Scholars to Examine Journalism and Citizenship in First of “New Agendas Series”

AUSTIN, Texas – July 9, 2007 – Scholars from around the country will convene at The University of Texas at Austin to examine how technology has changed the role of journalism in society in “Journalism and Citizenship: New Agendas,” the first in a series of academic conferences featuring up-and-coming scholars studying the most important issues in communication.

The conference takes place July 13-14 and is hosted by the College of Communication.

Dan Gillmor, director of the Center for Citizen Media, a non-profit organization supporting citizen journalism, will deliver the keynote address, “Media Literacy in a Media-Saturated Age.”  He will argue for the renewed importance of media literacy in the changing media environment.

“Journalism is in the middle of sweeping changes in its relationships with the communities it serves and the audiences for news it seeks to address,” said Mark Tremayne, assistant professor and conference host. “Changes in technology have blurred the lines between professionals and citizens, partisan and objective bystander – particularly in the emerging public zones of the Web. This conference will examine these changes and the new concepts needed to understand them in the months and even years ahead.”

The diverse group of scholars – each at the beginning stages of their careers, but with significant scholarly potential – will share their perspective on topics, including: “Journalism’s Evolution in the Era of Active Audience,” “The Public’s Relationship with Digital Content” and “The Impact of the Citizen as Mass Communicator.” In turn, these scholars will set new research agendas in journalism and communication research.

Scholars scheduled to present include:

Iris Chyi, The University of Texas at Austin
“It’s All About Attention: News-Seeking and Information Overload in the Digital Age”

Mark Deuze, Indiana University
“Liquid Journalism for a Monitorial Citizenry”

Wilson Lowrey, University of Alabama
“Changing Audiences, Uncertainty and Control”

Donald Matheson, University of Canterbury
“What the Blogger Knows: The Emerging Knowledge Practices of Personal Journalism”

Sharon Meraz, The University of Texas at Austin
“The Many Faced ‘You’ of Social Media”

Zizi Papacharissi, Temple University
“The Citizen is The Message: Online Media and Civic Journalism”

Monica Postelnicu, Louisiana State University
“Media on Media: An Analysis of the Relationship Between Professional Mass Media and Bloggers”

Sue Robinson, University of Wisconsin, Madison
“History Writing 2.0: Journalist and Citizen Agenda-Setters in the Coverage of Hurricane Katrina’s Anniversary”

Lou Rutigliano, The University of Texas at Austin
“Mapping Citizen Coverage of the Dual City”

Ron Yaros, University of Utah
“Important News but Complex: How the Web Generates Public Interest in and Understanding of Science, Health and Technology”

The conference will take place in the Lady Bird Johnson Room (CMA 5.160) in the Jesse Jones Communication Complex on The University of Texas at Austin campus. Maps of the campus are available here.

“Journalism and Citizenship” is the first in a series of 10 “New Agendas” conferences to be sponsored by the College of Communication over the next three to five years. Each of the 10 conferences will culminate in a volume of research edited by College of Communication faculty members and published by Lawrence Erlbaum/Taylor & Francis Publishers.

Future topics to be covered in the series include: health communication, communication and authenticity, media literacy, language and learning, international communication, ethnicity and media, science communication, media convergence and media emotions. For more information about the New Agendas Series, visit: http://journalism.utexas.edu/.

###

Contacts: Mark Tremayne
(512) 471-7865

Erin Geisler
(512) 475-8071