Kent State School of Media and Journalism

While she may not be in Paris this summer, School of Media and Journalism student Della Fowler will be covering the Olympics for Inside Gymnastics magazine as part of her internship. She'll be monitoring a live feed, posting to social media and helping create and edit video packages. Read her story.

“Find What Makes Your Heart Beat a Little Faster” | Kent State University “Find What Makes Your Heart Beat a Little Faster” | College of Communication & Information, School of Media and Journalism school of media and journalism, Internships | For Della Fowler, a chance opportunity to report on Kent State gymnastics sparked a passion that has led her all the way to cov...

Tonight's the night. Be sure to join us on Facebook Live for the Regional Emmys Backstage Show, which is presented by students from the School of Media and Journalism.

Your hosts for tomorrow night's Regional Emmys, giving you backstage tickets to the glitz and glamor. Join them at 7:30p.m.

Get ready to see our School of Media and Journalism students shine as they run the backstage livestream of this year's Central Great Lakes Regional Emmy Awards. This Saturday, June 22 starting at 7:30p.m. here on Facebook.

Kent State Student Media has been engaged in a strategic planning process to transform this award-winning program to reflect changing media consumption, resource challenges and evolving student interests. Professional-in-Residence and Interim Director for Student Media Mizell Stewart III shares what changes are in store.

An Update on the Future Direction of Student Media | Kent State University An Update on the Future Direction of Student Media | School of Media and Journalism | Guest Column by Mizell Stewart III, Professional-in-Residence, School of Media and Journalism and Interim Director, Kent State Student MediaKent State Student Media has embarked on a strategic planning process to t...

Congratulations to the MDJ faculty who recently earned promotions 🎉
⚡️ Luke Armour, ➡️ senior lecturer (MDJ)
⚡️ Becky Rolnick, ➡️ associate professor (MDJ)
⚡️ Dana White, tenured ➡️ associate professor (MDJ)

Congratulations to these CCI faculty members who have earned promotions 🎉 Send them your congrats in the comments!
⚡️ Luke Armour, ➡️ senior lecturer (MDJ)
⚡️ Becky Rolnick, ➡️ associate professor (MDJ)
⚡️ Heather Soyka, tenured ➡️ associate professor (iSchool)
⚡️ Dana White, tenured ➡️ associate professor (MDJ)

Unlocking “immense creative potential” ⚡️

As a Design Innovation Faculty Fellow this semester, Associate Professor David Foster is exploring artificial intelligence and its impact on creativity and learning. On April 15, he’ll lead the workshop with Kent State Design Innovation “Hack Your Homework: Explore AI For Productivity” to provide skills and takeaways on how to use AI tools ethically when studying for finals.

Read more: https://www.kent.edu/mdj/news/we-teachers-need-evolve-meet-technology-professor-explores-artificial-intelligence-design

📸: Rami Daud

Kent State University is well-represented at the Cleveland International Film Festival (CIFF), happening this week and next 🎬

Signal Cleveland spotlighted recent digital media production graduate Madison Ledyard-King, '22, whose film "Black Boys Don't Cry" is showing as part of CIFF's FilmSlam, a mini-festival designed for students in grades 5-12 that teaches media literacy and critical thinking:

In Black Boys Don't Cry, local filmmaker explores anxiety, silence Black Boys Don’t Cry,’ is showing at CIFF as part of FilmSlam, a mini-festival designed for school students in grades 5-12

"Involuntary," the latest film by Assistant Professor Dana White and Instructor Christopher Knoblock, explores moral responsibility through the lens of our treatment of older adults.

It recently screened at Justice Film Festival in NYC and the DC Independent Film Festival in Washington, D.C.

Going “bananas” for fan engagement: Kent State University student Anthony Scilla, ’25, has been fascinated by the Savannah Bananas and their innovative style of baseball entertainment for several years 💛 ⚾️ This spring, he’s joined the organization as a fan services intern. The public relations major says: “It’s fun, it’s entertaining and it’s a blast to work with. They took the game of baseball and made it fun again.”

Scilla’s internship focuses on enhancing the fan experience of the team’s official fan group, the K Club. He monitors and engages with fans on the club’s email inbox and Facebook group, providing personalized responses with playful banana-themed puns. Read more: https://www.kent.edu/mdj/news/going-bananas-fan-engagement-kent-state-student-interns-viral-sensation-savannah-bananas

Todd Thompson '16, a first-generation college student from a small town in Ashtabula County, never imagined he'd one day be filming social media content with Progressive's iconic fictional saleswoman “Flo” in Los Angeles. Read his story, which traces from Kent State University and IdeaBase, to working with some of the largest names in the entertainment industry:
https://www.kent.edu/mdj/news/alumnus-shares-inspiring-path-small-town-working-exciting-video-projects-progressive

We're thrilled to share that three student films are part of this lineup! Congratulations to the following digital media production students:

⚡️ Michael Gregory, '24 - "Happy Place"
⚡️ KG Gude, '24 - "Reciprocity"
⚡️ Micah Beck, '25, Janelle Ingraham Dwyer, '25, and Heidi Troutman, '26 - "How to Be a Productive Member of Society"

Cleveland International Film Festival

we announced the full lineup of 137 feature films, 225 short films representing 60 countries! Check out what we'll have on screen April 3-13, 2024 at Playhouse Square: https://bit.ly/CIFF48FilmGuide

When author Sam Quinones wrote the award-winning book “Dreamland,” it “took me someplace that I had no idea existed,” he told a crowd at Kent State University last week. Visiting campus for the fourth annual Dix Media Ethics Lecture on March 5, Quinones gave students advice about being curious and objective. He discussed the importance of media ethics, using examples from his own reporting.

“The more you hold onto these facts the way you think they are, the more you will miss these larger stories. It becomes an issue of ethics to open your mind and let facts lead you, let experiences lead you. … This is the gorgeous, beautiful part of journalism.”

Thank you to David and Janet Dix, who launched this signature lecture series in 2018 with an endowment gift of $100,000. While visiting campus, Quinones also guest lectured in two Media and Journalism courses.

📸: TJ Laryea and Ryan Moore (IdeaBase)

Alumna Kristyn Hibbett grew up playing and loving basketball, but knew she couldn’t play the game forever. She discovered that public relations professionals help make the game thrive behind-the-scenes, so she pursued a public relations major at Kent State University and participated in the McLendon Fellowship with the Athletics Department (Kent State University Golden Flashes).

Today, she's a Corporate Communications Coordinator at the Cleveland Cavaliers. Read about her journey: https://www.kent.edu/mdj/news/three-journeys-one-passion-alumni-chart-unique-paths-victory-game-sports-media

Kent State University represents at the Short. Sweet. Film Fest 🎬 ✨

We’re proud to recognize the work of digital media production majors Cassidy DeVol and Laura McCann, “Heart & Sol”, and Nick Thaman and Natalie Gilles, “Powerball.” Both short films were created in the Production I class and screened last week at the Short. Sweet. Film Fest. at Atlas Shaker Square Cinemas! Heart & Sol earned runner-up for Audience Choice! And, congrats to recent alumni Giana Vigliotti (“Pygmalion”), Garrett Miller (“Green Humanity”) and Glenn Robinson (“The Blacker The Berry”) whose work was also screened!

Read about the film fest here: https://www.kent.edu/today/news/clevelands-short-sweet-film-fest-include-works-kent-state

We hope you'll join us tomorrow night:
🗣️Author and Journalist Sam Quinones
🗓️ March 5 at 7 p.m.
📍 Franklin Hall Room 340

This signature lecture series was launched in 2018 with an endowment gift of $100,000 from David and Janet Dix, to bring nationally recognized figures discussing critical issues in media ethics to Kent State University.

Author Sam Quinones, Pioneering Voice on Opioid Epidemic, to Share Insight at Kent State Media Ethics Lecture | Kent State University Author Sam Quinones, Pioneering Voice on Opioid Epidemic, to Share Insight at Kent State Media Ethics Lecture | School of Media and Journalism, College of Communication & Information, Center for Scholastic Journalism feb24-jargon | Author and journalist Sam Quinones will share his journey and lesson...

Our latest issue of Jargon hit inboxes yesterday! Read all of the latest stories here: https://www.kent.edu/mdj/jargon

Among the 300+ films featured at the Short. Sweet. Film Fest this weekend in Cleveland, there will be several created by Kent State University students and alumni.
Read about their work:

Cleveland’s Short. Sweet. Film Fest. to Include Works From Kent State | Kent State University Cleveland’s Short. Sweet. Film Fest. to Include Works From Kent State | Kent State Today Arts & Culture, Nationally Distinctive, school of media and journalism | Short films from two Kent State digital media production students and three alumni will be shown this year at the 13th annual Short. Swe...

About 15 years ago, Audrey Fletcher, ‘15, was the Entertainment Editor and Managing Editor of the Eagle at GlenOak High School in Canton. Today, she is a music publicist for Crossroads Music’s four roots-genre labels, based in Asheville, North Carolina.

“I'm forever grateful I decided to sign up for journalistic writing as an unsure freshman,” she says. “Doing news in high school made me more outgoing and willing to talk to people, which expanded my horizons in college.”

Audrey is our final alumni spotlight this , as we celebrate Kent State University grads whose high school journalism experience set them up for success.

Audrey says: “With social media and email marketing, every industry today needs people who can communicate well — and you can learn those skills in student media. Even if you don't pursue journalism long-term, those skills will serve you well in any industry you explore.

Read more: https://www.kent.edu/mdj/csj/spotlights/fletcher

Two students, Lauren McElrath and Khalid Mitcham, and Associate Professor David Foster are bringing a fresh perspective to a late 1960s photo collection focused on Black student life at Kent State University.

Read more: https://www.kent.edu/mdj/news/time-capsules-can-hold-so-much-emotion-and-power

Kent State University alumna Portia Booker’s work in media began in the 10th grade at The Cauldron, the literary magazine at Cleveland Central Catholic High School. Today, she hosts The Grief Grantor TV show on e360tv and executive produces six shows. The 2016 journalism graduate is our next spotlight for Scholastic Journalism Week!

In her senior year, Portia shadowed The Plain Dealer’s Robert Smith covering the St. Patrick’s Day Parade. “Robert Smith entrusted me with a reporter’s notebook and sent me into the crowd to gather stories, names, and experiences.” To this day, Portia writes, she carries a small notebook so that she can “scribble down intriguing phrases, images, and melodies that fill the air.”

Portia encourages students uncertain about doing media in high school to “dive in for just a semester, or even just sit in on a meeting to observe.” While the media landscape is full of opportunities, it’s more than about the media. “It’s about finding their voice and discovering their path.”

Read more about Portia: https://www.kent.edu/mdj/news/sorrow-strength-kent-state-alumnas-journey-broadcast-journalism-and-grief-advocacy

It’s Scholastic Journalism Week, and we are featuring Kent State University alumni who launched their careers as high school journalists ⚡️

Meghan Caprez, ‘15, M.A. ’17, was Managing Editor of The Elm Leaf, the student newspaper at Our Lady of the Elms in Akron. Today, she is Communications Manager at Walt Disney World 🪄

The AP Style and InDesign skills Meghan learned in high school set her up for success at Kent State and in her public relations career. “Everything I write today, whether a press release, blog post, or social media is written in AP Style. Knowing InDesign set me up for success designing posters and digital signage at Disney.”

Meghan’s advice for high school students considering journalism? “Do it! Journalism makes your world a little bigger. It helps you meet people you may not have met otherwise. It helps you learn things you never thought you’d find interesting. It opens doors to new opportunities after high school.”

Read more about Meghan: https://www.kent.edu/mdj/csj/spotlights/caprez

This year’s advertising winner according to Kent State University professional-in-residence Mike Jackson? Dunkin' its DunKings campaign, for the way it used humor and celebrities effectively and told a story over time 🍩 🏈👑

Jackson worked on advertising for major brands like Coors and General Motors, including Super Bowl ads, before teaching advertising in our School. Read more about what he had to say here:

'The Most Effective Brands Tell a Story Over Time': Advertising Professor Reflects on Super Bowl Winners and Losers | Kent State University 'The Most Effective Brands Tell a Story Over Time': Advertising Professor Reflects on Super Bowl Winners and Losers | School of Media and Journalism, College of Communication & Information | Before Mike Jackson, ’78, returned to Kent State University as a professional-in-residence, he worked for r...

Author and journalist Sam Quinones ignited awareness of the U.S. opioid epidemic nearly a decade ago with his award-winning book “Dreamland: The True Tale of America’s Op**te Epidemic.”

Join us March 5, 2024, at Kent State University, as Quinones delivers the fourth annual Dix Media Ethics Lecture.

Author Sam Quinones, Pioneering Voice on Opioid Epidemic, to Share Insight at Kent State Media Ethics Lecture | Kent State University Author Sam Quinones, Pioneering Voice on Opioid Epidemic, to Share Insight at Kent State Media Ethics Lecture | School of Media and Journalism, College of Communication & Information, Center for Scholastic Journalism feb24-jargon | Author and journalist Sam Quinones will share his journey and lesson...

Kent State University's undergraduate public relations program is the only PR program in the state to hold Education for Public Relations (CEPR) certification and Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication accreditation.

Read more about what makes the program special:

A ‘One-of-a-Kind’ Public Relations Program | Kent State University A ‘One-of-a-Kind’ Public Relations Program | School of Media and Journalism Nationally Distinctive, University News, Students First | The combination of a strong curriculum, real-world experience and a focus on networking allows Kent State University’s undergraduate public relations students t...

Professional-in-Residence and alumnus Mike Jackson weighs in on Super Bowl ads leading up to Sunday's Big Game via WKYC Channel 3 - Cleveland.

Jackson worked for brands including Pepsi and General Motors — including on Super Bowl ads at the latter — before teaching advertising at Kent State University.

Cleveland will be showcased during the Super Bowl: Here are the ads to look out for United Airlines has already put out an ad for Browns fans, while Destination Cleveland said it's excited to bring Cleveland to a national audience on Sunday.

Congratulations to Candace Bowen, John Bowen and Mark Goodman — three champions of scholastic journalism, who have also made incredible contributions to our School over the years!

They are recipients of Journalism Education Association's Lifetime Achievement Award ⚡️

JEA recognizes nine members for Lifetime Achievement Award.
The award recipients are
• William B. Allen, Charlotte, North Carolina
• Candace Perkins Bowen, MJE, Stow, Ohio
• John Bowen, MJE, Stow, Ohio
• Michelle Dunaway, MJE, Kirkwood, Missouri
• Mark Goodman, Akron, Ohio
• Marva Hutchinson, Charlotte, North Carolina
• Jeff Kuchno, St. Louis
• Kathy Schrier, MJE, Seattle
• Nancy Smith, MJE, Eureka, Missouri
Read more: https://jea.org/wp/blog/2024/02/01/9-receive-jea-lifetime-achievement-award/

This weekend marks the one year since a freight train carrying hazardous materials derailed in , Ohio. Since then, our students have covered the many unfolding consequences, thanks to a grant from Grist.org and the Center for Rural Strategies.

Read about their work and the stories that were published by Ideastream News at the end of 2023.

Bridging the News Gap in East Palestine, Ohio | Kent State University Bridging the News Gap in East Palestine, Ohio | School of Media and Journalism, College of Communication & Information dec23-jargon, journalism, school of media and journalism | A year after a train carrying hazardous materials derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, the consequences are still unfolding,....

Steve Albert, '72, was raised on radio, TV and sports, and from the age of seven, he wanted to become a sportscaster. His two older brothers, Marv and Al, shared the same dream, and each of them made it a reality.

A Kent State University alumnus, Steve went on to have a prolific, multi-faceted career as a play-by-play announcer for basketball teams like the New Jersey Nets and the Golden State Warriors, a broadcaster for the Cleveland Crusaders, New York Mets, Jets and more.

Read his story: https://www.kent.edu/mdj/news/three-journeys-one-passion-alumni-chart-unique-paths-victory-game-sports-media

Read the latest Kent State University Admissions blog, featuring journalism student Hayden Cruz, '25 ⚡️

https://www.kent.edu/admissions/news/flashathon-dancing-away-17k