December 2007
Upcoming Events | SJMC Media Hits | Awards and Kudos |
Publications, Presentations, and Research | Murphy Hall Happenings
SJMC Alumni Society Board's Annual Twin Cities Media Stars Quiz Bowl
Please join the SJMC Alumni Board for the 2007 Twin Cities Media Stars Quiz Bowl on Tuesday, January 29, 2008 at 7:00p.m. at the McNamara Alumni Center, 200 Oak St SE, University of Minnesota. The Quiz Bowl will pit teams from leading media organizations against each other, answering questions about Minnesota politics, sports, arts and entertainment, and more. This year’s competition will feature teams from MPR, WCCO-TV, Risdall Advertising, Star Tribune, and Pioneer Press. The Quiz Bowl will be hosted this year by Mike Gelfand, otherwise known as “Stretch” from the Morning Show on KQRS-FM radio. All SJMC alumni, faculty, staff and students are invited; the suggested donation of $5 will support SJMC Alumni Society Board's programming. For more information, e-mail Jen Keavy, SJMC communications manager.
SAVE THE DATE! 2008 Spring Celebration
Please save the date Tuesday, May 6, 2008 for the SJMC's annual Spring Celebration at the McNamara Alumni Center. Join us as we honor our scholarship winners and donors, graduating seniors and the Alumni Award of Excellence recipient. A formal invitation to the event will be sent in March, but in the meantime, mark your calendars!
Associate professor Chris Ison's article, "Here’s hoping this town can still be the same,” was published on the (Minneapolis) Star Tribune's Opinions Page on Oct. 10. The piece focused on the aftermath of a shooting rampage in Ison's home town of Crandon, Wis., that left seven people dead.
Associate professor Gary Schwitzer's HealthNewsReview.org Web site was profiled in the Fall 2007 issue of CR magazine - a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research. He was also interviewed for a podcast titled, "Cancer In The Media: Reporting On The Latest Cancer Miracle." His work with the Web site was also profiled in a story headlined, "The Whole Story," in the November issue of Minnesota Medicine.
Associate professor Dona Schwartz was quoted in a story that aired on Minnesota Public Radio titled "Artists explore images of war." The story covered the exhibition "War Mediated" at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts.The exhibition focused on images of the Iraq war, how the images compare with reality and how our opinions of the war are influenced by the images we see. Schwartz emphasized that we, as consumers of images, are responsible for making sense of what we do and do not see.
On October 30, Nora Paul, director of the Institute for New Media Studies, was quoted in a Star Tribune story, “Ad browsers beware, online or off,” about a murder linked to the popular 'Web site, Craigslist. She was also recently filmed for the U’s “Tech Talk” segment on the topic, “News and Story Tools.”
Professor Jane Kirtley was quoted in the Baltimore Sun regarding the multi-million dollar verdict awarded by a federal jury to a father of a Marine killed in Iraq. The father brought suit against Westboro Baptist Church, which has protested at military funerals across the country. Prof. Kirtley is quoted as saying that "the Westboro protest, however hateful, did not 'rise to the level of outrageousness. Offensive, yes. But outrageous? I would question whether standing up and yelling is outrageous under the law.'" She also was quoted in a story titled "Racist by association? Be careful whom you link to", posted on November 14 at MinnPost.com. The topic was the role of the 10 o'clock news in shaping local culture. In November, she was quoted in an Associated Press article, which appeared in many newspapers (including the San Francisco Chronicle, Houston Chronicle, Miami Herald,San Jose Mercury News, and the [Tucson] Arizona Star) as well as many broadcast Web sites (including Fox News, MSNBC and WTOP) on November 16. Travis Reed, who reported the story, is an SJMC alumnus. Prof. Kirtley appeared on the The Don Shelby Show on WCCO radio on November 21, discussing government secrecy, both in the Bush administration and here in Minnesota. On December 5, she was a guest on KFAI radio's Truth to Tell show. And on December 11, she was interviewed for Channel 9 - Fox News, discussing an administrative subpoena issued by St. Paul police to obtain a reporter's phone records as part of an investigation to uncover a confidential source.
Associate professor Gary Schwitzer named 2008 Poynter Ethics Fellow
The Poynter Institute in St. Petersburg, Florida, has invited associate professor Gary Schwitzer to be one of its Poynter Ethics Fellows for 2008. Schwitzer will join a group of 18 dedicated journalists from across the country, representing broadcast, print and online. The Fellows gather to discuss the ethical challenges facing journalism and to learn from each other. In the past, Fellows have helped each other cover such major stories as Sept. 11th and the Iraq War, as well as the ethical challenges that regularly arise in covering beat stories and breaking news. Ethics Fellows may write articles and columns for the Poynter.org Web site, and may also represent Poynter at regional journalism gatherings, like those sponsored by press and broadcast associations, minority journalism organizations and SPJ.
Jennifer Johnson travels to China for seventh annual One Show China and workshop
SJMC lecturer Jennifer Johnson was invited to join The One Club for its seventh annual One Show China and workshop in Beijing in November. Jennifer was one of only two instructors from American universities. She was also a judge for The One Show China and joined a network of international creative directors in Beijing to instruct students in conceptual development during her stay. She has been an active member in The One Club for several years and has even won a coveted pencil during her professional advertising experience at the Leo Burnett company.
Assistant professor Kathy Roberts Forde wins award at American Journalism Historians Association Conference
Kathy Roberts Forde's article "Libel, Freedom of the Press, and The New Yorker" was selected best article of 2006 in the journal American Journalism, honorable mention, at the American Journalism Historians Association annual conference in October. At the conference, she presented research in progress titled "Reading the Journalism of Protest: James Baldwin and the American Civil Rights Movement." Kathy also published a Teaching Tips column in the fall 2007 newsletter of the International Association for Literary Journalism Studies.
Graduate student wins Top Paper award at National Communication Association conference
Ph.D. candidate Rebecca Bolin Swenson presented a paper titled "Kitchen Convergence: Televised Translations of Masculinity, Femininity and Food" in the Top Papers in Feminist and Women's Studies session at the National Communication Association (NCA) conference in Chicago.
SJMC alumna named Executive Director of Minnesota News Council
In November, the Minnesota News Council announced the appointment of SJMC alumna Sarah Bauer as its executive director. She served as the organization’s interim director following the retirement of Gary Gilson as executive director in December 2006.
Sarah has led the News Council through a 10-month transition period, during which she oversaw the expansion of News Council staff to include a Development Director. She has also worked to update and refine the News Council’s complaint procedures and led an effort that has resulted in a significant reduction in the organization’s operating costs.
Sarah first joined the Minnesota News Council in 2004 as an intern and soon became its operations manager. In 2005, she helped institute a more structured complaint process within the organization and played a key role in establishing the Council’s online complaint submission process.
Sarah graduated summa cum laude from the University of Minnesota with degrees in journalism and philosophy. She also serves on the board of directors for the Minnesota Professional chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists, and was recently appointed to its national membership committee.
SJMC alumni snag several awards at Emmys
Mike Durkin (B.A., 2006) and his web team won five Emmys in the Advanced Media category: Continuing Coverage (affiliated); Investigative Report (affiliated); Arts/Entertainment (affiliated); Online Marketing Initiative (affiliated) and Web site Design/Usability (affiliated).
He is a web producer for KMSP, Fox 9.
Toby Colladora (B.A., 2004) and her web team won an Emmy in the Advanced Media: News Programming (affiliated) category. SJMC classmate Alison Lorge (B.A., 2004) was part of the award-winning team. Both are web producers for WCCO-TV.
Regina McCombs (M.A., 2003) won 2 Emmys in the Advanced Media category for her work at the Star Tribune: Videography (affiliated) for a videography compilation on StarTribune.com and Public/Current/Community Affairs (affiliated) for "A nation torn: Liberians in Minnesota." She is a multimedia producer/photographer for the Star Tribune and StarTribune.com.
A complete list of winners is available at the NTA Upper Midwest Chapter Web site.
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Assistant professor Michael Stamm gave a presentation of his dissertation at the American Journalism Historians Association annual meeting in Richmond, VA. While at the conference, he was awarded the Association's Margaret A. Blanchard Dissertation Prize for best dissertation in journalism and mass communication history. This fall, he was named an affiliate member of the graduate faculty in the History department here on campus.
Cowles Professor of Journalism, Diversity and Equality Catherine Squires and assistant professor Brian Southwell participated in a panel on "Working with the Media" that was presented as part of Voices from Silence: September 11 and the Impact of Refugees, Immigrants and Religious Minorities, a Continuing Legal Education conference sponsored by Minnesota Advocates for Human Rights in December.
Associate professor Gary Schwitzer is one of four College of Liberal Arts faculty members invited to speak in the "Dialogues of Discovery" speaker series, an event that will be held at the Minikahda Club in Minneapolis on January 29. This year's event has a health care theme, and Schwitzer will join colleagues from Psychology, Economics, and Gender, Women and Sexuality Studies in the discussion. He has also agreed to serve on a University of Minnesota Medical School task force to review, discuss and develop recommendations for University consideration on conflict of interest issues in the Medical School. Schwitzer was invited to serve by medical school dean Dr. Deborah Powell.
Silha Center Director and Professor Jane Kirtley attended, and was the after-dinner speaker on October 25, at the Scripps Howard Foundation's "First Amendment Center Directors Conference" held in Washington, D.C. Her lecture topic was "Still More Threats to the First Amendment at Home and Abroad." She also was a panelist at the California First Amendment Coalition's 12th Annual Free Speech and Open Government Assembly at the USC Annenberg School for Communication in Los Angeles on October 26. The panel was titled "Applying Old-Age Laws to a New-Age Internet." The conference program is available online. In November, she presented a lecture/workshop on "Rights and Responsibilities Online" for the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits and took part in a panel discussion, "What trouble is on the horizon? International Developments" at the 2007 Annual Conference of Ad IDEM/Canadian Media Lawyers Association in Toronto. She also prepared a paper for the conference materials, titled "As the Ability to Do Harm Has Grown, So Must the Law's Ability to Protect the Innocent: A Summary of Selected United States Cases Involving the Internet and New Media." She served as a panelist for "Newsgathering, Right of Privacy and Related Torts" at the Practising Law Institute's annual Communications Law conference in New York, NY.
Associate professor Chris Ison conducted two workshops on investigative reporting at Indiana University in Indianapolis on Oct. 26 as part of an Investigative Reporters and Editors conference. The workshops focused on how editors can help reporters find watchdog stories, and how to manage and fact-check watchdog stories. Ison also led a discussion before the Minnesota News Council on journalism ethics on Oct. 18. On Oct. 17, he gave a presentation entitled “Journalism the Right Way: Creating an ethical culture in the newsroom,” for the Minnesota State High School Press Association.
Associate professor Dona Schwartz's photograph, Tammy and Jeremy, 7 days, was one of 60 images selected for the National Portrait Gallery's (London) Photographic Portrait Prize exhibition. Nearly 7,000 photographs were submitted. The Photographic Portrait Prize 2007 showcases the work of the most talented emerging young photographers, photography students and gifted amateurs alongside that of established professionals.
Nora Paul, Director of the Institute for New Media Studies,was part of a panel on Media Literacy and New Media for the TEL Seminar hosted by the Digital Media Center. Panelists discussed media literacy in higher education and the skills and knowledge students need to actively engage with emerging new media forms. She gave two talks for the Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE) conference, “Better Watchdog & Unleashing the Watchdogs,” on October 15-16. She and Kathy Hansen also spoke in a session for editors, producers and reporters on, “Effective Use of the Internet." They discussed the craft of better searching including advanced techniques, the invisible Web, how to find documents and databases on deadline, and where to find reliable Web sites for enterprise stories. This conference was co-sponsored by the Minnesota Journalism Center. Also in October, she gave a talk in Toronto for the Online News Association (ONA). She and co-researcher, Laura Ruel, University of North Carolina, were on a panel, “What Makes Web Sites Work? Analysis and Design Decisions.” They discussed tips on how to create more informative and engaging news Web sites based on their eyetracking research. Paul also discussed the Knight News Challenge Award grant in a panel sponsored by the Knight Foundation. In November, she conducted an eyetracking usability study for Minnesota Public Radio’s Ideas Generator Web site in November. In December, Paul gave a presentation to the Hi-Tech Girls Society, a student club for girls who want to advance their technology skills at North High School in Minneapolis and gave an update on “The Past and Future of Eyetracking Research” for the Institute’s monthly New Media Research breakfast. She also traveled to Miami to give a talk, “Web 2.0 and Philanthropy," at the Donors Forum of South Florida.
Robert Hornik of the University of Pennsylvania delivered a talk titled "Communication and obesity: Where to expect effects" in early December. The event was part of a larger collaborative effort sponsored by the University's Institute for Advanced Study involving SJMC faculty Brian Southwell and Marco Yzer and faculty from Psychology and Public Health.
This fall, WCCO-TV reporter Ben Tracy visited Jerry Broeckert's Jour 3102-Visual Journalism class to discuss production techniques he uses in producing his "Good Question" segment for the station's 10 p.m. newscast. Students in the 3102 class produced their own "Good Question" segments as part of their final projects for the course. Tracy recently received two Emmys for his stories. Ken Stone also visited the class to discuss storytelling techniques.
In November, Paula Bohte, of Bohte Design, guest lectured in David Therkelsen's J3202 Principles of Strategic Communication class.
Attorney Terrance W. (Terry) Moore of Steingart, McGrath & Moore, P.A., was the guest speaker in Prof. Jane Kirtley's JOUR 3776 (Mass Communication Law) class this fall. He discussed broadcast regulation. Attorney John Pickerill of Fredrikson & Byron also delivered a guest lecture on advertising regulation.
Gary Schwitzer invited Professor Mary Story of the University's School of Public Health to his Jour 3771 Mass Media Ethics class to discuss issues in food advertising, especially geared toward children.
The fall 2007 issue of the Silha Center Bulletin is available online.
Alums: Alumni societies offer ways for you to stay active
For more information on how to become involved with the University of Minnesota Alumni Association and the School of Journalism and Mass Communication Alumni Society, contact Erica Giorgi in the CLA External Relations office at giorg003@umn.edu or 612-625-8837.
Submit items for the January issue of the Murphy Monthly
Deadline for publication is Friday, January 4, 2008.
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December 2007