Research and Insights

April 6-9, 2019
Las Vegas

Dani Alexandrino, Spanish-language News Manager

Panel: Bilingual Media Education on the Road: Travel, Partner, Create

Abstract: Don’t wait for the news, go to the news. Don’t just produce at school, produce with professionals in their newsrooms. This panel will focus on showcasing news gathering trips with students to locations like Puerto Rico, Cuba, and the US-Mexican border. It will also highlight on-going media partnerships that place students and faculty in professional newsrooms. You will walk away with ideas to enrich media education.

Roxane Coche, Advertising Assistant Professor

Case Study Competition: “Once More at the River: From MLK to BLM”

Award: First place

Abstract:  “Once More at the River: From MLK to BLM”  tells the story of Memphis 50 years after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.  The film features oral history interviews of more than 20 Memphis-based activists and officials reflecting on the past 50 years in the city. They discuss the impact of both activism and the city’s history on the lives of African Americans, from the Civil Rights Movement to Black Lives Matter. Interviewees explain how Memphis compares to the rest of the U.S. and what to look forward to in the future.

Panel:  “The Nuts and Bolts of Service Learning.”

Abstract: We know that Service learning helps us as faculty give back to our community and allow students to work with our community partners in real world projects. But how do you get started? What is feasible for a class that meets only for a semester? This workshop will provide guidelines on starting a project, forms you may need, and help you predict how long each project should take.

Eric Esterline, Director, Sports Journalism and Communications

Panel: Mediating the Nexus: Scholar and Practitioners

Abstract: This panel explores the state of the relationship between scholars and practitioners and how various media programs have integrated professionals into a system that advantages tenured Ph.D. research faculty. Panelists represent large, medium and small schools. Each has experience with their institution’s professional standards policy and review process. The panelists will provide insight into how their institution deals with the integration of professional practice and traditional research faculty and the trends they see moving forward.

Panel: Student Hands-On Experience with Sports Reporting at Spring Training

Abstract: With the competitive job market in sports journalism, getting students involved outside of the classroom is essential to their success once they graduate. Internships will afford students these opportunities, but there are ways to offer this type of experience through the curriculum as well. Panelists will discuss their unique approaches to offering an experience for students through Major League Baseball Spring Training. Planning, management of students, and content distribution among many other items will be discussed.

Colin Kearney, doctoral student

Remakes and Retakes: A History of Television’s Second Chances,

Award: Top Paper, History Division.

Abstract: Throughout television’s seventy-plus year history, the desire for appealing content to bring in audiences and high ratings has been paramount. As anywhere from ten to twenty percent of new programs never see a second season, it is critical for all programming executives to find the right combination of shows to deliver to their respective audiences. This turnover rate has resulted in the need for executives to be creative in their scheduling. At various stages during the history of television, this has come in the form of giving previously-ended programs on competing networks a second chance. This paper, through a case study analysis, revealed the history behind a number of programs from the 1960s to 2010s that for one reason or another were deemed unworthy to air on their original network and found a new home on a new network or brought back to life many years after ending its initial run. Shows such as Let’s Make a Deal, Taxi, Will & Grace, and Roseanne shed light on the value of reincarnations in television programming.

Houston Wells, Telecommunication Lecturer

Panel: “Documentary Storytelling Pedagogies that Provide Preparation for Industry”

Abstract: This panel will share best practices in teaching documentary storytelling that intentionaly leverage non-fiction storytelling for work in broadcast, corporate/industrial, branded content and international production. The topics include: 1) Rooting Documentary Production in History & Criticism in a One Semester Intensive, 2) Front-loading Documentary Experiences for Pitching and Pre-production, 3) Actuality Media: Documenting International Changemakers in Partnership with Education, and 4) Expanding Documentary Storytelling Techniques into Other Production Arenas.

Iman Zawahry, Telecommunication Lecturer

Panel:  Minority’s Women in Film and Television

Abstract:  ​Diversity and inclusion is a large topic in today’s society. Moreover, minority women remain grossly underrepresented within the industry today. Therefore, it is incumbent upon academic professionals to explore and discuss opportunities for minority women pursuing careers in film and television. Award winning filmmakers and academic professional constitute a panel that is qualified to explore this topic in greater detail. Iman Zawahry, an American-Muslim filmmaker, Nikyatu Jusu, a Sierra Leonean-American filmmaker and Dehanza Rogers, an African-American filmmaker, and Aminah Baker Abdul Jaleel and African American Muslim filmmaker will bring meaningful insight to their experience in the industry and in the classroom as minority female storytellers and professors.