School of Journalism & Media

Dolly Parton Film by Land Grant Films to Debut Nationally April 2

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The Library That Dolly Built, a University of Tennessee, Knoxville, student-driven film and documentary about Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, will premiere April 2 in New York City and be screened in theaters across the nation.

Associate Professor of Journalism and Electronic Media Nick Geidner is the director and producer of the film, which was crewed by 15 student members of Land Grant Films, an Emmy-nominated documentary production program housed in UT’s School of Journalism and Electronic Media. JEM video production specialist Clinton Elmore served as the film’s editor.

Parton will be in attendance at the premiere event in New … Read more “Dolly Parton Film by Land Grant Films to Debut Nationally April 2”

Robin Lloyd to Give 28th Annual Hill Lecture

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Event Canceled

Please note this event and all campus events are canceled March 16 to April 5. To find the most updated campus information, please see utk.edu/coronavirus.

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Robin Lloyd, a writer and editor for Scientific American and adjunct professor of science writing at New York University, will talk about “The End of Investigative Science Writing?” when she delivers the 28th annual Alfred and Julia Hill Lecture at the University of Tennessee. The event, which is free and open to the public, will take place on Tuesday, March 31, at 8 p.m. in the College of Nursing Auditorium … Read more “Robin Lloyd to Give 28th Annual Hill Lecture”

JEM Students Place Second at SEJC Competition

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SEJC Awards Team

A student team from the UT School of Journalism and Electronic Media placed second among 26 schools in the onsite, deadline-driven team competition at the Southeast Journalism Conference (SEJC), which was held Feb. 13-15 at the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.

The Tennessee team earned two individual wins in the onsite competition: senior Gabriela Szymanowska in news and feature photography and senior Will Backus in sports writing.

Senior Kenneth Richmond took second in sports photography, and sophomore Allie Justis placed third in copyediting. Additional Tennessee representatives in the onsite competition included: Ainsley Kelso in arts and culture writing, … Read more “JEM Students Place Second at SEJC Competition”

Q&A: JEM Alumnus’ Work Featured on the Today Show

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Journalism and electronic media alumnus Yuan Yue (C&I ’18) recently had his coverage of Americans being evacuated from the coronavirus outbreak in China featured on the Today Show.

More than 500 Americans have been evacuated, and, once back in the United States, spent 14 days in quarantine at military bases. As of Feb. 11, the death toll in China had surpassed 1,000.

Since finishing the communication and information master’s program in 2018, Yue moved back to his hometown, Wuhan, China, and started his own video production company. His company produces videos for international media outlets such as NBC, ABC, Great … Read more “Q&A: JEM Alumnus’ Work Featured on the Today Show”

Successful Alumni: Sharrie Williams’ goals led her from Tennessee to Philadelphia, the number four broadcast market in America

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By Lisa Byerley Gary
Instructor, JEM 414, Fall 2014

When Sharrie Williams began her first full-time job in television after graduating from UT, a news job with a small station in Jackson, Tennessee, she also waited tables to make ends meet.

“It paid that poorly,” she said.

But Williams had goals. She wanted to learn everything there was to learn about television news in exactly one year. Then she would move on to a bigger market.

Today Williams is a reporter and anchor at ABC-owned WPLY-TV in Philadelphia, the fourth largest television market in America. Her journey from a … Read more “Successful Alumni: Sharrie Williams’ goals led her from Tennessee to Philadelphia, the number four broadcast market in America”

A Message to Freshmen: Alumnus Kendall Downing Gives Advice to Journalism Students on how to Reach their Goals Post-Graduation

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By Kelsey French
JEM 414 Fall 2018

 

Kendall Downing has worked in various markets:  WYMD-TV in Hazard, Kentucky, WPSD-TV in Paducah, Kentucky, WXIN-TV in Indianapolis, and back to his hometown of Memphis, Tennessee at WMC Action News 5.

For Downing, it was always a childhood dream to work in news. It’s no wonder he started setting himself apart from his peers as soon as he started college.

“The first thing I did was try to get myself in front of people that would get me as much experience as possible” Downing said.

Downing became heavily involved on campus, both … Read more “A Message to Freshmen: Alumnus Kendall Downing Gives Advice to Journalism Students on how to Reach their Goals Post-Graduation”

Successful Alumni: Jordan Lawson’s experience at UT led him to work as a web content editor in Atlanta

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By John Vandergriff
Jem 414, Fall 2018

Jordan Lawson is a content editor for Discovery. Photo Courtesy of Jordan Lawson

A journalism major opens many doors, not just those to hard news. Just ask Jordan Lawson, a graduate of the University of Tennessee’s School of Journalism and Electronic Media, and an online editor for Discovery.

Lawson grew up around Knoxville, so the decision to go to the University of Tennessee was easy. There, he decided to pursue a major in journalism and got involved with The Tennessee Journalist, TNJN.com, the official news website for the School of Journalism and Electronic … Read more “Successful Alumni: Jordan Lawson’s experience at UT led him to work as a web content editor in Atlanta”

Successful Alumni: From Naps to News, Claire Dodson’s journey took her to Teen Vogue

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By Lindsey Owen
JEM 414, Fall 2018

Claire Dodson grew up hearing the sound of The Daily Times being printed from underneath a journalist’s desk where she would sleep while her father worked.

Her father, Richard Dodson, could be found working in the Maryville, Tennessee, newsroom during late hours when the paper was printing. These late nights would later impact Dodson’s career path.

She works as an entertainment editor at Teen Vogue.

Dodson says this is because of the courses, experience, and mentors she had within UT’s Communications Building.

Her journey into journalism began during her junior year at Bearden … Read more “Successful Alumni: From Naps to News, Claire Dodson’s journey took her to Teen Vogue”

Successful Alumni: David Cobb journeyed from immature freshman to blossoming NBA beat writer

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*David Cobb now works for CBS Sports covering college basketball and football. 

By Blake Von Hagen
JEM 414, Fall 2018

Five years ago, if someone had told David Cobb he would be leaving a job as a Tennessee football and basketball beat writer in 2018, he likely would have told them they were crazy.

If they had gone on to tell him that he would be joining his hometown paper as an NBA beat writer, he might have told them they were even crazier.

In the fall of 2018, that dream came true for Cobb, a graduate of the … Read more “Successful Alumni: David Cobb journeyed from immature freshman to blossoming NBA beat writer”

Successful Alumni: Courtney Anderson used experience, determination, to make it in TV news

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*Courtney Anderson is now the Web Producer for WREG-TV

By Madi Bowling, JEM 414, Fall 2018

 

A day in the life of Courtney Anderson starts bright and early as she enters the office of WREG in Memphis at 5:30 a.m. Anderson organizes the calendar of events that will be televised by the station that day and focuses upon the most important events. She talks to daybreak producers about what the morning staff is covering and is sure to redirect them to any breaking news. From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., she meets with day producers to plan shows for … Read more “Successful Alumni: Courtney Anderson used experience, determination, to make it in TV news”