George Church is everywhere. Recently it's been because of his artificial ribosome. This Journal of New England Technology article discusses the ethical implications of creating artificial life. In it, Hastings Center bioethicist Gregory Kaebnick says that Church's work is an extension of current techniques and thus not an instance of "playing God."
Also, though, Church is in the news since Codon Devices, a company that he co-founded with Drew Endy, Jay Keasling, and others, has closed its doors, reports the Boston Globe. At the end of March, board members voted to shut down operations as the company failed to raise additional funds. The Globe says that Codon Devices had raised a total of at least $31 million and had been on lists of most promising start-ups in New England. Blogger Keith Robison had been at Codon Devices, but recently left the company.