January 29, 2010

Global Media Research Center plans speaker series

by Pete Rosenbery

CARBONDALE, Ill. -- Technologies of profiling, copyright law developments, and a panel discussion on sports media are among the highlights of Southern Illinois University Carbondale’s Global Media Research Center spring 2010 speaker series.

In April, the center will host a daylong event focusing on sports media culture, the potential for sports media education at SIUC, and sports media’s impact on society. The discussions will draw largely upon insights and resources around the SIUC campus on the importance of media coverage in sports, according to John Downing, professor in radio-television and director of the Global Media Research Center.  The discussions will also explore the issues of women’s sports coverage, along with race and ethnicity in sports media.

On Monday, Feb. 1, Andrew Opel, an associate professor and director of the media production program in the School of Communication at Florida State University, presents a lecture on “Preempting Dissent:  Tasers, Secrecy, and Open Source Media Production.”  The presentation begins at 4:30 p.m. in the Communications Building, room 1032.  Opel will discuss new forms of “technological control and surveillance,” including Tasers, forms of technological profiling, and “no-fly” style watch lists, Downing said.

All of the events are free and open to the public.

Established in 2004, the Global Media Research Center’s mission includes assembling a core group of faculty, graduate and undergraduate students to research global media issues, establish national and international partnerships to promote research and play host to visiting scholars and artists as it seeks to develop new courses addressing global media issues.

The Global Media Research Center is within the College of Mass Communication and Media Arts. 

Other speakers during in the spring 2010 GMRC speaker series are:

  • Tuesday, Feb. 16 -- 4:30 p.m., Communications Building, room 1032.  John Downing, professor and director, SIUC Global Media Research Center.  “Media Education and a Social Change Agenda.”  Downing will make a case for media studies educators not only media production educators, and having students use digital production assignments in learning about the history, economics and politics of media.
  • Wednesday, March 24 -- Time and location to be determined.  Ellen Seiter, professor, Stephen K. Nenno Endowed Chair in Television Studies, University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts.  Seiter will make her presentation on developments on copyright laws as it applies to media and television using Skype, Downing said.
  • Friday, April 16 -- Time to be determined.  Morris Library’s John C. Guyon Auditorium.  Sports media discussion panel.

For more information about the spring speaker series, contact Laura Germann at SIUC’s Global Media Research Center at 618/453-6876 or by email at felix@siu.edu.