Academics

Talented faculty, researchers make big impact at international conference

They’re conducting the annual Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) Conference in Minneapolis, Minnesota, this weekend, but it probably feels like Penn State West for some attendees.

That’s because the College of Communications at Penn State has again crafted a large presence at the international event. 

Thirteen faculty members had papers accepted for the conference or are participating in discussions or panels. Two dozen graduate students also served as authors or co-authors on papers accepted for the conference. Overall, 21 different papers by Penn State authors were accepted. 

It’s more than quantity. Three of the papers were named among the best in their respective divisions. They include:

  • “Senior Citizens’ Interactions on Facebook: The Effects of Social Networking Affordances on Psychological Well Being,” second place faculty paper, Communication Technology Division;
  • “Fundraising on Social Media: How Message Concreteness and Framing Influence Donation,” second place, Public Relations Division; and
  • “Credibility and Deception in Native Advertising: Examining Awareness, Persuasion, and Source Credibility in Source Content,” fourth place, Public Relations Division.

Also, several members of the Penn State contingent serve in key leadership positions. Dean Marie Hardin was elected vice president of AEJMC in May. She arrived on site early at the conference this year for leadership duties and will serve as the group’s president in 2018-19. 

Also, Marcia DiStaso, an associate professor in the Department of Advertising/Public Relations, is moderating two panels, one focusing on corporate communications and the other on public relations education. Another faculty member, Yael Warshel, an assistant professor in the Department of Telecommunications who holds a dual appointment in the University-wide Rock Ethics Institute, won second place in the International Communication Division teaching contest for a focus on the ethics of international reporting.

Two faculty members and an alumnus were previously recognized with awards from AEJMC’s Mass Communication & Society Division. They will be honored at the conference.

AEJMC is a nonprofit organization of more than 3,700 educators, students and practitioners from around the globe. Founded in 1912 by Willard Grosvenor Bleyer, the first president (1912-13) of the American Association of Teachers of Journalism, as it was then known, AEJMC is the oldest and largest alliance of journalism and mass communication educators and administrators at the college level.

AEJMC’s mission is to promote the highest possible standards for journalism and mass communication education, to encourage the widest possible range of communication research, to encourage the implementation of a multi-cultural society in the classroom and curriculum, and to defend and maintain freedom of communication in an effort to achieve better professional practice, a better informed public, and wider human understanding.

Last Updated June 2, 2021