Emerging Digerati: The Institute for New Media Studies will host the next Emerging Digerati discussion on Monday, April 2, 2007, at 5:30 p.m. at the Weisman Art Museum on the University of Minnesota Campus. The evening features a showcase of student work. For more information about Emerging Digerati, visit www.inms.umn.edu or contact inms@umn.edu or 612-625-0576.

Headliners Forum, “The Press on Trial:” The College of Continuing Education and the Silha Center for the Study of Media Ethics and Law will host “The Press on Trial: How “Free” is the Freedom of the Press?” on Thursday, April 5, 2007, at 7 p.m. at the University of Minnesota Continuing Education and Conference Center on the St. Paul campus. Join Professor Jane Kirtley, Director of the Silha Center for the Study of Media Ethics and Law in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication as she sorts through the complicated issues surrounding the Valerie Plame Affair and assesses the long-term implications for our access to information. Tickets are $10. For more information visit http://www.cce.umn.edu/enrichment/headliners/whowhatwhenwhere.html. This is the final event in this year’s Headliners series. The monthly forums take place the first Thursday of the month from October through April and provide an opportunity to meet with University and community experts as they share firsthand knowledge of the day’s most intriguing stories—the medical breakthroughs, culture clashes, social trends, and foreign affairs that are making headlines.

New Media Research Breakfast: The Institute for New Media Studies will host the next New Media Research Breakfast on Thursday, April 5, 2007, at 8:30 a.m. in Room 104 of Murphy Hall on the University of Minnesota Campus. The breakfasts are designed for industry professionals and University of Minnesota students and scholars interested in current research produced in the area of new media. For more information visit www.inms.umn.edu or contact inms@umn.edu or 612-625-0576.

Diversity Forum, "Immigration Coverage: Here we go again:" Join the School of Journalism & Mass Communication in partnership with the Department of Chicano Studies for "Immigration Coverage: Here we go Again! Is it fair? Why should you care?" This Diversity Forum takes place Tuesday, April 10, 2007, at 4 p.m. in Room 100 Murphy Hall on the Minneapolis Campus of the University of Minnesota and features Professor Mercedes de Uriarte of the University of Texas. She is a member of the School of Communication at the University of Texas where she teaches interdisciplinary courses in American Studies, Latin American Studies, Women and Gender Studies and Journalism. She is the author of "Diversity Disconnects: From Classroom to Newsroom," the first assessment of the quarter-century attempt to integrate and diversify the U.S. press. She is a prolific writer and contributes to both mass media and academic publications. This event is part of a series of Diversity Forums sponsored by the School of Journalism & Mass Communication. Diversity Forums are free and open to the public. For more information, contact Sherrie Mazingo at smazingo@umn.edu.

30th Annual Frank Premack Public Affairs Journalism Awards: Join the Minnesota Journalism Center for the 2007 Premack Awards, celebrating the best in Minnesota public affairs journalism. The symposium, featuring Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak, takes place on Monday, April 23, 2007, at 5 p.m. in the Mississippi Room at Coffman Memorial Union on the University of Minnesota campus. Additional panelists will include the 2007 winners of the Premack awards as well as Karen Boros, professor of journalism and mass communication, University of St. Thomas; Bill Hanna, editor, Mesabi Daily News; and D.J. Leary, co-founder and editor, Politics in Minnesota. Lori Sturdevant, editorial writer and columnist for the Star Tribune, will moderate the symposium and a Q&A session will follow the panel discussion. The Premack Symposium is free of charge and open to the public. For more information, visit www.mjc.umn.edu or contact the Minnesota Journalism Center at 612-626-1723 or mnjrnctr@umn.edu.

Silha Spring Ethics Forum: On Tuesday, April 24, 2007, the Silha Center for the Study of Media Ethics and Law, in partnership with the Minnesota Pro Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists will present “Minimize Harm,” in recognition of National Ethics in Journalism Week. The presentation takes place at 7 p.m. in the Ski-U-Mah Room at the McNamara Alumni Center on the Minneapolis Campus of the University of Minnesota and features a panel of speakers, including Linda Walker, mother of the late Dru Sjodin, a representative from the Wetterling Foundation, and members of the media who worked on coverage of the Red Lake and Cold Spring school shootings. The forum is free of charge and open to the public. For more information, contact silha@umn.edu or call 612-625-3421.

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Jane Kirtley was quoted in numerous media outlets regarding the Lewis “Scooter” Libby trial, including the San Francisco Chronicle, the International Herald Tribune and by the Associated Press in a story that was picked up by newspapers throughout the country. She was quoted in the Minnesota Monitor on March 17, 2007, in a story, “Deport the Messenger!” as well as by columnist Ann Woolner, writer for Bloomberg News, in her column, “Reporter Today is Prosecution Witness Tomorrow.” Kirtley was interviewed by Minnesota Public Radio All Things Considered on March 14, 2007, on the changes occurring at the Star Tribune newspaper, and was a guest on the Roy Green radio show on CHML-AM 900 in Hamilton, Ontario ( Canada) on March 19, 2007, discussing the upcoming YouTube Awards and what YouTube means for citizen journalism. Kirtley was also quoted, along with former Silha Professor Don Gillmor, in the March 21, 2007, edition of the Minnesota Daily in “Federal Shield Laws are Bleak, Experts Say.”

Assistant professor Gary Schwitzer, and his website, HealthNewsReview.org, continue to receive attention in the media, including mentions by “The Numbers Guy” columnist Carl Bialik in the March 8, 2007, Wall Street Journal online and on “Carl’s Reading List." Schwitzer was profiled in one article in the March 12 edition of TV Week, interviewed in another, and his work was mentioned in a third. His work was the focus of the profile, “Coverage Up for Review,” and he was interviewed for, “Filling Gaps With Expert Help: Medical News Services Offer Stations Coverage at a Price.” His work was mentioned in the article, “Targeted Treatment,” and he was quoted on the CBS News “Public Eye” website, in the story, “How Restless is Your Leg?” His Health News blog was mentioned on the February 12, 2007, Romenesko’s Media News blog on Poynter.org in an entry titled, “NBC, Anchor Criticized for Restless Leg Story.” He was later quoted on the Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting website about his blog entry, “Restless Viewers Over NBC Restless Leg ‘Story’.” Schwitzer was also profiled in the Racine (WI) Journal Times story, “Rating Health News,” February 14, 2007.

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SJMC adjunct instructor Jessica Marshall is a winner in the 2006 Awards for Excellence in Health Care Journalism, sponsored by the Association of Health Care Journalists. Marshall co-wrote a story with Peter Aldhous titled, “Patient Groups: Swallowing the Best Advice.” Their story won third place in the General Interest Magazines category. The awards recognize the best health reporting in nine categories covering print, broadcast and online media. In only its third year, the contest drew nearly 400 entries. Marshall teaches a special topics course in science journalism.

Meghan Stafford, a senior in the strategic communications program, has been named PRWeek’s Public Relations Student of the Year. The PRWeek competition, presented by Hill and Knowlton, honors undergraduate public relations students who show outstanding ability in a range of core public relations skills. Five finalists, including Stafford, were flown to New York in late January for a one-day competition, which included a presentation, pitch call and on-the-spot product promotion scenario. Stafford’s presentations and ideas were called “inventive and well-informed” by judges, who also said her presentations were "confident, passionate, and sound. She was quick on her feet and took everything to the next level. A real up-and-comer.” As winner of the competition, Stafford receives $5,000 and a paid internship at one of the world’s largest public relations firms.

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Assistant professor Gary Schwitzer’s article, “HealthNewsReview.org: criteria for excellence in health and medical journalism,” was published in Virtual Mentor: the American Medical Association Journal of Ethics, March 2007.  Available online at: http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/category/17291.html. He also presented data on the first 300 stories reviewed on his HealthNewsReview.org website at the Association of Health Care Journalists annual conference in Los Angeles on March 16, 2007.  His session was titled, “What we’ve learned from grading health care news.” On March 24, Schwitzer spoke to the Midwest Journalism Conference in Bloomington, presenting data from 11 months of operation of his website, http://www.HealthNewsReview.org. On March 26, Schwitzer spoke to the Association of American University Women in Minneapolis.  His talk was entitled, “When Health Care News Hurts More Than Helps.”

Jane Kirtley, Silha Professor of Media Ethics and Law, was one of two professors and a former prosecutor who debated legal questions raised by the Scooter Libby trial and the jailing of New York Times reporter Judith Miller in “Journalists Under Fire,” presented March 8, 2007, in Columbus, Ohio. She served as a "wise elder" and delegate representing the Silha Center at the U.S. Media Ethics Summit II held at Middle Tennessee State University from February 27-March 2, 2007. She was also a panelist for “Privacy – What must we give up?” sponsored by the National Honor Society at Eastview High School in Apple Valley, Minn., on March 20, 2007, along with Minnesota Supreme Court Judge G. Barry Anderson and former FBI special agent Coleen Rowley.

Assistant professor Brian Southwell was a guest lecturer at Iowa State University in early March and gave a presentation titled, "Why interpersonal communication should matter to mass media scholars."

Journalism Special Topics Instructor Jay Weiner was honored by the Associated Press Sports Editors in their annual national contest. Weiner teamed with fellow StarTribune writers Richard Meryhew and Rachel Blount for a series of stories looking into the rise and fall of Twins baseball Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett. That series was selected as among the Top 10 sports projects of 2006 by the APSE judges.

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A wall display honoring the late Raymond O. Mithun and his contributions to the School of Journalism and Mass Communication was unveiled March 20, 2007, in the second floor hallway of Murphy Hall. Mithun was an industry leader during the early years of Minneapolis’ advertising boom and co-founder of the Campbell Mithun advertising agency, where his leadership led to some of the most innovative marketing ideas in history, including the invention of the half-gallon milk jug, the Dairy Queen Blizzard and the Aquatennial’s Milk Carton Boat Race.

Mithun, a 1930 graduate of the SJMC, was not content to simply lead the industry and decided to make an investment in the next generation of leaders. The Raymond O. Mithun Land Grant Chair in Advertising was established on Sept. 1, 1988, with a $500,000 donation. Today, the endowed chair is valued at more than $3 million and remains true to Mithun’s vision of conducting research and teaching in the field of advertising.

The original holder of the Raymond O. Mithun Land Grant Chair was Professor William D. Wells. The position is currently held by Professor John Eighmey.


ProfessorWilliam McGeveran of the U of M Law School delivered a guest lecture in Professor Jane Kirtley's JOUR 5552: Law of Internet Communications class on March 8, 2007.  His topic was privacy and the Internet.

Assistant professor Roshini Rajkumar recently hosted a stylist and color specialist from Rocco Salon’s Edina location for an Image Workshop in her Jour 3451: Electronic Newswriting and Reporting class to help students understand the importance of their on-camera image in their careers.

Jim Barnum, deputy general counsel for Hubbard Broadcasting, spoke to students in Associate Professor Gary Hill’s Jour 3121 Intermediate Journalism class on Wednesday, March 21, 2007. He spoke about media law.

Adjunct faculty Michelle Wood will host Eric Block, managing partner at Duffy & Partners to her JOUR 8205: Cases in Strategic Planning and Thinking class on April 5, 2007, to speak about the brand identity his company developed for the Bahamas. She will also welcome Karyn Roszak, Global Brand and Identity Manager for 3M Corporate Identity, Design and Communications on April 19, 2007, to discuss corporate communications and branding efforts at 3M.

Lecturer Jennifer Johnson hosted Kathy Umland, Vice President/Director of Creative Operations at Martin Williams to review student work and offer feedback to students in her JOUR 4990: Advertising Portfolio Development class. Williams offered her suggestions to students and spoke about the Martin Williams Velocity internship program at the agency.

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March 2007