I had the pleasure of attending an introduction – an ‘onboarding’ – of this year’s new Fellows of The Portulans Institute. There is nothing like meeting a group of talented early career academics and professionals to reinforce my optimism about the future. Our fellows are a clear example of this promise. Screen shot from the … Continue reading Portulans’ New Team of Fellows
Research and Learning
Ukraine’s Networked Resilience
I have just finished an online discussion at Mariupol State University. It was an American-Ukrainian panel discussion on the development of public studies [public communication in the US] in Ukrainian higher educational institutions (HEIs). In addition to myself, it involved faculty from the Cambridge Judge Business School, Mariupol State University, the MIT-Ukraine Program at the … Continue reading Ukraine’s Networked Resilience
Professor Steve Jones Awarded the Williams Prize for Contribution to the Study of Communication and Technology
My congratulations to Professor Steve Jones, the UIC Distinguished Professor of Communication at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), who has been awarded the Williams Prize for Contribution to the Study of Communication and Technology. The award was announced at the 74th Annual International Communication Association (ICA) Conference, held in Australia from 20-24 June … Continue reading Professor Steve Jones Awarded the Williams Prize for Contribution to the Study of Communication and Technology
A New Way to Video Conference – Badly
Initially I thought I was witnessing an unusual practice. Individuals with whom I was speaking were simultaneously involved in other conversations. Then, when I was part of a team planning and organising an event online – a video conferenced workshop, the organisers set up a social media account for us to communicate with each other … Continue reading A New Way to Video Conference – Badly
Back to the Future of Academic Conferences
Is the end of hybrid conferences arriving just as they have been invented? I assumed that in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and the shifts to more people working remotely and from home, that academic conferences would not think twice about embracing hybrid forms of meeting even as academics begin to travel again. Well, … Continue reading Back to the Future of Academic Conferences
The Importance of Media Literacy
Dear Colleagues of the ASEAN Regional Symposium in Bangkok, Thailand, Congratulations on the success of your ASEAN Regional Symposium on 20 March 2024, entitled ‘Unveiling Insights into the Region’s Digital Literacy’. I want to thank you again for inviting me. I enjoyed participating in the panel discussion you organized and am delighted to provide a … Continue reading The Importance of Media Literacy
Journalism Study is as Important as Ever
A. Michael Noll April 8, 2024 © Copyright 2024 AMN [Posted with the permission of the author, A. Michael Noll. This post is a great example of the Fifth Estate, holding the press more accountable.] Contrary to the “conventional wisdom,” journalism is not dead -- the study and conduct of good journalism is as important … Continue reading Journalism Study is as Important as Ever
Governance – the Cross-Cutting Political Crisis
The world is facing mounting threats – true crises. They include such major issues as climate change, nuclear arms proliferation, trust in information and communication, and artificial intelligence (AI), one of the latest crises to be portrayed as an existential threat. Each has unique and evolving histories, but I take some solace in that many … Continue reading Governance – the Cross-Cutting Political Crisis
The Societal Costs of Attention Deficits
The attention of a goldfish?
Saving Strunk and White
Looking into one of my College’s hallway recycling bins, as one does, I found a fourth edition paperback of Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style. Arguably, for my generation, as Strunk died the year before I was born, this has been one of the most useful and inspiring books for any young writer or … Continue reading Saving Strunk and White