School of Journalism & Media

Rob Heller Selected for CCI Board of Visitors Professorship

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School of Journalism and Electronic Media Professor Rob Heller has been selected as the fourth recipient of the CCI Board of Visitors Professorship. 

The BOV Professorship, currently held by Suzie Allard, Chancellor’s Professor in Information Sciences and CCI Associate Dean for Research, was made possible by generous gifts from donors including current and emeritus members of the college’s Board of Visitors. The three-year rotating professorship was established to recognize and reward outstanding CCI faculty members whose research, creative activity, teaching, and academic and professional service have uniquely contributed to the mission of their school, the college and the university.

Heller … Read more “Rob Heller Selected for CCI Board of Visitors Professorship”

JEM science communicator alumni analyze their academic, career experiences

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One of the perks about studying Journalism and Electronic Media (JEM) at UT is the amount of local resources that students have access to. From interning at the Knoxville News Sentinel to Discovery, Inc. to Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), there are ample opportunities to combine the communications field with other specialties.

Here are four science communicator alumni stories.

ORNL is known around the science and technology communities for many things, one of those being its Spallation Neutron Source (SNS). Essentially, this accelerator-based system sends proton pulses to a steel target filled with liquid mercury. Then the neutrons move toward … Read more “JEM science communicator alumni analyze their academic, career experiences”

JEM Students Earn Accolades from 2021 Southeast Journalism Conference

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Students from the UT School of Journalism and Electronic Media walked away with multiple awards in Southeast Journalism Conference competition. Winners were announced March 26.

Best of the South awards are given for a body of journalistic work completed in the past academic year in competition with 30 SEJC member colleges and universities.

Alumnus Noah Taylor placed fifth in the Best Sports Writer category. Taylor is sports editor for the LaFollette Press in Campbell County, Tennessee.

Alumna Gabriela Szymanowska won three awards: sixth place in Best News Writer, fifth place in Best Press Photographer, and fourth place in Special Events … Read more “JEM Students Earn Accolades from 2021 Southeast Journalism Conference”

Anu Garg, Renowned Expert on the Origin of Words, Will Give 27th Hill Lecture Virtually

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Anu Garg, world-famous expert on the origin of words, will speak about “Language Myths & Hoaxes: A Humorous Look at Language Misconceptions” when he delivers the 27th Alfred and Julia Hill Lecture at the University of Tennessee. The event, which is free and open to the public, will take place virtually via Zoom on Tuesday, March 23, at 8 p.m.

Garg is the founder of Wordsmith.org. He writes a daily column on the origin of words—a word a day—for an online community of some 400,000 word lovers in 170 countries, now in its 27th year. Garg is the author of three … Read more “Anu Garg, Renowned Expert on the Origin of Words, Will Give 27th Hill Lecture Virtually”

‘The Library That Dolly Built’ Gets Dec. 9 Online Premiere

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Dollywood and Abramorama in association with The Dollywood Foundation have partnered to present a free one-night-only live streaming world premiere event for The Library That Dolly Built, the Land Grant Films documentary about Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.

Originally scheduled as a nationwide live event on more than 300 screens this spring, the world premiere for The Library That Dolly Built has been reimagined as a free live stream screening of the film, exclusively on Facebook, available nationally on Wednesday, Dec. 9, at 7 p.m. ET. The screening will be followed by a conversation with Dolly Parton, who will also … Read more “‘The Library That Dolly Built’ Gets Dec. 9 Online Premiere”

JEM Sports-Focused Alumni Share Academic, Career Journeys

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They trekked across campus sporting their University of Tennessee shirts, hats and even checkered overalls. 

They also walked the curved halls of the College of Communication and Information [CCI], where they laid the foundations for their careers in sports media. 

These journalism and electronic media [JEM] alumni are eight of the hundreds who’ve found careers in sports media, and all of them agree that their work on campus helped shape their careers.

Katherine Donnelly (2015), ESPN

Students in the JEM program learn about social media platforms and how to use them as content creators.

Katherine Donnelly found a career managing … Read more “JEM Sports-Focused Alumni Share Academic, Career Journeys”

Q&A with IRTS Fellow Ford Sanders

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As part of his journey to becoming a news anchor after graduation, senior journalism and electronic media major Ford Sanders has gained experience with news stations on the local and national level. During his time as a UT student, he has worked with WVLT-TV and the UT Today program in Knoxville and with CBS’ New York City-based programs.

Sanders was among an elite group of students who had the opportunity to be part of the International Radio and Television Society (IRTS) Fellowship Program, a prestigious program for 30 to 40 students from a nationwide pool of more than 1,000 applicants. … Read more “Q&A with IRTS Fellow Ford Sanders”

Heller’s Media Graphics Class Creates Billboards for 2020 Election

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In what has become a tradition every four years, journalism and electronic media students in Professor Rob Heller’s Media Graphics class (JEM 380) created billboard designs to encourage voter participation in the presidential election. 

Heller’s class partnered with Lamar Advertising, which ran student billboard advertisements prior to the 2016 presidential election. This year, Lamar Advertising cycled through four student designs on an electronic billboard in Memphis. 

The idea for this project began in 2012 when the class worked with the Howard H. Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy to post 12 designs around campus. 

“I’ve given this … Read more “Heller’s Media Graphics Class Creates Billboards for 2020 Election”

Teresa Walker receives JEM 2020 Alumna of the Year award

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Teresa Walker, pro football writer for The Associated Press in Tennessee, is the 2020 Alumna of the Year for the School of Journalism and Electronic Media.

A three-time Tennessee Sportswriter of the Year recipient, Walker was elected to the Tennessee Sports Writers Association’s Hall of Fame in 2020.

Furthermore, Walker won a 2015 APSE award for a feature from the Masters, and she is also a two-time president of the Pro Football Writers Association in Nashville and past president of the Tennessee Sports Writers Association.

Walker has come full circle with UT’s recognition of her work.

“It is incredibly … Read more “Teresa Walker receives JEM 2020 Alumna of the Year award”

Cherokee Stickball Documentary Scheduled for TV, Festival Premiere

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Documentary Synopsis

Nestled in the Great Smoky Mountains of Western North Carolina is a tight-knit community of the remaining members of the Cherokee tribe, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. One of the tribes’ cultural traditions still practiced is the game of stickball. In the year 2000, nearly 100 women: mothers, daughters, sisters, cousins, and friends, took the field to play and exercise the matriarchal spirit that the Cherokee were known for. ᎡᏘᏴ ᏥᎾᎾᏛᏁᎮ ᎠᏰᎵᏐ ᎾᏛᏁᎰ / She Carries On tells the story of these women, how and why they played, and what the game means to them and their

… Read more “Cherokee Stickball Documentary Scheduled for TV, Festival Premiere”