Director's Note

We had an exciting October in SJMC. We had two Professionals-in-Residence visit the School this month. Ty Rushing, senior political reporter at Iowa Starting Line, visited to discuss political reporting and community journalism in Iowa. SJMC alum Brandee Britt (BA, 2015), director of social media and digital strategy for UI Athletics, visited classes and met with students interested in sport media careers.

                                 Ty Rushing                                                                 Brandee Britt

You also may have seen us on ESPN’s First Take when on-air personality Stephen A. Smith recorded the show from the television studio in Adler. Smith invited SJMC and Daily Iowan students on air and spent time with students after the show. Check out this video of Smith giving the school a shoutout. He was accompanied by UI alum and friend of the school, Mark Shapiro.

                                                (Photos 3-4 Ayrton Breckenridge/The Daily Iowan)

SJMC alum Kimmi Chex (BA, 2018), NFL Network on-air personality and host, also visited in October. Kimmi shared her career journey and advice with students.

We also welcomed 868 students from 44 high schools across Iowa to campus for the Iowa High School Press Association Fall Conference. Speakers included SJMC faculty, staff, students, and alumni along with journalism instructors from other institutions and industry professionals. Congratulations to the IHSPA Executive Director and SJMC recruitment, internship, and placement coordinator, Michelle Sillman, for organizing a fantastic event.

If you have a story to share, please send it to sjmc@uiowa.edu.

Melissa Tully, Director

Faculty News

Travis Vogan was featured in the CNN article How F1 and ‘Drive to Survive’ show the changing way we watch sports.

Alex Scott published Who Is Worthy of a Name? Identity, Naming, and Social Difference in News Images’ Captions, in Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly (JMCQ). This study examined news images and captions published by The Associated Press between 2018 and 2022 to ascertain whether names were more frequently included for certain groups of people.

Graduate Student News

David Lomoywara received an Easton award for his proposal, “The Role of Local Media in Health Promotion in West Pokot County, Kenya.” David will collaborate on this project with Professor Melissa Tully.

Jenny Xu received an Easton award to support her project, “Examining the Antecedents of Susceptibility to Health Misinformation on Short Video Platforms: A Study of Rural Residents in China.” Jenny will collaborate on this project with Professors Bingbing Zhang and Rachel Young.

Mir Ashfaquzzaman successfully defended his dissertation titled “Ethical Discourse for Journalism in a Postcolonial/Global South Context: A Study of Newspaper Journalists in Bangladesh.” 

Frankline Matanji received a Ballard and Seashore Dissertation Fellowship for spring 2024. The Ballard and Seashore fellow provides dedicated time for Frankline to focus on completing his dissertation without any teaching responsibilities next semester. 

We celebrated the 10th anniversary of our online MA in Strategic Communication with a social and brunch during Homecoming weekend. The anniversary brought together dozens of proud alumni, instructors, and supporters to celebrate a decade of new skills and educational experiences.

Undergraduate News

Ayrton Breckenridge won gold in the Sports Action category and was a Finalist for Sports Portfolio in the College Photographer of the Year competition.

Students in the the Event Management Certificate program traveled to Las Vegas for the IMEX conference, one of the largest international conferences in the events industry. Students participated in the Future Leaders Forum, a track designed for top senior event management students from around the world, and were accompanied by faculty members Tracy Hufford and Heather Spangler. SJMC supported this trip through the Timothy J. Severa Travel Award. 

Charles Munro took his Newscast Reporting and Writing class to Chicago to visit three TV newsrooms with shows hosted by SJMC alumni. Kylah Hedding took University of Iowa PRSSA students to the PRSA International Conference in Nashville, Tennessee.

We’re hiring!

We’re hiring a faculty member with professional experience in journalism. We are seeking applicants with substantial professional experience. Potential areas of specialization include, but are not limited to: in-depth or investigative reporting; public affairs and government reporting; data journalism; rural and community journalism; and health, environment or science reporting. Review of applications will begin on December 1, 2023.