News Archive | Department of Communication

Smith named MSU’s Mississippi Humanities Council Teacher of the Year

Pete Smith, an associate professor of communication at Mississippi State University, is MSU’s 2023 Mississippi Humanities Council Teacher of the Year. Smith will receive his award at the MHC’s annual ceremony in Jackson on March 24. Approximately 30 awards will be given to Mississippians whose work is recognized for bringing insights of the humanities to public audiences.

Feb 01, 2023

CO Connection: Carrie McCormick

Mississippi State University's Department of Communication Head Dr. Terry Likes interviews Carrie McCormick. Carrie graduated from State, went on to earn a graduate degree, law degree and teach internationally. She is an Instructor in the Communication and Media Studies concentration teaching Communication Theory, Elements of Persuasion, Intro to Communication, Media Law and more.

Dec 13, 2022

Knight named MSU’s first Luckyday Scholars Program Faculty Fellow

Mississippi State Department of Communication Instructor Amy Knight is the university’s first Luckyday Scholars Program Faculty Fellow. Knight’s career has deep roots with the Luckyday Program, having begun her service with the initiative in 2004 as a graduate assistant and then as assistant director in 2006 for two years at the University of Southern Mississippi.

Nov 15, 2022

Dr. Holli Seitz & co-authors publish article in Health Communication

Dr. Holli Seitz, an associate professor in the Department of Communication, and colleagues were recently published in the journal Health Communication. Their article, "Development and Pretesting of Prescription Opioid Misuse Prevention Messages: Results and Implications for Practice," presents results from two studies conducted to inform the development of messages for a statewide campaign for the PROMISE Initiative (Preventing Opioid Misuse in the Southeast). Their work has valuable implications for those planning health communication campaigns.

Sep 21, 2022

Dr. Holli Seitz & co-authors publish article in Health Education & Behavior

Associate Professor Dr. Holli Seitz is part of a team that recently had their article, "Increasing Uptake of Prescription Drug Take-Back Boxes: Eliciting Preferences and Applying the Theory of Planned Behavior to Predict Use," accepted for publication in the journal Health Education & Behavior. The article, led by Dr. Mary Nelson Robertson, an assistant professor in the School of Human Sciences, represents research conducted to inform the PROMISE Initiative (Preventing Opioid Misuse in the Southeast).

Sep 20, 2022

Dr. Pete Smith named chair of AJHA Blanchard Prize Committee

Dr. Pete Smith was named chair of the Margaret A. Blanchard Prize committee, the top graduate student award given by the American Journalism Historians' Association. The award recognizes the top dissertation in the area of mass communication history. Pete won the award in 2005 for his dissertation, "'It's Your America': Gertrude Berg and American Broadcasting, 1929-1956."

Aug 15, 2022

Dr. Pete Smith invited to submit book manuscript on life & career of performer Philip Loeb

Dr. Pete Smith has been invited by the editorial board of the University Press of Mississippi to submit a book manuscript on the life and career of performer Philip Loeb. The title of the manuscript is "No Way Out: The Controversial Life and Death of Philip Loeb, Papa Goldberg on 'The Goldbergs', Television's First Situation Comedy," and the proposed manuscript is a comprehensive biography of union leader, teacher, and blacklisted actor Philip Loeb (1891-1955); specifically, the manuscript will explore his contributions to the political, creative, and cultural aspects of the broadcasting industry and the theatre and the costs of those contributions to his professional livelihood and relationships.

Aug 15, 2022

Dr. Pete Smith publishes book manuscript "Birddogs and Tough Old Broads: Women Journalists of Mississippi and a Century of State Politics, 1880s-1980s"

Dr. Pete Smith, an associate professor in communication, published his book manuscript "Birddogs and Tough Old Broads: Women Journalists of Mississippi and a Century of State Politics, 1880s-1980s" with Lexington Books in August. This book manuscript examines the work of a dozen women journalists over the course of the late nineteenth and most of the 20th centuries. The women profiled in the book either walked the Mississippi State capitol beat or covered political and/or social issues of great importance to the people of Mississippi.

Aug 15, 2022

Dr. Pete Smith travels to London to plan CMST British studies course

Dr. Pete Smith, an associate professor in communication, traveled to London this past June to plan a communication & media studies course for the University of Southern Mississippi British Studies program. The course, entitled, "The Yanks Are Coming!: A Comparative Study of British and American Media and Culture," will offer undergraduate and graduate students an opportunity to learn about the similarities and differences between British and American media systems and other forms of entertainment.

Jun 15, 2022

Dr. Holli Seitz & co-authors publish article in International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

Dr. Holli Seitz contributed to a journal article, "Do they really work? Quantifying fabric mask effectiveness to improve public health messaging," on comparing mask types on filtration efficiency, differential pressure, and leakage with the goal of providing evidence to improve public health messaging.

May 24, 2022

Dr. Holli Seitz & co-authors publish article in Journal of Public Health in the Deep South

Dr. Holli Seitz contributed to a study, "Making COVID-19-Related Decisions: A Qualitative Study of University Students," investigating MSU students' perceived benefits and barriers to COVID-19 testing, reporting of test results, and quarantining. This work was part of the university's response to COVID-19, and results informed the university's communication efforts.

Apr 06, 2022

Christie Jones Lawrence presents "Leading Through Crisis" at State PRAM conference

Christie Jones Lawrence, a communication instructor, presented "Leading Through Crisis" at the 2022 State Public Relations Association of Mississippi conference held in Gulfport, Miss., on April 4. According to Lawrence, managing in a crisis is challenging--even for experienced managers. Her presentation focused on understanding the fundamentals of successfully leading through a crisis, outlining key character traits of successful leaders, identifying crisis management stages, and reviewing John C. Maxwell's seven guiding principles for leading through a crisis.

Apr 04, 2022

Dr. Holli Seitz publishes work in partnership with Veterinary Medicine faculty member

Dr. Holli Seitz, an assistant professor in communication and media studies, and Dr. Jesse Grady, an assistant clinical professor in the MSU College of Veterinary Medicine, recently published their work on veterinary client preferences for information and autonomy in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association.

Feb 28, 2022

Dr. Holli Seitz

Dr. Holli Seitz, an assistant professor in Communication & Media Studies, presented collaborative work with Dr. Antonio Gardner and Dr. Leah Pylate at the National Communication Association 107th Annual Convention. Their research, titled "Formative research to inform college health communication campaigns about COVID-19 prevention behaviors," reported the results of surveys and interviews conducted with MSU students and parents and guardians to inform the university's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Feb 28, 2022

Dr. Melanie Loehwing and co-author publish article in Quarterly Journal of Speech

Melanie Loehwing's recent publication, "The Public Screen as Contextual Field: Visibility and Agency in US Films about Homelessness," traces the evolution of depictions of homelessness in US film from 1983 to 2018. She and her co-author examine how cinematic characterizations shape the public's understanding of homelessness as a social issue and limit the types of solutions communities are willing to support.

Feb 28, 2022