UNC at AEJMC 2012 in Chicago

Fifteen faculty members, two faculty emeriti, 14 graduate students, one staff member and numerous alumni represented the UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media at the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) national convention in Chicago Aug 9-12.

The Carolina contingent presented authored or co-authored papers or research posters, received honors, and served as moderators, discussants and panelists.

Among Carolina’s activities at AEJMC 2012 were:

• Dean Smith, a 2011 doctoral alumnus and a recent adjunct professor in the school, received the Nafziger-White-Salwen Dissertation Award for the best Ph.D. dissertation in the field of mass communication research for his dissertation “Legislating the First Amendment: Statutory Shield Laws as Non-Judicial Precedents.” Professor Cathy Packer served as his adviser. Smith also won second place faculty paper in the Law Division for “The Real Story Behind the Nation's First Shield Law: Maryland, 1894-1897.”
• Kathy Roberts Forde, a 2005 doctoral alumna, received the Covert Award for the best mass communication history article for “Profit and Public Interest: A Publication History of John Hersey's ‘Hiroshima,’” published in Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly.
• Doctoral graduate Brendan Watson and Richard Cole Eminent Professor Daniel Riffe won the Commission on the Status of Women's Top Paper Award for their paper, "How Female and Male J/MC Authors Perceive Journal Peer Review--Differently."
• Assistant professor Nori Comello presented her paper “Conceptualizing the Intervening Roles of Identity in Communication Effects: The Prism Model,” which was named the top theory paper in the Communication Theory and Methodology Division.
• Assistant professors Heidi Hennink-Kaminski and Dana McMahan, and doctoral student Jessica Willoughby won second place in the Communicating about Science, Health, Environment and Risk Division for the paper “Join the Conquest: Developing a Campaign to Increase Clinical Research Participation in North Carolina.”
• Park Fellow and Ph.D. graduate Brendan Watson and Richard Cole Eminent Professor Daniel Riffe won the Commission on the Status of Women's Top Paper Award for their paper, "How Female and Male J/MC Authors Perceive Journal Peer Review--Differently."
• Master’s student Jeanne-Marie DeStefano earned top student paper honors in the law division for her paper “An Analysis of FTC Cases Involving Substantiation of Health Claims in Food Advertising.”
• Doctoral student Lisa Barnard won the law division’s second-place student paper for “Tracking, Technology, and Tweens: Better Regulation to Protect Children’s Privacy Online.”
• Master’s student John Remensperger won the law division’s third-place student paper for “Who Are the Media? The Media Exemption to Campaign Finance Law.”
• Associate professor Andy Bechtel led the annual Breakfast of Editing Champions, which included a panel on the role of social media in editing courses.
• Rachel David Mersey, a 2007 doctoral alumna, hosted a UNC Ph.D. alumni reception.