Two SUSI scholars will present research papers at AEJMC National Convention

With the academic assistance of several faculty members of Ohio University’s E.W. Scripps School of Journalism , three original research papers written by two of the SUSI 2011 scholars have been accepted to the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) National Convention. The annual conference will be held in St. Louis from Aug. 10 to Aug. 13.

The SUSI summer institute is funded by an annual renewable grant from the U.S. Department of State’s Study of the U.S. Branch in the Office of Academic Exchange Programs.

Dr. Nnamdi T. Ekeanyanwu, a senior lecturer at Covenant University in Nigeria, will present two papers at the conference. His paper titled “Press Coverage of Nigerian President Yar’ Adua’s Pre-Election Campaign: A Case Study on Agenda-setting” was accepted to the Political Communication Interest Group. He will also do a poster presentation for the Cultural and Critical Studies Division on his paper, “Theorizing Cultural Development vis-à-vis Cultural Imperialism Theory: Lessons from Nigeria.”

Peddiboyina VijayaLakshmi, an associate professor at Sri Padmavathi Women's University in India, will present one paper at the conference. Titled “Use of Social Networking Sites: An Exploratory Study of Indian Teenagers,” she will give a formal presentation for the Communication Technology (CTEC)/Open Competition.

For the first time, Dr. Yusuf Kalyango, the director of the Institute for International Journalism , encouraged all of the scholars to submit original research papers to the conference. Drs. Anne Cooper-Chen, Guido Stempel and Yusuf Kalyango as well as doctoral student Ed Simpson edited eight research papers in March.

These staff members had three weeks to edit each paper and provide the proper feedback to the authors in order for each author to make the appropriate corrections before the April 1 deadline. After reading and editing those papers, they advised two scholars not to submit to the conference. Therefore, three of the six papers submitted were accepted for presentation.

All 18 SUSI scholars will attend the annual conference in August.

SUSI 2011 Scholars to Receive Preparatory Materials

By Xueying Luo

The Institute for International Journalism (IIJ) in the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism has shipped two books to the SUSI 2011 scholars in 18 countries in preparation for the summer institute. The books are meant to provide scholars with some stimulating literature as they get ready for SUSI at Ohio University. The books provide a starting point to some of the pedagogical and scholarly issues they are about to encounter or experience in the academic sessions, cultural tours, and media visits.

The SUSI summer institute is funded by an annual renewable grant from the U.S. Department of State’s Study of the U.S. Branch in the Office of Academic Exchange Programs.

The books highlight salient issues to be discussed in the program, including press freedom in the United States, media ethics, democratization, American higher education and media accountability in a democracy. Scholars and OU faculty will use these books to generate ideas on various topics and issues involving U.S. journalism education and media practice.

The two books are American Higher Education in the Twenty-First Century: Social, Political and Economic Challenges (3rd Edition), and The Elements of Journalism.

Edited by Philip G. Altbach, Robert O. Berdahl, and Patricia J. Gumport, American Higher Education in the Twenty-First Century: Social, Political and Economic Challenges addresses key issues from a macro perspective that American higher academic institutions are dealing with and contemporary challenges in academe and in the future . It explicates and discusses the relationships between students, educators, academic institutions, and society.

The Element of Journalism,edited by PEJ (Project for Excellence in Journalism) Director Tom Rosenstiel and CCJ (Committee of Concerned Journalists) Chairman and PEJ Senior Counselor Bill Kovach, outlines several major principles of being a responsible journalist to reach the central purpose of journalism, “to provide citizens with accurate and reliable information they need to function in a free society.” The easy-to-read book is actually suited for undergraduate students, but it also reminds journalism educators, journalists, and journalism students what they should do in the profession, as well as what citizens want them to do.

SUSI Directors' Meeting in Washington D.C.