(Updated 2/23/09. List is currently being updated, alphabetized and resorted.)

BOOKS:

Doug Ward signed a contract with Temple University Press for his book, "A New Brand of Business: Curtis Publishing Company and the Origins of Market Research." Publication date is late spring 2009.

The second edition of "Strategic Writing: Multimedia Writing for Public Relations, Advertising and More," by Chuck Marsh, David Guth and Bonnie Short, has been published by Allyn & Bacon.

Simran Sethi’s co-authored book, "Ethical Markets: Growing the Green Economy," has been translated into Korean and will be translated into Japanese.

Scott Reinardy's book, The Essentials of Sports Reporting and Writing, is now in print. The Routledge-produced book is a beginner's guide to sports writing. Reinardy co-authored the book with the University of Missouri's Wayne Wanta.

Simran Sethi is writing a book on eco-elitism and the power of the middle to effect change, tentatively titled Cast and Blast: How the Middle will Save the Edges. The book will be published by Harper Collins and is scheduled forrelease in March 2010.

BOOK CHAPTERS:

Chuck Marsh's chapter "Public Relations Ethics" has been accepted for publication in "21st Century Communication: A Reference Handbook" (Sage Publications, 2009).

ACADEMIC ARTICLES and PUBLICATIONS:

David Perlmutter's essay, "Your First Real Taste of Academic Culture," on being a first-time graduate assistant, appeared in the July 18th Chronicle of Higher Education. The essay was also adopted by The Graduate College at Western Michigan University to include in its training manual for grad students.

Carol Holstead contributed an entry on magazine design to Sage Publications' Encyclopedia of Journalism, due out in mid-2009.

Chuck Marsh's article "Postmodernism, Symmetry, and Cash Value: An Isocratean Model for Practitioners" has been published in Public Relations Review.

Simran Sethi contributed an entry on Environmental Journalism to the Encyclopedia of Science and Technology Communications (Sage).

Scott Reinardy's manuscript "Beyond Satisfaction: Journalists Doubt Career Intentions as Organizational Support Diminishes and Job Satisfaction Declines" has been accepted for publication with the Atlantic Journal of Communication. Publication is set for September 2009.

Tien Lee’s article, “How Newspaper Readership Affects Political Participation,” appeared in the summer 2008 issue of Newspaper Research Journal. It is co-authored with his former graduate student, Lu Wei, an assistant professor at the University of Rhode Island.

Scott Reinardy's co-authored paper "College newspaper advisers, controversial topics and the willingness to self-censor" received the College Media Advisers' Nordin Award for top paper. With the award, the paper is automatically selected for publication in the College Media Review. Publication is set for the Winter 2009 issue. The paper was co-authored with Vince Filak, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. Reinardy will also present "College journalism advisers able to ward off stress, burnout" at the October conference in Kansas City.

David Guth published a study, funded by KU’s Transportation Research Institute, called “Untapped Potential: Evaluating State Emergency Management Web Sites 2008.” His study concludes that despite post-Hurricane Katrina calls for improved communication, state emergency management agencies across the U.S. have been slow to adopt Internet-based resources to reach the public during emergencies. The study analyzed 51 state emergency management agency Web sites (including the District of Columbia) and results of an online survey of state public information officers. The report outlined 13 findings of the research and made six recommendations to the nation’s emergency managers. Read the news release and download the report at www.journalism.ku.edu.

David Perlmutter's essay, "The Unrecommendation" was published in the Chronicle of Higher Education, Oct. 29. Online at: http://chronicle.com/jobs/news/2008/10/2008103001c.htm. It is part of his regular column "P&T CONFIDENTIAL" about promotion and tenure.

Simran Sethi has submitted entries to "Thoreau's Legacy: American Stories about Global Warming, a book to be published by the Union of Concerned Scientists and Penguin Classics in 2009.

David Perlmutter's article, "Are Your References Too Fawning?" appeared in the Chronicle of Higher Education, Dec. 3. It is part of his regular column, "P&T CONFIDENTIAL."
The essay is available online at: http://chronicle.com/jobs/news/2008/12/2008120301c.htm.

Scott Reinardy's paper, "College Newspaper Advisers, Controversial Topics and Willingness to Self-Censor," was published in the winter 2009 College Media Review. It was the Nordin Award winner for top paper at the College Media Advisers national convention in October. The paper was co-authored with Vincent Filak from the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh.

Max Utsler’s paper, “The Relationship Between Sports-Talk Radio and Local Pro Franchises and Big-Time College Athletics,” was selected for the winter 2009 edition of the Journal of Radio and Audio Media.

Simran Sethi has been asked to contribute to the Dictionary of Ethical Politics, a joint effort of the UK's Open Democracy Web site and Resurgence magazine that will be released next year. She will be writing about environmental justice and the triple bottom line for the publication.

Bob Basow and Simran Sethi’s article, "Teaching Climate Change Communication: Interdisciplinary Approaches," will appear in the second edition of an online journal published by the Center for Climate Change Communication, headquartered at George Mason University. The article was co-authored with Steve Ingalls of the Center for Remote Sensing of Ice Sheets (CReSIS), who worked with Basow's J676 Strategic Campaigns class in the fall semester of 2006.

Max Utsler and Dr. Stuart Esrock, University of Louisville, had an article published in the January 2009 online edition of Feedback, a Broadcast Education Association journal. The article is titled “The $2.5 Million Dollar Bargain: Super Bowl Ads and Added Value.” The article is online at www.beaweb.org. Esrock earned his master's degree at KU.

David Perlmutter's report on "Top Transportation and Energy Issues Facing the Nation" was released by the KU Transportation Research Institute at a press conference in Washington, DC., in association with a meeting by the National Transportation Research Board. The report details findings and observations made at a conference that Perlmutter hosted in September at the Dole Institute of Politics of leading experts on transportation from industry, government and the academy. The report is available at: www.kutri.ku.edu/KUTRI-FORUM-REPORT-2008.pdf

David Perlmutter's article, "Selecting Outside Evaluators," appeared in the Chronicle of Higher Education, Jan. 16. It is part of his regular column, "P&T CONFIDENTIAL." (http://chronicle.com/jobs/news/2009/01/2009011601c.htm)

Simran Sethi's entry on Environmental Justice has been accepted into the Encyclopedia of Science and Technology Communication, a Sage reference guide due out in 2010.

David Guth’s article "Black, White, and Shades of Gray: The Sixty-Year Debate Over Propaganda versus Public Diplomacy" has been published in the Journal of Promotion Management, Vol. 14, Issue 3&4 2008, 309-325.

Scott Reinardy’s article "College journalism students need work on good writing, grammar" was published in the Associated Press Sports Editors February newsletter. The article discussed the results from a summer 2008 study Reinardy conducted with 108 newspaper sports editors that examined what they thought would be essential in educating young sports journalists.

ACADEMIC PRESENTATIONS:

Barbara Barnett, “Justice Revisited: A Pilot Study of Print Media Coverage of the Andrea Yates Murder Trials.” (AEJMC-2008)

Mugur Geana, “Dark vs. Light: Environmental Illumination Influence on Startle Reflex Amplitude Measured During Manipulation of the Affective State Using Pleasant and Unpleasant Picture Presentations” to Visual Communications division. (AEJMC-2008)

Crystal Lumpkins, “An Examination of Religion and Spirituality in Information Processing of Breast Cancer Among African American Women.” (AEJMC-2008)

Susan Novak, “Framing the Death of Investigative Journalism: Anna Politkovskaya’s Murder in the New York Times and Izvestiya,” to International Communication division. (AEJMC-2008)

Max Utsler, “Right Before Your Very Eyes: Photo Coverage of African Americans in Major College Newspapers.” (AEJMC-2008)

Douglas Ward, “Turning Student Errors Into Lasting Lessons.” (AEJMC-2008)

Scott Reinardy, “Generational Divide: Young and old journalists grapple with newspaper online strategies and organizational transformation.” (AEJMC-2008)

Scott Reinardy co-authored papers: “Satisfied: The Maslach Burnout Inventory measures job satisfaction and lack of burnout among high school journalism advisers”; “Expanding and validating of the Willingness to Self-Censor scale: Self censorship and media advisers’ comfort level with controversial topics”; “An examination of high school media advisers’ reactions to controversial news topics: A developmental and confirmatory analysis.” (AEJMC-2008)

Doug Ward's paper "Inside Journalism History: Some Assumptions and Ideas That Shape the Discipline," has been accepted for presentation at the American Journalism Historians Association national convention in October.

David Perlmutter gave a speech, "Blogging Politics 2008," for the Institute for Politics, Democracy & the Internet "Ideas" series at George Washington University in Washington, DC, August 11.

David Perlmutter presented "If You Blog it, They Will Come: Generating Quality Content & Traffic" to the Internet Blogging Workshop of the Leadership Institute, in Washington, DC, August 13.

Simran Sethi co-presented with KU Provost Richard Lariviere and colleague Stacy Fox on social networking at the National Association of State and Land Grant Universities and Colleges convention in Monterey, Calif., July 27.

Simran Sethi was a speaker at KU Art & Design’s Hallmark Design Symposium on March 30.

Dean Ann Brill presented a series of lectures at a seminar Sept. 25-26 in St. Petersburg, Russia, on "Modern Journalism and the Internet." Russian journalists, graduate students and U.S. consul officials attended.

Bob Basow was the keynote speaker at the joint regional conference of the University Continuing Education Association (UCEA) in Kansas City on Oct. 16. Basow presented "The Increasing Importance of Strategic Communication: Purposeful Communication to Achieve Your Organizational Mission" to more than 100 executives in UCEA's Mid-America and Great Plains chapter.0/20/08 - Monday Memo – Page 2

David Perlmutter gave a speech on "Are Political Bloggers 'The People'?," at the Center for Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity, Stanford University.

David Guth gave a presentation to 12 Dutch journalists from the Netherlands Atlantic Association on Oct. 24, titled “The Media and Politics: How the candidates are communicating on the airwaves and are journalists holding them accountable?”

Kerry Benson spoke on Nov. 21 on the power of music as part of Bernstein-Rein's speaker series, "The Professors." As described by the presentation's organizers, "the Professor Series will feature three acclaimed college professors tasked to expand our minds and ignite our imaginations." KU School of Fine Arts Chair Greg Thomas spoke in September and James Floyd, a communications professor at the University of Central Missouri, spoke in October. KU J-School alum Stephanie LeClaire introduced Benson at the presentation.

David Perlmutter gave a presentation on "Blogging Down to Business: When/Where Mass Communication Gets Personal" for the University of Kansas Edwards Campus "Professional Edge" Series on Dec. 3.

David Guth presented a lecture, titled "Skills, Passion and Integrity: Teaching Journalism in the Digital Age," to the Women Philanthropists for KU (WP4KU) organization on Jan. 9. The mission of WP4KU is to encourage women to support the University of Kansas through their philanthropy and leadership, and to explore ways to address the interests of women donors through KU Endowment. Ted Fredrickson also joined the discussion.

Mugur Geana’s paper “Code Switching and Consequences: Anti-Diabetes Public Service Announcements Targeting Rural Hispanics” has been accepted for presentation at the 2009 ICA Conference. Geana co-authored the paper with colleagues from Texas Tech University. The paper is the result of collaboration streaming from the Big 12 Conference grant that Geana was awarded in 2008.

Tien Lee’s paper, co-authored with former graduate student Chris Brott, has been accepted for presentation at the International Communication Association annual conference in Chicago in May 2009. The paper, “The Common Grounds and Grand Canyons between Liberals and Conservatives - A Life Style Analysis," is based on the DDB Life Style survey data. The J-School purchased the 2006 dataset, which is available to our faculty and graduate students.

David Perlmutter's panel proposals, "The Power of News Images: Multidisciplinary Perspectives" and "The Media Habits of Tomorrow: What Teenagers are Doing with New and Traditional Media," were accepted for presentation at the 2009 convention of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication.

PROFESSSIONAL PUBLICATIONS:

Simran Sethi is the writer/ host of the CNBC op-ed series “Powering the Planet,” looking at the challenges and opportunities around business, fuel and energy.

Simran Sethi launched weekly blog posts on The Huffington Post on the life cycle of the products we use and love, co-authored by J-School graduate Sarah Smarsh. Online at: www.huffingtonpost.com/simran-sethi

PROFESSIONAL PRESENTATIONS:

David Perlmutter presented "Blogging & Politics 2008" at the Internet Advocacy Roundtable at the Center for American Progress Action Fund, in Washington, DC, August 13.

David Perlmutter was a keynote speaker July 9 at the iModules Software User Conference of about 250 college alumni relations officers in Kansas City. His topic was "The Powers of Blogs for Outreach."

Simran Sethi spoke to young people at the local non-profit Van Go on July 14, highlighting the ways in which environmental issues impact low-income communities and communities of color. She also keynoted Governor Kathleen Sebelius' Kansas Green Team Assembly and Awards ceremony on July 16.

David Perlmutter was interviewed by WILL Radio, the NPR Affiliate in Urbana, Ill., about blogs and politics in the 2008 campaigns. The mp3 download is at: http://will.illinois.edu/focus580/weekly/

Simran Sethi lectured on Environmental Justice in New York City on 8/27 at the Interdependence Project. Online at: www.theidproject.com/eventsretreats.htm

David Perlmutter delivered the keynote speech on "How Blogging Is Changing Our World: The Lessons from Politics," at the Society for Scholarly Publishing Top Management Roundtable Conference in Philadelphia, Penn.

Rick Musser, retired professor, was interviewed by Chicago Tribune reporter Rex Huppke about Republican efforts to demonize the media's coverage of its vice-presidential candidate's family, for a Sept. 5 story.

David Perlmutter was interviewed about blogs and interactivity for the Web page of Care2, a company that provides online outreach for nonprofits. Perlmutter also was interviewed on the Jeremy Taylor Show (KLWN, Lawrence).

Jimmy Gentry presented sessions on Understanding the Income Statement and Basics of SEC Documents for journalists and students at a day-long workshop at the University of Tennessee, sponsored by the Donald Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism.mo – Page 2

Chuck Marsh discussed the ethical issues involved in preserving prime farmland on “The Jeremy Taylor Show” on Lawrence’s KLWN-AM on Sept. 17.

Simran Sethi was the featured guest on Robert Greenwald's program's Meet the Bloggers on Sept. 19, discussing energy policy and renewable energy alternatives: http://meetthebloggers.org/

David Perlmutter was the guest for a Web interview sponsored by the U.S. State Department by international journalists asking questions about American politics, campaigns and elections. The transcript is published here: http://www.america.gov/st/washfile-english/2008/September/20080923170808xjsnommis0.8612787.html

Mugur Geana participating in the Congress of the Americas II in Mexico City. He presented two research papers: "Cross Cultural Preferences for Gender-, Ethnic- and Race-matched Narrations of Colorectal Cancer Education Information" at the PR and Organizational Communication session and "All Colors Welcomed! Influence of Gender and Race on Short Exposure Image Appeal of Higher Education Advertising Materials" at the Media: Structure, Innovations and Usages session. The last paper is co-authored with J-School master’s program graduate Joseph Erba.

Simran Sethi spoke at Ed Rendell's Pennsylvania Women's Conference in Pittsburgh on 10/2. See: http://www.pagovernorsconferenceforwomen.org/conference/speakers.htm. She also appeared on the CNBC Business series "The Business of Collaboration" with Donnie Deutsch later that day.

David Perlmutter completed a U.S. Department of State speaking tour of the Netherlands and Germany. In Holland he spoke at the University of Leiden, Erasmus University (Rotterdam) and the University of Amsterdam on online media and the U.S. elections. At the Netherlands Museum of Photography in Rotterdam he spoke on photojournalism and the Internet. In Germany he spoke about blogging and the U.S. elections at the German- American Institute in Nueremberg and was a keynote speaker at a conference on "U.S. Elections 2008: The Digital Campaign," which was sponsored by the Dept. of State and German Public Radio. He was also interviewed by a number of Dutch and German newspapers, television and radio stations.

David Guth was a speaker at the Friends of Community Media’s Media Reform Week series Oct. 5 in Kansas City. He served on a panel titled “Media, Money and the Future of Democracy in America.” Friends of Community Media is a non-profit corporation serving the Kansas City area devoted to citizen participation in the media. FCM encourages media to be responsive to the community and promotes diverse racial, ethnic, gender, and minority group participation in all media.

Jimmy Gentry presented a day-long workshop on stock and credit markets, and on understanding financial statements for the communications staff at Freddie Mac, the giant mortgage financing company, in McLean, Va.

Doug Ward presented the workshop "I Didn't Mean That: What the things we publish say about who we are" at the Wichita regional conference of the American Copy Editors Society on Saturday. Seven students accompanied Ward to the conference: Brieun Scott, Arthur Hur, Luke Morris, Melissa Johnson, Tara Smith, Lauren Keith and Bryan Dykman.

Scott Reinardy presented the paper "College journalism advisers able to ward off stress, burnout" at the College Media Advisers convention in Kansas City on Oct. 31. He also received the "Ken Nordin Research Award" for top research paper for "College Newspaper Advisers, Controversial Topics and the Willingness to Self-Censor." Both papers were co-authored with Vincent Filak from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh.

David Perlmutter was a keynote speaker at two events for the New England Journal of Medicine in Boston. First he spoke on "Building an Online Community for Professionals: The Lessons of Political Blogging" to the NEJM Publications Board. Then he spoke to physicians gathered for the NEJM New Horizons Conference on "Medical Blogging: Challenges and Opportunities for Health Professionals."

Jimmy Gentry presented a webinar entitled "Understanding the Financial Crisis of 2008 and What It Means to You" for members of the International Association of Business Communicators on Nov. 11.

Sue Novak's research “Myth as a Bridge Between Role Enactment and Ideology: A Study of Concerned Women for America” has been accepted for presentation at the Central States Communication Association annual meeting in St. Louis in April.

Jimmy Gentry presented workshops on "Rethinking Financial Statements in the New Business & Economic Environment" and "Putting Companies under the Microscope" in San Francisco, New York and in Milwaukee, sponsored by the Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism.

Max Utsler presented workshops on Dealing with the Media, Newsletter Article Writing, Story Ideas and Public Speaking to the annual Golf Course Superintendent's Association Conference and Show in New Orleans, Feb. 5 and 6.

ACADEMIC SERVICE:

Tom Volek is now the Associate Dean for Graduate Studies and Faculty Development for the J-School. In this role, he will be responsible for the administration and growth of the graduate program. The other component of this assignment includes such responsibilities as coordinating the mentor committees of pre-tenured faculty and assisting faculty members in learning about opportunities to manage and enhance teaching, research and service.

David Guth was a discussant for a high-density research session on crisis communications, and a panelist on how to lead curriculum change in today’s challenging environment. (AEJMC-2008)

David Perlmutter was a presenter and discussant for the panel on “Blogging Politics: Press, Policy and the Public.” His topic was “Political Blogs: An agenda for research.” (AEJMC-2008)

Douglas Ward was on a panel on the work of Maurine Beasley, this year’s recipient of the Eleanor Blum Distinguished Service to Research Award. Ward led the nomination, gathering letters of support from more than 20 communication scholars and former students of Prof. Beasley. (AEJMC-2008)

Carol Holstead moderated a panel on magazine design. (AEJMC-2008)

Scott Reinardy was a panelist on “Teaching Sports Communication Courses” at the AEJMC pre-convention. (AEJMC-2008)

Carol Holstead presented the awards in the student magazine competitions that she coordinated. (AEJMC-2008)

Doug Ward led an AJHA panel titled Turning Papers Into Journal Articles, with present and past editors of Journalism History and American Journalism.

Carol Holstead has become a consultant for KU Giving, the University's fundraising magazine.

Tim Bengtson serves on the KU Athletic Department's NCAA Certification Committee. His part deals with "Academic Integrity: Standards and Support." The work runs through next spring.

David Perlmutter organized and moderated the Kansas Transportation Research Institute "Presidential & Congressional Forum on Key Transportation and Energy Issues," Sept. 25-26, at the Dole Institute of Politics.

David Perlmutter was a panelist on "Beijing Olympics and the Global Community," a Hall Center for the Humanities Globalization(s) Seminar, Sept. 25.

David Perlmutter has been appointed as a member of the Editorial Committee of the University Press of Kansas.

Simran Sethi lectured on sustainable business communications to students in David Clark's Sustainable Enterprise class at Lipscomb University in Nashville on Oct. 25.

Carol Holstead led a Duke TIP session, a program for talented high school students, Nov. 8-9. Her session was on magazine design. Duke University developed the program in 1980 to identify talented students. TIP sessions are offered at universities across the country through honors programs.

Simran Sethi lectured on sustainability in Jeff Severin's Liberal Arts class LA&S 101: Topics In: Sustainability: Creating Environmental and Social Change on Nov. 11.

John Hudnall was at Kent State University Nov. 20-21 serving on a scholastic journalism panel for Student Free Expression Legislation. He was one of 25 people selected for this conference from across the nation.

Pam Fine co-led a workshop on reporting for multiple platforms at the Poynter Institute. The event was sponsored by the Society of Professional Journalists.

Mugur Geana was the guest speaker at the local AIESEC chapter. His talk addressed historic and cultural developments and current challenges in Eastern Europe with a special focus on the role of diversity. AIESEC is the world's largest student organization, an international platform for young people to discover and develop their potential so as to have a positive impact on society.

Simran Sethi served as one of the faculty critics during the Industrial Design thesis presentation on Dec. 16.

John Hudnall attended the mid-winter meeting of the Scholastic Journalism Division of AEJMC Jan. 9-10, in St. Petersburg, Fla. He was selected to present the Honors Lecture at the AEJMC Convention in Boston, Mass., this summer.

Susanne Shaw went to Shanghai to visit Fudan University.

Simran Sethi was selected to participate in KU’s Wheat State Whirlwind Tour.

David Perlmutter was an invited speaker at Texas Tech University to talk about the 2008 election and online social interactive media like blogs and YouTube.

PROFESSIONAL SERVICE:

Simran Sethi will moderate a conversation with United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg on multi-sector ways to mitigate climate change as part of her work with the nonprofit The Climate Group on June 5.

Simran Sethi moderated two panels at the LOHAS conference in Boulder, Colo. – one on environmental media with Ed Begley Jr. and one on corporate sustainability with the director of corporate sustainability for Wal-Mart, Rand Waddoups, and the head of green initiatives for Whole Foods, Michael Besancon. She also spoke on the future of sustainable media with Bryan Welch, president of Ogden Publishing, based in Topeka.

Simran Sethi chaired the Education, Outreach and Policy working group for the Mayor's Climate Protection Task Force, 6/17.

Barbara Barnett served as midwinter conference research chair for the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication's Commission on the Status of Women.

Simran Sethi was the guest editor of September’s Lawrencian. The Lawrencian is a local monthly newspaper published by Derek Helms, a J-School graduate. The issue included an article by J-School junior Lauren Keith and excerpts from the Huffington Post series Sethi is writing with J-School alumna Sarah Smarsh. The Life Cycle series can be found at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/simran-sethi Sethi also contributed an op-ed for the issue, and in “The Best of Lawrence 2008” section (nearly 4,000 people voted), she tied with Bill Self as “best local celebrity.”

Marty Rosenberg moderated a panel discussion on energy policy at GridWeek 2008, in Washington, D.C., Sept. 25.

Retired professor Rick Musser consulted with the faculty and students at Mississippi University for Women about multimedia and online journalism for their student media, on Sept. 14.

David Perlmutter was host of the first Citizen Journalism Workshop at the BlogWorld & New Media Expo in Las Vegas. He organized sessions on journalistic writing, search techniques and legal and ethical issues. He taught a session on blogger-journalism relations. He also moderated another panel on new media and the 2008 election.

Simran Sethi moderated the Environmental Working Group panel: A Conversation About Chemicals and Our Children in Boston on Oct. 14. The panel addressed the impacts of chemicals on children, the importance of consumer products ingredient disclosure and the need for improved legislation.

Simran Sethi keynoted the North American Association for Environmental Education conference in Wichita on Oct. 17.

Susanne Shaw went to Riga, Latvia, to visit the public relations program at the Turiba School of Business. The public relations program wants to seek accreditation for its graduate program. She also spoke to a public relations class. She also went to Buenos Aires to work with the Latin American accreditation program.

Simran Sethi moderated the kick-off panel for Bioneers by the Bay in New Bedford, Mass., on Oct. 23, interviewing green collar jobs advocates Van Jones and Majora Carter.

Sue Novak served as a reviewer of papers for the Central States Communication Association, Political Communications section.

David Guth was an on-air political commentator during Kansas Public Radio's election night coverage Nov. 4.

Tom Volek participated in a videoconference Oct. 31 between KU faculty and the faculty of St. Petersburg State University in Russia. KU faculty affiliated with KU's Center for Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies (CREES), of which Volek is one, discussed Tuesday's national elections with their counterparts from the various departments of SPBSU. KU's part of the videoconference originated from the CREES conference room in Bailey Hall from 8-9 a.m., Oct. 31.

Simran Sethi was featured Nov. 2 with Donnie Deutsch and Starbucks CEO Howard Shultz on CNBC's business program “Collaboration Now.” She was part of the expert panel and the reporter on segments featuring eBay and Stone Barnes.

Simran Sethi was featured on Robert Greenwald's program “Meet the Bloggers” on Nov. 5, discussing renewable energy efforts in President Obama's first 100 days. Her thoughts on the first 100 days are also featured in Worldchanging's First 100: http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/008925.html.

David Perlmutter spoke through a televideo connection to a group of Philippine journalists, political workers and educators about the American elections. The event was sponsored by the Department of State and the U.S. Embassy in Manila, Philippines.

Simran Sethi hosted the Martha Stewart Radio program "Whole Living" on Sirius 112 - XM 103 on Nov. 10, 11, 14 and 17 airing from 9-10 a.m. CT.

Simran Sethi spoke on the "Media and Sustainability" panel at the Investor's Circle conference in Boston on Nov. 12, alongside the editors of GOOD and Ode magazines.

Simran Sethi moderated a panel on local food systems with Dan Nagengast, Stuart Shafer, Andrew Roberts, Bob Bruce and others in a KU Environs event at the ECM on Nov. 13.

David Perlmutter conducted an international webtalk on the "The American Elections and Online Social-Interactive Media" sponsored by the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, Nov. 3.

John Hudhall attended the JEA/NSPA national convention Nov. 13-15 in St. Louis. He conducted a session on opinion writing and one on feature writing.

Pam Fine and retired professor Tom Eblen conducted a one-day seminar Oct. 23 for editorial writers and columnists from Kansas newspapers at the William Allen White House in Emporia. The seminar included an overview of White's life and impact, a tour of the White home, discussion of the role of editorial pages in a changing media landscape, and a brief critique of columns submitted by the participants.

Pam Fine helped shape and lead the recently completed Citizens Journalism Academy at The Lawrence Journal World, an annual five-week program co-sponsored by the J-School. Citizens conducted interviews with Lawrenceresidents and business people to find out how they’re doing in the down economy as part of a special reportproject that appeared in the newspaper.

Max Utsler was elected vice president of academic relations for the Broadcast Education Association at last week's board meeting in Washington, D.C.

Pam Fine attended a public hearing Nov. 17 in Chicago by the Knight Commission on the Information Needs of Communities in a Democracy. Fine is on an advisory panel to the commission which released a report and recommendations in February.

Simran Sethi spoke Dec. 2 about environmental communications in mainstream media at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco on a panel entitled "Bio-Debatable: Busting Through the Clutter of Conflicting Eco-Messages."

Simran Sethi participated in the International Day of Action on Dec. 6, sponsored by the Lawrence Greenpeace chapter and held on-campus at the ECM. The event brought the community together during the week of the UN Conference on Climate Change.

Dean Ann Brill is a member of the expert committee reviewing proposals for the Canada Foundation for Innovation. The Foundation is an independent corporation created by the Canadian government to fund research infrastructure.

David Perlmutter was interviewed for separate articles on the Twitter phenomenon, appearing on the McClatchy News Service and in the Lawrence Journal-World.

David Perlmutter was interviewed for an article on "Saving Face on Facebook." It ran on CareerCollegeCentral.org.

The J-School was featured in the Feb. 3 Lawrence Journal-World. Bob Basow, David Guth, Tien Lee, Chuck Marsh and Max Utsler, with journalism student Garrett Kelly, critiqued the winners and losers of the 2009 Super Bowl commercials. (http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2009/feb/02/super-bowl-commercials-who-won-and-who-lost/) 

David Perlmutter was a guest on the Jeremy Taylor Show on 1320 AM (KLWN) radio in Lawrence. He spoke about online social-interactive media and campaign 2008 and the origins of text-messaging in World War II, dramatized in the movie “Valkyrie.”

GRANTS:

Mugur Geana visited Texas Tech University between Oct. 26 and Nov. 1 as a recipient of the Big 12 Conference Travel Grant. Geana had meetings with scholars and administrators from the College of Mass Communications and he established a framework for research collaboration between the Experimental Research Media Lab from KU and the Center for Communications Research from TTU. The first joint research project is expected to start before the end of the Fall 2008 semester and will focus on exploring relationships between visual media, health messages and obesity. Geana is also working with scholars from KUMC and Texas Tech to prepare a collaborative grant proposal to be submitted to the National Institutes of Health in 2009.

OTHER RECOGNITION:

Susanne Shaw received the Gerald Sass Award for Distinguished Service to Journalism and Mass Communication from the Association of Schools of Journalism and Mass Communication for her dedication to accreditation as executive director of the Accrediting Council since 1986. (AEJMC 2008)

Jimmy Gentry was presented with the Media Management and Economics Division’s Barry Sherman Teaching Award on Aug. 7. The award recognizes excellence and innovation in the teaching of media management and economics. Over the past 25 years, Gentry has taught thousands of communicators and journalists how to understand the language of business.

Simran Sethi's videos on environmental justice in Southeast Los Angeles launched on Sundance Channel's “The Good Fight,” the series: www.sundancechannel.com/thegoodfight/projects/toxic_tour. She also interviewed Nobel Laureate Wangari Maathai for the series.

Simran Sethi was nominated as a potential delegate for the Asia Society's upcoming Asia 21 Young Leaders Summit held in Tokyo, Japan, November 14-16.

Simran Sethi was featured in the June issue of Natural Health in a feature on green weddings.

Kelly Crane was featured in the Business Section of the KC Star in an article entitled “Relevance is key for grad school” on June 11. She discussed the growth of the program and trend toward more specific degrees. Dennis Gagnon (alum) and Joshua Vaughn (current student) of the Marketing Communications graduate program were also featured (www.kansascity.com/business/story/660184.html).

David Perlmutter was profiled for his blogging research and experience in The Lawrence Journal-World’s KU section on Aug. 16. Online at: www2.ljworld.com/news/2008/aug/16/blog_expert_finds_national_audience

Kelly Crane was featured in this week‘s Oread in the article “Curious collections, unique hobbies abound on the hill.” Crane has played guitar since she was 12, and is a member of an all-female acoustic trio, “East of Eden.”

Doug Ward's paper "Inside Journalism History: Some Assumptions and Ideas That Shape the Field" was a runner-up for outstanding faculty paper at the American Journalism Historians Association convention in Seattle Oct. 1-4.

Simran Sethi was featured in November's Travel and Leisure magazine alongside Joseph Stiglitz, Adam Werbach, and Alice Waters as part of the Global Vision Awards on eco-tourism.

Simran Sethi was nominated for a 2008 Sustainability Leadership Award. The KU Center for Sustainability gives these awards to recognize the achievements of individuals, programs and projects making important contributions to sustainability at KU by promoting the values of environmental, economic and social responsibility.

A review of David Perlmutter's book "Picturing China in the American Press: The Visual Portrayal of Sino- American Relations in Time Magazine; 1949-1973" (Lanham, MD: Lexington, 2007) appeared in the International Journal of Communication (http://ijoc.org/ojs/index.php/ijoc).

Kerry Benson was a finalist for the 2008 H.O.P.E. Award. Doug Ward was chosen as a semifinalist. Mary Klayder, a KU honors lecturer in English, received the award on Nov. 15 in the second half of the Jayhawks' home game against Texas.

Jerry Crawford was awarded the "Outstanding New Faculty Facilitator" award for his work this semester with students in the LA&S Learning Communities Program. The Learning Communities Program is an innovative academic initiative designed for first-time freshmen, as well as upper-level students at KU. Each LC is typically composed of a group of 20 students who are co-enrolled in two core courses and a seminar course that focuses on a particular theme. These courses fulfill requirements of majors and the professional schools. The LC Program
invites students into small interactive learning groups with faculty and staff, and includes interesting co-curricular events, such as speakers, cultural and social activities. LCs offer both residential and non-residential options, creating enhanced academic support and opportunities for friendships.

Simran Sethi received the Smith College Medal, an award presented each February on Rally Day, to outstanding alumni. The Smith College Medal was established in 1962 to recognize alumni “who, in the judgment of the trustees, exemplify in their lives and work the true purpose of a liberal arts education.” Read the news release at: www.smith.edu/newsoffice/releases/NewsOffice08_005.html

Doug Ward was a nominee for the Outstanding Educator Award given by the KU chapter of the Mortar Board national honor society. Nominees are chosen based on their devotion to academics, teaching style, accessibility, knowledge of their subjects and other qualities identified by the KU chapter. The five winners, from art history, molecular biosciences, business, political science and biology, were announced in December.

Pam Fine was quoted in the latest edition of American Editor, the magazine of the American Society of Newspaper Editors, in an article on the impact news industry changes are having on J-Schools.

The summary of David Guth’s study, “Untapped Potential: Evaluating State Emergency Management Web Sites 2008,” will be reprinted in the next issue of TsuInfo Alert, the newsletter of the National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program. It is distributed to approximately 600 emergency managers, legislators and tsunami scientists of the five Pacific coast states, the Pacific Rim and worldwide.

Kim Callahan won first place for Best Front Page design in the Suburban Newspapers of America Awards contest. More at http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2009/jan/31/j-w-collects-most-awards-newspaper-contest/.

Simran Sethi was featured in the January/February issue of Sierra Club magazine, discussing environmental media.

Simran Sethi's environmental justice series “The Good Fight,” for Sundance Channel was a finalist in the News & Politics: Series category in the 13th Annual Webby Awards.

OTHER SERVICE:

Simran Sethi was the speaker at the Lied Center for the state recognition of 400 academically talented seventh-grade students selected for the 2008 Duke University Talent Identification Program June 1.  The Duke TIP students have earned SAT or ACT scores above the average scores of college-bound high school seniors.

Simran Sethi shot webisodes May 29 in Los Angeles for the Sundance Channel environmental justice series “The Good Fight.”  The videos include a “toxic tour” of the city, highlighting areas in South Los Angeles that receive disproportionate amounts of pollution and trash and profiling individuals working to clean up the community.

Jimmy Gentry discussed financial statements and their importance at the professional development meeting of the Kansas City chapter of PRSA June 10 at Lydia’s.

Dean Brill attended the board meetings for the Hearst Journalism Awards steering committee in San Francisco this week.

David Perlmutter was an invited speaker on July 7 to talk about “Blogs & Politics, 2008” in KU Professor John Tibetts’ class on “Politics and Society in Media.”

Kelly Crane represented the Marketing Communications Graduate Program on June 10 at a KU Edwards Grad Program Info Session at Burns & McDonnell where she showed the new recruiting video and met one-on-one with prospective students.  Program coordinators and program directors from seven other KU Edwards graduate programs were also in attendance.

Jimmy Gentry attended the two-day “Portfolio Management and Institutional Investors Seminar,” conducted by the Options Institute at the Chicago Board Options Exchange in Chicago in August.  He was the only academic participating.

Bob Basow, Mike Williams, and Jerry Crawford will attend the Michael Tilford Conference on Diversity and Multiculturalism, sponsored by the Kansas Board of Regents and Council of Chief Academic Officers, Oct. 2-3 at Wichita State University.

Simran Sethi shot op-eds in Kansas City, Mo.  The segments focus on energy policy and are part of CNBC’s integrated series on energy called “Powering the Planet.”  Sethi also is shooting segments for the upcoming business collaboration series hosted by Donny Deutsch in New York City on Sept. 5.

KU hosted two “Scholar Weekends” for the Duke University Talent Identification Program in fall 2008. The Scholar Weekends, scheduled for Oct. 3-5 and Nov. 7-9, will offer intensive courses taught by KU instructors.  Carol Holstead will teach Magazine Design. The Program will challenge students academically while allowing them to get a taste of university life. Students in grades 8-12 who have been identified as gifted or talented by local school criteria or have participated in Duke’s Talent Identification Program can attend Scholar Weekends. The program is sponsored by the University Honors Program in cooperation with Duke’s Talent Identification Program.