motivations and grievances were listed. He also discussed in general what motivates some to undertake such action.

Manifestos by extremists can be evidence as well as part of the problem, retired CSUSB professor says
KNX Radio Los Angeles
April 27, 2026
Brian Levin, founding director of CSUSB’s Center for Hate and Extremism, commented on how manifestos by extremists can be both a problem and evidence, such as in the attempted attack on April 25 of the White House Correspondence Dinner. Levin said journalists and investigators have to walk a fine line in discussing the contents of a suspect’s manifesto, explaining what the motivation might have been and being careful not to release so much information that it becomes a megaphone for the suspect’s beliefs – potentially providing material for a future attacker.

Video clip: Retired CSUSB professor comments on suspected D.C. gunman’s alleged manifesto
Spectrum 1 News
April 27, 2026
Brian Levin, founding director of CSUSB’s Center for Hate and Extremism, was interviewed for a segment about Torrance residents’ reaction to news that the suspect in the April 25 White House Correspondents’ Dinner attack attempt in Washington, D.C., was from their community. Levin commented on what authorities said is the suspect’s manifesto tied to the incident.

What’s ethical for undercover operatives? Anti-hate group entered gray zones.
The Christian Science Monitor
April 25, 2026
Brian Levin, CSUSB professor emeritus (criminal justice) and former Sothern Poverty Law Center official in the 1990s, was interviewed about the federal indictment against the group that alleges it defrauded donors and promoted hate. 
“There has, in fact, been a shift and diversification with respect to extremist violence in the U.S., particularly last year,” including the rise of left-wing and jihadist extremist acts, says Brian Levin, founding director of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism in San Bernardino, California. “That being said, this administration has used that diversification as a cudgel to improperly focus on the hard left in the absence of other types of extremists.”

Retired CSUSB professor who worked for SPLC comments on federal indictment against the organization
USA Today
April 25, 2026
Brian Levin, CSUSB professor emeritus (criminal justice) and former Sothern Poverty Law Center official in the 1990s, was interviewed about the federal indictment against the group that alleges it defrauded donors and promoted hate. Levin said that despite some recent controversies, the group “has a legendary record of decimating hate groups” like the United Klans of America, Aryan Nations and White Aryan Resistance, while also protecting vulnerable minorities through the legal process. 
As such, Levin believes it is unlikely the DOJ action will put SPLC out of business. But he said the criminal case, which he believes is politically motivated, could have far-reaching repercussions.
"The threat from a weaponized federal criminal prosecution on the Southern Poverty Law Center is reverberating not only within the organization, but throughout the civil rights community writ large,” said Levin, founder of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino.

These news clips and others may be viewed at “In the Headlines.”