News & Events (Archived)

2020-2021

2021 CMJ Award Winners

Please join us in congratulating the following undergraduate and graduate student award winners, and click here for congratulatory notes:

Undergraduate

Outstanding Graduating Senior in Journalism, Jane Horovitz
Outstanding Graduating Senior in Media Studies, Rachael Hall
The Raymie McKerrow Award: Distinguished Undergraduate Student in Communication & Journalism, Hana Davis
Wofford Gardner Award: Outstanding Academic Achievement in Communication, Kate Follansbee
Brooks Hamilton: Spirit of Excellence Award and Outstanding Senior in CMJ, Bhavana Scalia-Bruce and Leela Stockley

Graduate

Outstanding MA Student, Mackenzie Peacock
Outstanding Graduate Student Excellence in Research and Creative Activity, Kevin Duffy
Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistant, Michael Clay

You can see a list of past awardees here: undergraduate and graduate.

Drs. McGreavy and Rickard awarded UMaine grants to study rural health and wellbeing

They will support UMaine’s ongoing efforts to foster interdisciplinary research collaboration in rural communities through multiple one-year projects funded through the University’s Research Reinvestment Fund (RRF). Dr. McGreavy joins a team effort on “Building the Downeast Rural Health Research Collaborative Institute,” and Dr. Rickard will support a project on “Advancing Natural Resource Based Strategies for Rural Community Resilience.”

CMJ Alumnus featured in MAINE Alumni Magazine

Brendan Walsh (’00) is a detective with the Boston Police Department who recently highlighted his experience studying communication at UMaine. In the Winter 2021 issue of MAINE Alumni Magazine, Walsh said he uses the communication skills he learned “every single day” both on and off the force.

Dr. Rosenbaum publishes new book

Judith Rosenbaum, Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Communication and Journalism, is co-editor of a new book of essays from Palgrave Macmillan. “Twitter, the Public Sphere, and the Chaos of Online Deliberation” provides a critical view of the nature and quality of political and civic communication on Twitter. Combining an overview of perspectives in the field and 11 empirical case studies, the book draws attention to the chaotic, insular, uncivil and emotionally charged nature of debate and communication on Twitter.

2019-2020

Dr. Socolow gives talk and is quoted in NBC news story

Michael Socolow, Director of the McGillicuddy Humanities Center and Associate Professor in the Department of Communication and Journalism, delivered a talk on September 10 to the Maine Chapter of the International Women’s Forum. The talk, titled “Political Journalism in a Pandemic Year,” offered observations about how coverage of the 2020 election differs from traditional campaign reporting. For instance, as audiences turn more to social media, and amplify both information and misinformation, the power of established media to channel political discussion through classic “campaign trail” reporting has significantly diminished.

Dr. Socolow also spoke with NBC News for a story titled “Bob Woodward criticized for not releasing Trump’s COVID-19 comments sooner.” Socolow said the veteran Washington Post journalist, known best for his coverage of the Watergate scandal involving former President Richard M. Nixon, has used the same reporting practices for more than four decades and the ethics of his work “have been debated and discussed ad nauseum.” “The bigger issue … is that journalists hold incredibly damaging information all the time, for all kinds of reasons,” said Socolow. “To assume reporters always rush to publish all the valuable information they collect is to overlook a lot of the history of U.S. journalism … They might hold stuff for political reasons, or to enrich themselves, or for other reasons — and we can debate the ethics of that — but they withhold stuff. That’s reality.”

2020 CMJ Award Winners

Please join us in congratulating the following undergraduate and graduate student award winners and click this link for congratulatory notes:

Undergraduate

Outstanding Graduating Senior in Journalism, Liz Theriault
Outstanding Graduating Senior in Media Studies is Kira Barra
The Raymie McKerrow Award: Distinguished Undergraduate Student in Communication & Journalism, Mari Smith
Wofford Gardner Award: Outstanding Academic Achievement in Communication, Byron Winslow
Brooks Hamilton: Spirit of Excellence Award and Outstanding Senior in CMJ, Ali Tobey (note forthcoming)

Graduate

Outstanding Grad student excellence in Research and creative activity, Kevin Duffy
Outstanding MA Student, Tim Rocha
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences TA Award, Jaquel Eley
Department of Communication and Journalism TA Award, Tabitha Boze

CMJ students receive prestigious Maine Press Association scholarships

The Maine Press Association has just announced $5,000 in scholarships to five journalism students this year. Recipients of 2020 scholarships are Hailey Bryant, of Gorham, a senior at the University of Maine and part-time employee of the Bangor Daily News; Olivia Shipsey, of Old Town, a senior at the University of Maine and editor-in-chief of the Maine Campus; Leela Stockley, of Orono, a junior at the University of Maine and contributor to the Maine Campus; Elizabeth Theriault, of Orono, a senior at the University of Maine and opinion section editor for the Maine Campus; and Amelia Bodge, of Sanford, a junior at the University of Southern Maine and contributor to USM’s Free Press.

Bryant was a recipient in 2019 as well. The other 2019 recipient, Nina Mahaleris, now works for a Maine Press Association member newspaper, The Penobscot Times.

“We wish all of the recipients luck as they complete their studies and pursue careers in Maine journalism,” said J.W. Oliver, president of the Maine Press Association Board of Directors. “It gives us special pride this year to award scholarships to several students who have connections to our member newspapers, as employees, interns, and even a newspaper carrier.”

The Maine Press Association awards at least one scholarship every year to a junior or senior with financial need who plans to pursue a career in journalism, but the $5,000 amount and the five recipients greatly exceed figures from recent years.

The scholarships are possible through the generosity of bidders at the Maine Press Association’s annual scholarship auction and the donors who provide the auction items.

To inquire about the 2021 scholarship, contact scholarship committee Chair Sindhu Manjesh at sindhu.manjesh@maine.edu.

Established in 1864, the Maine Press Association works to protect the freedom of the press and the public’s right to know, and to promote and foster high ethical standards in journalism.

Drs. Rickard and McGreavy receive grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

Their project, entitled “Fish, Farms and Shared Futures: Defining public perceptions of land-based aquaculture to support sustainable decision-making” takes a two-pronged approach to explore local Recirculating Aquaculture Systems (RAS) siting dynamics, focusing on 1) perceptions and 2) communication. On the perception side, Rickard, McGreavy and collaborators propose to explore several complementary social psychological constructs that may assist entrepreneurs and regulators, as well as local communities, in identifying and addressing potential barriers to siting aquaculture facilities, including sense of place and perceived naturalness. Check out this news clip featuring Dr. Rickard describing this award and a UMaine feature story.

Dr. Sindhu Manjesh to publish blog with Times of India

CMJ’s Lecturer in Journalism, Sindhu Manjesh, has been commissioned by the Times of India to publish a blog on international politics and society with a focus on the U.S. Her posts can be found here: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/blogs/soapbox/

2018-2019

Congratulations to Olivia Reese!

Olivia Reese, a Media Studies major, has been selected to be this semester’s McGillicuddy Humanities Center fellow. Her research aims to reconceptualize cultivation theory to consider elements of social media usage. She is the first non-English major to receive this honor.