November & December 2017 College News

Emily A. Ehmer’s manuscript, “The Heroes and the Helpless: Conflicting Media Images of Refugees from Burma,” was published in October in the journal Visual Communication Quarterly . Dr. Ehmer examines how photojournalists have covered Burmese refugees and how themes of Freedom Fighters, Superhero Aung San Suu Kyi and Helpless Victims are often the subjects of news media images. STUDENT ACCOLADES The Graduate College at Texas State University hosted a conference for graduate students to showcase their research on November 7-8. [ 1 ] SJMC graduate students shared their research about Hurricane Harvey media coverage, relief efforts, immigration, the 2016 election and political interactions on social media by college students. Mass Communication student Janel Lee presented her research on “If Hair is Relaxed, are Folks Truly Relaxed? A Study of Modern Audience’s Perceptions of Natural Hair in the Media.” She shared that audiences tend to have an overall positive viewpoint of natural hair while believing that natural hair in the media is portrayed in a more negative light. “I greatly enjoyed listening to the research of my fellow Mass Communication students ,” said Janel. “I also appreciated the opportunity to look at other schools’ research through the poster session.” Another Mass Communication student Ryan Leach presented his research on “Visual Framing of Immigrants During the 2016 US Presidential Election.” [ 2 ] He examined whether the New York Times employed xenophobic visual frames in the month leading up to the 2016 Presidential Election and found that the New York Times did not employ negative visual frames of immigrants. “It was an overall pleasant experience,” said Ryan. We would like to recognize and thank those who contributed to the success of the 9th Annual International Graduate Research Conference! ALUMNI ACCOLADES Kelsey Harrison (Public Relations 2013) started a photo booth business called Oh Happy Day Booth, based in Austin. They specialize in weddings and corporate events. Kelly Langford (1991) is the new communications director at the Abilene Convention & Visitors Bureau. Robin Loving (1975) enjoyed a 30-year career in Dallas and Austin before “retiring” to Mexico where she serves as the President of Jovenes Adelante (Jovenesadelante. org) and the Founder of SMA Your Way Concierge Services (smayourway.today). Robin has been honored by the local government as one of the Women of the Year in Community Service in 2016, and by Rotary as a Citizen of the Year and as a Paul Harris Fellow in honor of her work in the community. Olivier (Ollie) Maier , now in his 80s, still writes a regular column for the San Marcos Daily Record . Scott Pevey (1986) is the Director of Marketing for Ditch Witch and serves on three national association boards for the Association of Equipment Manufacturers and the America Rental Association. Alanna Sarabia is the host of Good Morning Texas on WFAA Channel 8, the ABC affiliate in Dallas. College of Fine Arts and Communication | 13 Kelly Kaufhold , professor for the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Texas State University was featured in our Fall 2017 Dean’s Seminar on November 8 in Old Main. [ 3] He teaches multimedia journalism and mass communication, including storytelling with photos, audio, video, web design and mobile devices, in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication. Kelly has a keen interest in the role of age and news habits in informed democracy, and is especially interested in where social media fits in that relationship. DEANS SEMINAR