Home » Events
Category Archives: Events
Disrupting Journalism Ethics
The Center for Media Engagement and Media Ethics Initiative Present:
Journalism Ethics amid Irrational Publics: Disrupt and Redesign
Dr. Stephen J. A. Ward
Distinguished Lecturer, University of British Columbia
Founding Director, Center for Journalism Ethics at the University of Wisconsin
November 5 (Monday) ¦ 3:00-4:30PM ¦ BMC 5.208
How can journalism ethics meet the new challenges to democracy in the era of fake news and real political problems? In this engaging talk, prominent media ethicist Stephen J. A. Ward argues that journalism ethics must be radically rethought to defend democracy against irrational publics, demagogues, and extreme populism. In an age of intolerance and global disinformation, Ward recommends an engaged journalism which is neither neutral nor partisan. He proposes guidelines for covering extremism as part of a “macro-resistance” by society to a toxic public sphere.
Dr. Stephen J. A. Ward is an internationally recognized media ethicist, author and educator, living in Canada. He is a Distinguished Lecturer on Ethics at the University of British Columbia, founding director of the Center for Journalism Ethics at the University of Wisconsin, and director of the UBC School of Journalism. He was a war correspondent, foreign reporter and newsroom manager for 14 years and has received a lifetime award for service to professional journalism in Canada. He is editor-in-chief of the forthcoming Springer Handbook for Global Media
Ethics, and was associate editor of the Journal of Media Ethics. Dr. Ward is the author of 9 media ethics books, including two award-winning books, Radical Media Ethics and The Invention of Journalism Ethics. Also he is the author of Global Journalism Ethics, Ethics and the Media, and Global Media Ethics: Problems and Perspectives. His two new books, Disrupting Journalism Ethics and Ethical Journalism in a Populist Age were published in 2018.
The Media Ethics Initiative is part of the Center for Media Engagement at the University of Texas at Austin. Follow MEI and CME on Facebook for more information.
Media Ethics Initiative events are open and free to the public.
Co-sponsored by the University of Texas at Austin’s School of Journalism
Is Incivility Ever Ethical?
The Center for Media Engagement and Media Ethics Initiative Present:
Is Incivility Ever Ethical?
Assistant Professor of Journalism
University of Texas at Austin
October 16 (Tuesday) ¦ 3:30-4:30PM ¦ BMC 5.208
The current debate over incivility in the public discourse often leaves out an important component – sometimes the most ethical choice is to speak out, even if some people view your speech as uncivil. The need to be civil at all costs can become a tool of the privileged to silence and symbolically annihilate the voices of those with less power in society, specifically women, people of color, or those from other marginalized groups. Media outlets can perpetuate this silencing by focusing on the “civility” – or lack thereof – of the message, rather than the content. Compounding this problem is the issue that people define what’s uncivil in varied ways – including everything from a raised voice to hate speech. UT Austin Assistant Professor Gina Masullo Chen will draw on potent examples from today’s headlines, including Colin Kaepernick’s “take-a-knee” protest during the national anthem to draw attention to racial injustice and some politicians’ refusal to speak to their angry constituents. Her argument is not that incivility is good. Rather, she asserts that sometimes the ethical cost of silence is greater than the normative threat to civil discourse from what some may perceive as incivility.
Dr. Gina Masullo Chen is an Assistant Professor in the School of Journalism and the Assistant Director of the Center for Media Engagement, both at the University of Texas at Austin. Her research focuses on the online conversation around the news and how it influences social, civic, and political engagement. She is the author of Online Incivility and Public Debate: Nasty Talk and co-editor of Scandal in a Digital Age. She is currently writing her third book, The New Town Hall: Why We Engage Personally with Politicians. She spent 20 years as a newspaper journalist before becoming a professor.
The Media Ethics Initiative is part of the Center for Media Engagement at the University of Texas at Austin. Follow MEI and CME on Facebook for more information. Media Ethics Initiative events are open and free to the public.
Ethics in Public Relations
The Center for Media Engagement and Media Ethics Initiative Present:
Ethics in Public Relations
Kathleen Lucente
Founder & President of Red Fan Communications
October 30 ¦ 2:00-3:00PM ¦ BMC 5.208
What ethical challenges await the public relations professional? Kathleen Lucente, the Founder and President of Red Fan Communications, discusses a range of ethical choices and challenges facing those in the public relations profession, including: ensuring that reporters are fair, just, and honest in their coverage of one’s client, dealing with inappropriate client relations, maintaining honesty and transparency between a client and agency, and the challenges maintaining your client’s reputation while also maintaining yours as an agency in situations of crisis. This talk will be of interest to students wishing to pursue careers in public relations, as well as scholars researching the practices and effects of public relations.
After a successful and award-winning career working for IBM, J.P. Morgan, Ketchum Worldwide and other global brands and agencies, Kathleen Lucente moved to Austin just as the city began its meteoric rise as a hotbed for tech startups and investment. She is the founder and president of Red Fan Communications, an Austin-based public relations firm that has helped countless companies clarify their purpose, tell their unique stories, and establish lasting relationships with clients and customers. She serves on several boards and donates much of her and her staff’s time to local nonprofits that have tangible impact throughout the community, including the Trail of Lights, the ABC Kite Fest, the Health Alliance for Austin Musicians, and the Susan G. Komen Foundation.
The Media Ethics Initiative is part of the Center for Media Engagement at the University of Texas at Austin. Follow MEI and CME on Facebook for more information. Media Ethics Initiative events are open and free to the public.
Moral Psychology and Media
The Center for Media Engagement and Media Ethics Initiative Present:
Feeling Rules, Media Ethics, and the Moral Foundation Dictionary
Dr. Sven Joeckel (University of Erfurt, Germany) & Dr. Leyla Dogruel (Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany)
September 19 (Wednesday) ¦ 2:00-3:30PM ¦ CMA 5.136 (LBJ Seminar Room)
What does psychology have to tell us about the impact of media on our emotions and moral judgments? Does media make us better moral agents? In this discussion, two visiting researchers from Germany will speak on how media shapes our “feeling rules” and the connection between moral values and political communication. Attention will also be given to how moral psychology can help us understand the ideological content of media texts.
Dr. Sven Joeckel is Professor for Communication with a focus on children, adolescents and the media at the University of Erfurt, Germany. He received a Ph.D. in communication from the University of Technology, Ilmenau (Germany). Since 2009, he has chaired the M.A. program in Children, Adolescents, and the Media at the University of Erfurt. His research interests are adolescents’ use of media, mobile privacy research as well as the relationship between media use and morality. Dr. Leyla Dogruel is Assistant Professor for Media Systems and Media Performance at Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, Germany. In 2013, she received her Ph.D. from Freie Universität in Berlin, Germany. Her research interests include media innovation theory, online privacy, and media structures.
The Media Ethics Initiative is part of the Center for Media Engagement at the University of Texas at Austin. Follow MEI and CME on Facebook for more information. Media Ethics Initiative events are open and free to the public.
Media Ethics and Mobile Devices
The Center for Media Engagement and Media Ethics Initiative Present:
BYOD! Should We Really Ask New College Grads and Employees to Bring their Own Devices to Work?
Dr. Keri K. Stephens
Associate Professor of Communication Studies
University of Texas at Austin
September 25 ¦ 3:30-4:30PM ¦ BMC 5.208
At first glance it might sound great to get to choose the cell phone and computer you want to use at work. After all, you might like iPhones and your colleague likes Androids. But what people overlook is that “bring your own” often means you are also paying for these devices and agreeing to rules that few people ever read. Come join us for a Media Ethics Talk by Keri K. Stephens, where she will share some of the hidden issues of control that new college graduates, as well as people in many stages of their career, face with BYOD policies. This talk features research from Stephen’s recently published book, Negotiating Control: Organizations and Mobile Communication (Oxford University Press).
Dr. Keri K. Stephens’ research and teaching interests bring an organizational perspective to understanding how people interact with communication technologies, and she focuses on contexts of crisis, emergency, disaster, workplaces, and healthcare. She is an Associate Professor in the Organizational and Communication Technology Group in the Department of Communication Studies, a Faculty Fellow with the Center for Health & Social Policy in the LBJ School of Public Policy, and a Faculty Affiliate with the Center for Health Communication.
The Media Ethics Initiative is part of the Center for Media Engagement at the University of Texas at Austin. Follow MEI and CME on Facebook for more information. Media Ethics Initiative events are open and free to the public.
Media Criticism in Turbulent Times
Media Criticism in Turbulent Times: A Panel Discussion
April 25, 2018 (Wednesday) — 3:30-4:30pm — BMC 5.208
Ludovic Bertron / CC BY 2.0 / Modified
What is the role of media criticism in our turbulent political times? How should we react to the messages and myths our movies, news, and politicians attempt to sell to us? Is being “critical” a bad word for democratic citizens? In this exciting Media Ethics Initiative event, a panel of distinguished communication scholars will discuss the role of criticism and critics in navigating all the media we experience in our technological democracy. Drawing upon their work in rhetoric, communication studies, and media studies, our panelists will consider the limits of criticism as well as its importance in tumultuous times such as our present. Confirmed participants include:
Dr. Rod Hart / Communication Studies
Dr. Trish Roberts-Miller / Rhetoric & Writing
Dr. Barry Brummett / Communication Studies
Dr. Michael Butterworth / Communication Studies
Moderated by Dr. Scott Stroud / Communication Studies
Follow us on Facebook / Free and open to the public / www.mediaethicsinitiative.org
Virtual Reality and Media Ethics
The Media Ethics Initiative Presents:
The Ethics of Virtual Reality
Dr. Donald Heider
Dean and Professor of Communication
Loyola University Chicago
April 10 (Tuesday), 3:30-5:00PM, CMA 5.136
Virtual Reality gives participants the chance to enter immersive and interactive media environments. As with many new technologies, virtual reality requires our consideration of the implications of these tools. What are ethical implications of virtual reality for journalism, film-making and other communication fields? This talk will explore the exciting new possibilities and challenges that virtual reality opens up for a range of media practices.
Dr. Donald Heider is the Associate Provost for Strategy & Innovation and Founding Dean at the School of Communication at Loyola University Chicago and Founder of the Center for Digital Ethics & Policy. He is author, co-author, or editor of eight books including two volumes of Ethics for a Digital Age, the latest of which is due out in 2018. Dr. Heider is a multiple Emmy-award winning producer who spent ten years in news before entering the academy. He earned his B.A. from Colorado State University, his M.A. from American University, and his Ph.D. from the University of Colorado. He served previously as Associate Dean at the Philip Merrill College of Journalism at the University of Maryland and was on the faculty at the University of Texas at Austin, Colorado, and University of Mississippi.
Co-sponsored by the School of Journalism, UT Austin
Free and open to the UT community and general public
For further information, contact Dr. Scott Stroud
Follow us on Facebook
