J-school awards $20,000 in seed grants to support faculty research

The UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media is awarding $20,000 in seed grants to advance promising research projects with the potential to draw additional funding.

Hussman School professors Sri Kalyanaraman, Daniel Kreiss, Trevy McDonald and Seth Noar will each receive $5,000 grants to pursue research projects on topics that include presidential campaigns, immersive virtual health communication, Black Press coverage of the March on Washington and the impact of graphic warning labels on cigarette packages.

"The funding environment is a competitive one, and grant money like this can help junior faculty members get a research project off the ground to give them an edge in receiving additional funding," said Daniel Riffe, Richard Cole Eminent Professor and director of the school’s research center.

Dean Susan King established the research center and seed grant program this year to help expand the school’s research activity and develop projects that are competitive for external grants.

"These seed grants help ensure Carolina’s continuing legacy of research," King said. "The school has been and is home to some of the most important scholarship in the field."

Proposed research projects include:

• Virtual Frames: Associate professor Sri Kalyanaraman will conduct a series of studies employing immersive virtual environment technology to test the design and dissemination of persuasive health messages, specifically contrasting messages that are framed in order to focus on either perceived health benefits or losses.  
• Unplugging the Party: Assistant professor Daniel Kreiss will conduct in-depth interviews with senior Republican Party staffers and consultants active across the 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2012 presidential campaign cycles, and will have exclusive access to archival data, as part of his proposed work, "Unplugging the Party: The Dismantling of Republican Campaign Infrastructure, 2000-2012." 
• Black Press Coverage of the March on Washington: Assistant professor Trevy McDonald’s proposal will yield a documentary based on oral histories of African-American journalists who covered the Aug. 28, 1963, March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.  
• Impact of Cigarette Graphic Warning Labels: Associate professor Seth Noar will conduct a "Meta-analysis of the Impact of Cigarette Graphic Warning Labels on Smoking-related Outcomes" in order to establish his research presence in the area and serve as a preliminary study in future grant applications to NIH/FDA on effects of graphic warning labels on at-risk populations. 

For more information about research conducted at the UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media, contact director of research development Jennifer Gallina at jgallina@unc.edu or 919.843.8186 or Riffe at driffe@email.unc.edu or 919.962.4082.

Hussman School of Journalism and Media contact: Morgan Ellis, 919.843.0472, morgan_ellis@unc.edu