By Bailey Dick

My AP Lit teacher was so prone to one-liners that someone created a booklet full of them. When someone would make a point in a class discussion, she’d exclaim, “Alas! The very day!” When one of us would steer us off topic, she’d crawl on the floor, assume the fetal position, and croak out, “I’ve lost the will to live.” Her one-liners were iconic, but the one she was most famous for was: “May your weekend be filled with decaffeinated tea and chastity.” She was my favorite teacher I’ve ever had.

At the time, I was delighted by her Brit Lit-infused vocab and the general exasperation that comes with teaching 17-year-old girls for decades. But now, after seven years of teaching myself, I understand she was really manifesting, hoping beyond hope that we’d be safe while we weren’t discussing Hamlet or Wuthering Heights in her classroom.

Toward the end of this spring semester, one of my students pointed out that I’d been inadvertently doing the same thing my AP Lit teacher did: Squawking a handful of the same phrases at my own students as they left the classroom. I don’t know if my students are as delighted by my fervent pleas for their protection to God, the universe, karma, whomever would listen, as I was at the same pleas my own teacher made. But I do know my students have heard directly from me that I care about them.

I was asked to write this column because of a teaching award I won recently. And over the last year, I was asked to be part of a teaching panel at last year’s AJHA, presented at my school’s colloquium series and to a graduate class about my teaching and research, and have been taking a year-long course for faculty that shares best practices for the classroom. In each of these settings where I’ve been asked to share a bit about how I teach, someone has been totally thrown off-kilter whenever I’ve brought up the care work I do in the classroom, whether it’s stocking my office with snacks and personal hygiene items, not having an attendance policy, or occasionally bringing a treat for my students. Years ago in grad school, I had a course supervisor storm through the halls of our building, flinging open doors looking for me, furious that I was trying to “rig” my student evaluations via cookies, when really, I just knew my students were stressed out, away from home for the first time in their lives, and hadn’t eaten any non-cafeteria food in a while.

I’ve been wondering for years why some professors seem to blanch at any mention of care, and the more I think about it, the more I’ve come to believe that it’s because so many academics have been shaped by an education where genuine care is unheard of in the classroom. Whether the hyper-competitivity of graduate school or the golden calf of objectivity in journalism that keeps compassion at arms’ length, those of us who have worked in, research, and now teach journalism may feel deeply uncomfortable with the prospect of integrating more care work into our teaching. But bell hooks, whose work is the foundation of not only my own teaching but much of my research, argues that love and care not only belong in the classroom, but that we as educators need to model that love and care for ourselves, too:

“Realizing that my students were uncertain about expressions of care and love in the classroom, I found it necessary to teach on the subject. I asked students once: ‘Why do you feel that the regard I extend to a particular student cannot also be extended to each of you? Why do you think there is not enough love or care to go around?’ To answer these questions they had to think deeply about the society we live in, how we are taught to compete with one another. They had to think about capitalism and how it informs the way we think about love and care, the way we live in our bodies, the way we try to separate mind from body. There is not much passionate teaching or learning taking place in higher education today. Even when students are desperately yearning to be touched by knowledge, professors still fear the challenge, allow their worries about losing control to override their desires to teach. Concurrently, those of us who teach the same old subjects in the same old ways are often inwardly bored-unable to rekindle passions we may have once felt. If, as Thomas Merton suggests in his essay on pedagogy ‘Learning to Live,’ the purpose of education is to show students how to define themselves ‘authentically and spontaneously in relation’ to the world, then professors can best teach if we are self-actualized.” (Teaching to Transgress: Education as the Practice of Freedom, 198-199)

Care and love  can be scary. And for both our students and us educators, it might feel like we’re breaking some unwritten rule.

To which I say, “Good.”

Caring for and loving our students shouldn’t be seen as wrong, extraordinary, or even something deserving of an award. Rather, it should be the baseline, the norm, the prerequisite for being entrusted to learn with and from one’s students–and this is true now more than ever..

The majority of undergraduate students meet the diagnostic criteria for at least one mental health problems, nearly half have symptoms of depression, more than a third experience anxiety, and 15% of our students have “seriously considered suicide,” which is the second leading cause of death among college students. The students in our classrooms are increasingly faced with food insecurity, crippling debt, learning loss, and the responsibility of caring for a family member. Many members of the professoriate may not be able to directly relate to many of the experiences their students face given their own socioeconomic privilege. And still many professors feel the need to maintain rigid classroom norms, practices, grading and attendance policies, or expectations of our students that fail to consider their realities. Just because something was difficult for us, why should it be made even more difficult for our students, given their current situations? Our students have many more things to be stressed about besides our classes and self-created policies. In addition to reassuring our students that we’re aware our classes aren’t the most important thing happening in their lives, we can be flexible in how we assess student learning, allowing them to demonstrate learning in a way that works best for them, and asking “Why not?” rather than “Why should I allow that?” in response to student questions about learning. 

So many of us in the academy are exhausted, overworked, and underpaid. And the prospect of having to pour even more into our students at times seems like a herculean task. This is doubly true for women and people of color who shoulder the majority of the unpaid care labor burden both at work and at home.

I’ve found my own teaching is more fulfilling and energizing when I’ve oriented it in a framework of care, respect, and reciprocity, in seeing my students as not “kids,” but fellow adults from whom I have the opportunity to learn, and as people who are (blessedly) far better and brighter than I was at their age.

There are so many incredible teaching resources out there for both journalism educators and for media historians–resources folks like you have created and shared, and that I’ve been lucky enough to use. I don’t have anything to add to that canon in this column.

Instead, I’ll leave you with the one-liners I repeatedly holler at my students:

1. We live on a floating rock in space. There is nothing worth being stressed over in this class.
2. Stay hydrated and please drink some water.
3. Make good life choices.
4. I’m so proud of you.

Our students need to be loved–aggressively. I hope you’ll start yelling (at least in this particular way) at your students, too.      

Bailey Dick is an Assistant Professor in the School of Media and Communication at Bowling Green State University. 

By Tracy Lucht 

It started with a book on my shelf, a gem from 1941 once held in Iowa State’s journalism library.  Titled Lady Editor, this “how-to” for women would make a rich primary source for the right project. I had always intended to do something with it but never did. Might this be a good item for the AJHA auction, our annual fundraiser to support travel for graduate students who come to the convention? I could think of several scholars who might scoop it up.

Then I began to wonder: What else could I bundle with this book? I thought about some creative packages I’d seen at previous auctions and decided it would be fun to have a theme. It also occurred to me that if I put some of my own money into this, I could maximize my impact by supporting not only AJHA, but also local businesses, causes and other organizations I respect.

Thus, the idea for a “Nevertheless, She Persisted” auction package was born. Every item in this package will be woman-authored and/or will support a woman-owned organization. So far, my bundle is likely to include:

•  The aforementioned Lady Editor: Careers for Women in Publishing (1941).
•  Brooke Kroeger’s new book Undaunted, purchased from Page & Palette in Fairhope, Alabama, along with a stick-on signature plate from the author.
• A hand-painted planner and candle from Warm Wishes in Jefferson, Iowa, a town that has been energetic in its support of women entrepreneurs.
• Craft beer and/or root beer from Peace Tree, the first woman-owned brewery in Iowa.
• A $25 one-time subscription to Black Iowa News, an independent local news platform that highlights Black perspectives.
• A $25 donation in the winning bidder’s name to The 19^th News, an independent, nonprofit newsroom that focuses on gender and policy.
• Mad Men and Working Women, a book I co-authored with Erika Engstrom, Jane Marcellus and Kimberly Wilmot Voss.
• A water bottle from Velorosa, which sells gear and supports women in cycling.
• Donated stickers and other merch.

The book that launched this idea is dedicated to “the lady editor of tomorrow.” My labor of love is dedicated to media historians of the future and women who are committed to making a difference. Assembling it has led me to imagine what other themes we might see at the auction this year. Perhaps something sports-related? That seems to be a crowd pleaser. A bundle focused on a particular year or historical period? Or maybe folks from rival schools will put together competing packages and see who can draw the higher bid?

We are a creative bunch. Let’s have some fun and support our emerging scholars. My bundle is still a work in progress, but I plan to submit it as soon as possible. You should, too. Many thanks to Jon Marshall and everyone who has worked to help keep this AJHA tradition alive.

Committee considerations

Speaking of volunteers, my work as 1^st vice president has focused on AJHA’s committees. My job is to ensure they have what they need and are functioning as intended. At this point in the year, I collect annual reports from the committee chairs. As a reminder, these reports are due to me by Aug. 1. I will use them to come up with a list of budget priorities and other proposals for the board to consider in September. I also use these reports to see which committees need members or new chairs. If you are interested in taking on a leadership role, please let me know.

Finally, as President Mike Conway recently communicated, the board will be looking for ways to rein in spending as AJHA incrementally raises membership dues. As part of that process, please watch for a survey from the Long-Range Planning Committee on which AJHA activities and amenities you find the most valuable and important – and don’t hesitate to offer your own ideas. For example, one committee chair recently suggested we offer special-topic webinars throughout the year. Another suggested we more aggressively reach out to scholars doing historical research in related disciplines. We want your feedback, so keep it coming.

Serving as your 1^st VP has filled me with admiration and gratitude for this special organization and its members. I look forward to seeing you in Columbus!

How did you become involved in AJHA?

In 2009, Dr. Dave Davies introduced me to AJHA when I was a doctoral student at the University of Southern Mississippi. He told my class that the organization would change our lives, and he was right. We were required to write a research paper and submit it to AJHA as part of a class assignment. My paper on Anne Williams Wheaton was accepted, so I attended my first AJHA convention in fall 2009. The paper received two honorable mention awards, and the scholars who attended my presentation were generous, kind, and insightful. I was hooked by meeting these kindred spirits, and I’ve never looked back. I am now a Lifetime Member.

Why does media history matter to you?

Media history is a reflection of American history, because freedom of the press is necessary for democracy to flourish. Thomas Jefferson and other founders understood that citizens needed to have information in order to govern, so they safeguarded both free speech and a free press. Media history is American history, and vice versa. So, I think that media history is foundational to any credible mass media program.

How does your research impact your teaching?

I taught journalism and public relations courses many years before I earned my doctor of philosophy degree. I was told (erroneously) that my PhD would not make me a better teacher—while the degree gave me entry into an elite club, it would not enhance my classroom. I have found that to be false. Yes, many great teachers do not have doctorates, but my research complements my teaching, and it makes a difference in my classroom. For example, when I am discussing the historical pursuit of truth, it helps that I can explain to them some of my successes and some of my failures as a practicing historian. Finding historical truth is hard, and real-world examples make that clearer. My research informs my teaching, and it has made a big difference in my students’ education. Additionally, when historians make discoveries or shed new light on historiography, I am aware of these new findings and can share that with my students.

What hobbies/interests do you have outside of academia?

I love spending time with my family, particularly my eight nieces and nephews, as well as my three grandnieces and nephew. They are simply wonderful. I enjoy giving back to my community through my church, Fruitland Community Church, where we have an active food distribution ministry and other opportunities to help people. An athletic person some four decades ago, I try to stay active through pickleball, golf, walking, and wiffleball. I like to play cards with friends, visit museums, read books, and watch movies. I simply love the movies.

Dr. Pam Parry is professor of public relations at Southeast Missouri State University. She is the author of Eisenhower: The Public Relations President, co-editor of the Women in American Political History book series, and editor of Journalism History. This past year, Honor Students asked Parry to be the Keynote Speaker at the annual Student Research Conference at SEMO. In 2016, she received the Applegate Award for Excellence in Research from the Kentucky Communication Association. She also received the Teacher of the Year award from the Small Programs Interest Group of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication in 2009, and she received the Presidential Faculty Achievement Award from Belmont University for distinguished service to students outside the classroom in May 2008.

The American Journalism Historians Association (AJHA) seeks nominations and applications for editor of American Journalism, the organization’s quarterly refereed journal of media history established in 1983 and published by Routledge, Taylor & Francis. The position begins January 1, 2025, with a transfer of some editorial duties in Summer 2024. The AJHA Board of Directors appoints the editor of American Journalism to a four-year term, subject to annual review and reconfirmation by the Board.

Deadline for applications: Oct. 14, 2023. Consecutive terms may be held. The editor will receive an honorarium.

The editor’s responsibilities include the timely processing of manuscripts submitted to American Journalism, whether on speculation or by solicitation; working with authors to prepare manuscripts for publication; coordinating with the staff of Routledge, Taylor & Francis to publish four or more issues per year, including selection of content, editing, and proofreading. The editor works with a book review editor, digital media editor and, if desired, an associate editor. The editor may recruit and appoint editorial staff members. In addition, the editor works with the Editorial Advisory Board, whose duties include continuous development of the journal and selection of the annual “Best American Journalism Article.” The editor organizes and presides over a meeting of the Editorial Advisory Board at the annual AJHA conference. The editor works with the treasurer and finance officer on budget matters, handles all journal correspondence and prepares an annual report for the AJHA Board and membership.

Applicants and nominees must be current members of AJHA. They should be able to write and edit clearly and concisely, and have an understanding and appreciation of the broad range of literature and methods of the media history field. Preference will be given to tenured applicants who have established reputations as journalism/media history scholars and are affiliated with an institution that can provide support to the editor with consideration to office space, travel, use of equipment, provision of student/staff assistance and/or course release.

Applications should include a statement indicating a willingness to serve, a curriculum vitae, and a letter of institutional support. Applications or nominations should be e-­mailed by October 14, 2023, to the AJHA Publications Committee Chair, Paulette D. Kilmer, at pkilmer@utnet.utoledo.edu.

The American Journalism Historians Association is seeking nominations for three board positions and second vice president.

Board members serve for three years. The second vice president will ascend to first vice president after one year and then to president the following year. Board members and officers are expected to attend board meetings at the annual convention.

A nominee to the Board of Directors or to any officer position must have been a member of the AJHA for at least one calendar year immediately preceding the date of the election. No more than one person from an institution can serve on the Board at one time.

To make nominations and to vote in an election, an individual must be a member of AJHA. 

Those who wish to nominate candidates may do so by sending an email with the nominee's name, contact information, and affiliation to Election and Nominations Committee Chair Cathy M. Jackson, cmjackson@nsu.edu.

Please confirm the candidate's willingness to be nominated before sending the name to Cathy.

You should send a brief bio and photo of the nominee along with a statement of why the person wants to serve.

The deadline for nominations is 5 p.m., August 1, 2023.

This year, voting will occur electronically, which means members do not have to come to the convention to vote. A write-in option will be available.

By Mike Conway 

AJHA is very generous with its resources. Now it’s time to bring the resources in line with the generosity. For the past few years, AJHA has been spending much more than it is bringing in. This includes both operating expenses and the convention costs. The AJHA Board just voted unanimously to double our regular membership dues over the next three years and also to raise the convention registration fee to bring us closer to breaking even on convention expenses. 

These increases alone will not bring our current expenses in line with revenue. This is the first of three steps we believe AJHA needs to take to ensure the long-term viability of the organization.

Membership Dues

The annual dues will increase incrementally annually starting in August 2023. Regular membership will increase to $60 for regular members, $35 for student and retired members, and $1,000 for a lifetime membership. If you renew your membership before August, you can pay the lower rate.

In June 2024, regular membership will increase to $75, student and retired memberships to $45, and lifetime memberships will cost $1250.

In June 2025, regular membership will increase to $90, student and retired membership will be $50, and lifetime memberships will rise to $1,500.

It is important to remember that AJHA doesn’t have wasteful spending. As an all-volunteer organization, AJHA is financially lean. Quite frankly, the overspending is a yearly effort to find ways to encourage and reward scholars for their work in journalism and media history. 

After the Memphis conference, Finance Officer Lisa Parcell, Treasurer Ken Ward and I started digging into the numbers. We found that over the past three years, AJHA spent roughly 25% of the money it had in reserve.  We are spending roughly $12,000 more than we bring in each year. If that trend continues, the organization could have run out of money in 5-7 years.

Once again, there isn’t anything nefarious about this spending. We had a cushion of money in reserve and a non-profit organization is not supposed to hoard its money. After researching our budget issues, we chose to not make any changes to American Journalism. Because of our contract with Taylor and Francis, our journal pays for itself and the extra money is used to cover some of our other expenses.   

Even by doubling our membership dues to $90 for regular members, AJHA dues are by far the lowest of any national academic organization of which we are aware, especially one that produces academic journals. That rate brings in roughly $8,000 a year. Since we are spending roughly $12,000 more a year than we receive, you can start to see the serious nature of our situation.  

For comparison, here are rough numbers for annual dues for other organizations: AEJMC + History Division-depending on your salary is likely close to $200; ICA-roughly $200; Broadcast Education Association - $130; Oral History Association-$100; Association of Moving Image Archivists-$185.

Convention Registration

Many years ago, the AJHA Board locked in our convention registration fee at $245 for early registration and $270 closer to the date. Unfortunately, that amount no longer comes close to the AJHA goal of breaking even on our annual conference. It is definitely harder to find sponsors that used to cover some of the features of our conference. We spent around $9,000 more than we received from registration and sponsorships in Memphis in 2022.

The Board has voted unanimously to allow the AJHA Conference Coordinator and Treasurer to set the registration fee depending on the expected costs of running the conference. They are working on those numbers now and the registration fee for our September conference in Columbus, OH will be decided by the time we open registration this summer.  This will probably also include increases to our add-on events including the Historic Tour and the Gala.  

We were very relieved to find last year in Memphis after two years of online conferences that AJHA members were ready to get back in person. We had 119 people register, which is roughly the number of people who attended our conferences in the years leading up to the pandemic.

Membership Survey

As mentioned above, these financial changes will not bring AJHA’s spending back in line with revenue, but they will provide more time to consider what we need to do in the future.

The second step is to have a better idea of what you value as a member of AJHA.

As part of that discussion, we will be conducting a membership survey this summer to get your opinions on how we should be spending our money, both for the convention and for the general organization. We will be asking what parts of the organization are most important for us to continue and which ones might be costing more than we can afford. We will also ask those questions about specific parts of the convention in case we need to find ways to bring down the costs.

Please be sure to fill out that survey when we send it your way. The AJHA Board can use your feedback when it needs to make hard choices on future budgets, and the Conference Coordinator will have insight into what parts of our annual conference are most valuable to you.

AJHA Endowment Fund

The American Journalism Historians Association has been an important part of journalism history research for more than 40 years, through the organization itself, the American Journalism journal, and the annual convention. We believe it is critical that journalism historians continue to have AJHA into the future to provide guidance and at the very least, another journal to showcase our work. For many of us, we would not have had the success in our research and teaching if not for AJHA.

To ensure that today’s journalism historians and those in the future also have this organization and its resources, the third step to address our finances includes creating an endowment fund to hopefully ease our money issues. Lisa, Ken, Joe Campbell, and I have already had a few meetings on this idea and have a general idea of how we’d like to proceed. We set it aside this year to concentrate on the immediate budget issues, but we do see it as an important third step in AJHA’s financial future.

If you’d like to help AJHA with an endowment fundraising effort, let us know.

Raising dues and other costs hasn’t been my favorite task as AJHA President, but I think we all feel it is our duty to make sure this organization can do for current and future journalism historians what it has done for us.

By Mark Bernhardt

My book project American Opportunity, American Hospitality: Marginalized Peoples’ Access to the Middle Class in 1950s Sitcoms as Cold War Propaganda explores how during the 1950s television executives and corporate sponsors used situation comedies to address Cold War critiques of capitalism through portrayals of those outside the white, Anglo-Saxon, married middle-class norm. They constructed a narrative that rebuffed claims that prosperity was not available to all in the ways they dealt with class, gender, race, and ethnicity, attempting to alleviate lingering concerns from the Great Depression about individuals’ susceptibility to poverty and oppose Soviet attribution of economic inequality to oppression of specific social groups. In looking at sitcoms from this perspective, I document the ways they offered messages that served to reassure viewers capitalism was fair and Soviet assertions erroneous by offering palatable explanations for why some did not attain middle-class status in that the poor had only themselves to blame for their state and dismissing systemic causes for why poverty persisted, such as failed political policy, gender inequality, or racism.

Originally, I intended to conduct my research in 2021 at the UCLA Film and Television archive to view rare episodes only available on film from the series Beulah, The Jack Benny Show, The Goldbergs, and Mr. Peepers. However, because of COVID restrictions, which remained in place through summer 2022, I had to change my plans. Instead, I went to the Library of Congress in May 2022, where I viewed 23 episodes of The Gale Storm Show and 38 episodes of My Little Margie in the library’s special collections that are only available on film.

The episodes of The Gale Storm Show and My Little Margie provide material for my discussion of gender. For women in the 1950s, the societal ideal was that they marry young and become housewives who care for their children. Some sitcoms did portray single young women in the period before marriage who held jobs to support themselves. These women typically did not make much money though, making it clear that joining the middle class required finding a husband who could provide a more financially stable life. Such television messages glossed over women’s limited job prospects and pay inequality by normalizing their financial struggles as a brief stage women went through before finding a husband. Such messaging also stands in contrast to series with lead male characters who are bachelor that benefit from male economic privilege.

The Gale Storm Show addresses this employment situation. Gale, however, benefits from not having to pay for housing because she works on a cruise ship. As such, her income allows her to easily support herself. Still, marriage is the goal, and she has relationships with various men on the ship throughout the series.

My Little Margie offers a different take on how single women in sitcoms bided their time until marriage in that Margie lives with her wealthy father. Receiving an allowance from him, Margie is not obligated to work. A point of contention between Margie and her father though is that Margie’s regular boyfriend is not particularly bright and cannot keep a job, spending more time in the unemployment office than working. Periodically she does date more economically successful men, but her father fears she will make a bad marriage decision and end up poor if he does not continue to support her.

What I was able to glean from the episodes available at the Library of Congress helps complete my viewing of these two series. I have also looked at many other series that depict the economic status of women in the 1950s: Bachelor Father, Beulah, The Great Gildersleeve, Hey Jeannie, It’s Always Jan, Our Miss Brooks, Ann Sothern Show, Betty Hutton Show, Eve Arden Show, Meet Millie, My Friend Irma, and Private Secretary. Together, these series paint a complex picture of social expectations for single women, how single women support themselves (or are supported), and the importance of marrying the right man.

Dr. Mark Bernhardt is a professor in the History Department at Jackson State University. He received his Ph.D. in History from the University of California, Riverside. His research examines how media engage in public discourse about imperialism and its legacy in the transnational North American West, U.S. involvement in wars, social and cultural issues surrounding crime, and representations of marginalized peoples.

By Jon Marshall

Have you ever been a struggling graduate student? Do you like graduate students? Do you care about the future of journalism history scholarship? Are you a kind and generous person who likes helping others? Or do you just have a general fondness for AJHA?

Surely, your answer is “yes” to at least one of these questions. If that’s the case (or even if you’re a grumpy person who doesn’t like students but wants a chance to redeem your soul), now is your opportunity to do some good by donating items to the AJHA silent auction for the benefit of our graduate students.

Yes, all of the thrills and fun of the auction will be back again this year at our annual conference in Columbus. All money raised goes directly to graduate student conference travel, a major part of the revenue needed for our Michael S. Sweeney Graduate Student Travel Stipend. For many students, the conference will be impossible to attend without the stipend. Last year we raised more than $1,700 in Memphis, and as a result we can guarantee that graduate students who are on the Columbus conference program will receive at least $100 from the Sweeney Stipend. With your help, we can continue to increase that amount.

What to donate for the auction? Perhaps a package of special goodies from your hometown or university. Or historic books, newspapers, magazines, broadsheets or journalism and history ephemera such as coffee cups, glasses, calendars and T-shirts. Maybe someone you know has extra airline miles or a week at a vacation home that they’d be willing to donate. And, of course, wine and spirits are always popular with the AJHA crowd. If you have several items that would go well together as a package, that’s even better and will make the bidding process easier.

We’ll list the auction items on an online bidding platform before and during the conference. The items will be on display in Columbus, and we’ll give them over to the winning bidders before the end of the conference. Once you are in Columbus, you can see the actual items and keep track of the bidding, paying online if you win and receiving your prize at the AJHA business meeting on Saturday.

Donating an auction item is easy. Just fill out this short form and then bring the item to Columbus with you.

If you have questions about the auction or want to volunteer to help, please contact me at j-marshall@northwestern.edu.

How were you first introduced to AJHA? 

University of Georgia professor Janice Hume first introduced me to the American Journalism Historians Association and encouraged me to attend my first conference in Wichita, Kansas, in 2006. I vividly remember watching Hume, Mike Sweeney and company karaoke at this particular conference, and I knew that this might be the most entertaining group of historians that I had ever encountered. Nearly twenty years later, AJHA remains one of my favorite academic associations because of the warm and supportive people associated with it and the amazing memories I’ve made while attending conferences. 

What’s your most memorable moment associated with AJHA?

Well, that’s a tough question. I have been honored a couple of times by AJHA, and while I am certainly grateful for those two awards (the rising scholar award and the national award for excellence in teaching), I would have to say that the memories that most stick out to me (aside of that first one I noted) is watching mentors and friends who have meant so much to me, personally—folks like Janice Hume, Earnest Perry, Mike Sweeney, Dianne Bragg, Kathy Roberts Forde, and so many others, be honored at this conference. I honestly am so grateful for this community and for the memories associated with AJHA. I’ve always said that AJHA is much more like academic family than any group I’ve ever known. 

What’s the most important lesson that this academic community has taught you?

I’m not certain that I could narrow it to just one lesson, but I’ll try. I certainly think that this academic community taught me the value of supporting and collaborating with each other. I have had the chance to collaborate with many community members associated with this conference over the years—by sharing advice and encouragement, by offering feedback on individual and collaborative projects, by developing special panels and essays about the importance of integrating theory and women’s history into media history, on an edited volume about Ida B. Wells-Barnett, on a presidential podcast, and that only scratches the surface.

What hobbies do you have outside academia?

One of my favorite pastimes is hiking. Since arriving on Rocky Top back in 2010, I’ve hiked more than half the 900 miles of trails in the Great Smoky Mountains, and despite suffering a broken ankle last summer, I still hope to hike the entire Appalachian Trail one day. Aside of that main hobby, I absolutely love cheering on and supporting my almost eight-year-old son Joseph and when I get the chance, watching movies, listening to live music and reading a good book. 

Lori Amber Roessner, a professor in the University of Tennessee's School of Journalism & Electronic Media, teaches and studies media history and its relationship to cultural phenomena and practices, including the operation of politics, the negotiation of public images and collective memories, and the construction of race, gender, and class. Since 2014, she has published two books, including Inventing Baseball Heroes: Ty Cobb, Christy Mathewson, and the Sporting Press in America (LSU Press, 2014) and Jimmy Carter and the Birth of the Marathon Media Campaign (LSU Press, 2020), and co-edited Political Pioneer of the Press: Ida B. Wells-Barnett and Her Transnational Crusade for Social Justice (Lexington Books, 2018). Her earlier journal-length cultural histories appeared in Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly and Journalism History, among others.

By Debbie van Tuyll

We’re still about a month out from the deadline for paper submissions, but the work of organizing the program has already begun.

First Vice President Tracy Lucht and I had a Zoom meeting a week ago to talk about what my role as second vice president (and thus conference program organizer) involves. She is so efficient and well organized, that she provided examples of all the different kinds of emails that go out to all the different constituencies, and then she walked me through everything in our meeting.

What struck me as Tracy and I talked was all the moving parts that are involved in bringing the annual conference to fruition. I’ll be collaborating with Gerry Lanosga and members of the research committee that he chairs to receive the list of accepted papers and panels. Then, I’ll use that list to put together and schedule sessions and panels, collaborate with Executive Director Erika Pribanic-Smith and Convention Committee Chair Caryl Cooper insure all the special events and activities have a place on the program. They will be the first to receive my proposed program. Next, I’ll be in contact with our membership around mid-summer to recruit session moderators and obtain advertisements for the program. I think before my summer is over, I’ll have a chance to touch base with most, if not all, of our membership.

I’m a bit intimidated but also a bit intrigued.

Looking from the outside (since I’ve never done this before the way AJHA does it), it seems to me that I’ll essentially be putting together a jigsaw puzzle and then collaborating with colleagues to glue it down and shellac it so that it can get “framed” as the final program booklet that will be distributed at the convention. But I’m looking forward to all that. The AJHA annual conference has long been one of my favorites, and I’m happy to do whatever I can to make sure it happens and that it’s a great experience for those who attend.

One of the things I always tell younger colleagues who are presenting at the AJHA conference for the first time is that our approach as an organization and as members of that organization is to offer affirming, formative advice rather than trying to tear other researchers down and make them feel small. This is a friendly conference, and everyone in any audience is there to cheer presenters on.

I hope you all will be submitting papers and panels and willing to help out as paper judges and moderators. I’ve been coming to the AJHA conference since the late 1990s. It’s been one of the cornerstones of my career. The smaller size of the conference makes it much more comfortable than one of those mega-conventions that attract thousands of attendees and make it impossible, really, to build relationships with other researchers. Reviewer comments on conference papers always helped me revise my work into a strong journal article or book chapter, and, of course, there are always new and old colleagues to catch up with and to build collaborations with.

Debbie van Tuyll is a Professor Emerita at the Department of Communications at Augusta University and the Second Vice President of AJHA.