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Rob Wells

Associate Professor of Journalism, University of Maryland
I was a full-time journalist for 26 years, primarily covering business and politics, at The Associated Press, Bloomberg News, Dow Jones Newswires, and The Wall Street Journal. I was the Washington bureau chief for Dow Jones Newswires and then the Deputy Bureau Chief for the Wall Street Journal in Washington. I began teaching at the Merrill College in 2010. I left the newsroom in 2011 to pursue a second career in academia.

I have authored two books: “The Enforcers: How Little-Known Trade Reporters Exposed the Keating Five and Advanced Business Journalism” (University of Illinois Press, 2019), and "The Insider: How the Kiplinger Newsletter Bridged Washington and Wall Street" (University of Massachusetts Press, 2022).

I earned a Master of Arts in Liberal Studies at St. John's College in Annapolis and then a Ph.D. in Journalism Studies at the Merrill College. During the 2011-12 school year, I helped launch a business reporting program at the University of South Carolina while serving as a Reynolds Visiting Business Journalism Professor.

After earning my Ph.D. in 2016, I taught for five years at the University of Arkansas, where I rose to the rank of associate professor and led Arkansas' journalism graduate program. While at Arkansas, I ran ArkansasCovid.com, an award-winning statewide daily data and news website reporting on the pandemic. I also partnered with Merrill’s Howard Center for Investigative Journalism on multiple projects, including the award-winning “Nowhere To Go” homelessness investigation. I returned to the Merrill College in the Spring 2022, where I teach data journalism, basic reporting and an investigative reporting course in Baltimore.

This course uses big data to examine how American newspapers covered lynchings

Oct 31, 2023 09:18 am UTC| Business

Title of course: Lynching and the Press What prompted the idea for the course? One of my students was reviewing a spreadsheet that listed total lynchings by state. She exhaled, and then, with a bit of weariness,...

Economy

Sweden’s Q1 2025 GDP Stalls, Missing Growth Forecasts

Swedens economy stagnated in the first quarter of 2025, with gross domestic product (GDP) showing no growth compared to the previous three months, according to preliminary data from the Statistics Office released Tuesday....

Australia's Wine Export Surge to China Loses Steam Amid Global Decline

Australias wine export boom to China is losing momentum, as global wine consumption falls and Chinese demand weakens. Following Beijings removal of tariffs on March 29, 2024, Australia exported just over A$1 billion ($640...

Gold Prices Fall Over 1% as U.S. Eases Auto Tariffs, Investors Eye Key Economic Data

Gold prices slipped more than 1% in Asian trading on Wednesday after the U.S. announced measures to soften the impact of auto tariffs and affirmed ongoing trade talks with China. Spot gold dropped 1.1% to $3,308.93 per...

U.S. Stocks Edge Higher as Investors Focus on Trade Hopes, Earnings Reports

U.S. stocks posted modest moves on Monday as investors digested trade updates and awaited key earnings reports. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 114 points, or 0.28%, while the SP 500 inched up 3 points, or 0.06%. The...

Japan and Vietnam Strengthen Trade Ties Amid U.S. Tariff Tensions

Japan and Vietnam agreed to deepen bilateral trade and uphold global trade rules as Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba met with Vietnamese leaders in Hanoi on Monday. The meeting comes as both nations negotiate with...

Politics

Supreme Court Case on Trump Firings May Impact Fed Chair Powell’s Job Security

A Supreme Court ruling on President Donald Trumps removal of two federal labor board members could have major implications for the independence of the Federal Reserve and Chair Jerome Powells job security. Trump dismissed...

Iran Proposes Rome Talks with Europe Amid Renewed U.S. Nuclear Negotiations

Iran has proposed a meeting with Britain, France, and Germany (E3) in Rome this Friday to advance discussions on the 2015 nuclear deal, diplomats said Monday. The proposal follows renewed nuclear negotiations between...

Trump Appoints Ha Nguyen McNeill as Acting TSA Head Amid Union Dispute

Former White House official Ha Nguyen McNeill has been appointed as the acting head of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), the agency announced Monday. McNeill, who previously served as TSAs chief of staff...

Trump Plans Tariff Relief for U.S. Automakers Ahead of Michigan Rally

U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to ease the impact of his automotive tariffs by preventing them from stacking with existing duties, such as those on steel and aluminum, according to a Wall Street Journal report....

Canadians Vote Amid Sovereignty Fears and Economic Turmoil

Canadians are casting their ballots today in a historic election shaped by soaring living costs, U.S. President Donald Trumps aggressive trade moves, and fears over national sovereignty. Months ago, Pierre Poilievres...

Science

Kennedy Sets September Deadline to Uncover Autism Causes Amid Controversy

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced a bold plan to identify the cause of autism by September 2025. Speaking at a cabinet meeting with President Donald Trump, Kennedy declared a global...

AstraZeneca’s Imfinzi Gets US Approval for Bladder Cancer Treatment

AstraZenecas drug Imfinzi (NASDAQ: AZN) has received U.S. approval to treat adult patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer, a significant advancement in cancer therapy. The approval allows Imfinzi to be used in...

Sanofi’s New Hemophilia Drug Qfitlia Gains FDA Approval with Breakthrough Bimonthly Dosing

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Qfitlia, a groundbreaking hemophilia treatment by French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi (NASDAQ: SNY). Designed for patients aged 12 and older with hemophilia A or B,...

FDA Vaccine Chief Peter Marks Resigns Amid Controversy Over Transparency

Peter Marks, the U.S. Food and Drug Administrations (FDA) top vaccine official, has resigned after reportedly being forced out by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), according to The Wall Street Journal....

Museums have tons of data, and AI could make it more accessible − but standardizing and organizing it across fields won’t be easy

Ice cores in freezers, dinosaurs on display, fish in jars, birds in boxes, human remains and ancient artifacts from long gone civilizations that few people ever see museum collections are filled with all this and more....

Technology

Amazon Enters Satellite Internet Race with First Kuiper Deployment

Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) has officially entered the satellite broadband market with the successful launch of 27 operational satellites for Project Kuiper, its high-speed internet initiative aimed at rivaling SpaceXs Starlink....

Chinese AI App DeepSeek Resumes Downloads in South Korea After Privacy Update

Chinese artificial intelligence app DeepSeek has resumed availability in South Koreas app stores after a two-month suspension due to data protection concerns. Downloads were halted in February when South Koreas Personal...

Nvidia Shares Dip as Huawei Tests Rival AI Chip

Nvidia Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA) slipped in after-hours trading on Sunday, following reports that Chinas Huawei is testing a powerful artificial intelligence chip aimed at challenging Nvidias dominance. NVDA shares fell...

Huawei Challenges Nvidia with New Ascend 910D AI Chip Amid U.S. Export Curbs

Huawei Technologies is preparing to launch its most advanced artificial intelligence processor yet, the Ascend 910D, aiming to compete with Nvidias high-end chips, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Sample batches...

China Accelerates AI Self-Reliance Amid Nvidia H20 Chip Ban

The U.S. move to tighten export controls on Nvidias H20 chips is adding pressure to Chinas AI sector, but immediate disruption appears limited as domestic firms rapidly pivot to local alternatives. Analysts at Bernstein...