Elizabeth C Shallenberger | College of Media

Media faculty, students present at 2023 International Communication Association conference

June 15, 2023

The College of Media was well represented at the 73^rd annual International Communication Association conference this summer in Toronto, Canada, with many faculty and graduate students presenting on the theme of “Reclaiming Authenticity in Communication.” The ICA aims to advance the scholarly study of human communication by encouraging and facilitating excellence in academic research worldwide.

Media participants are listed below. View the ICA conference program.

Faculty session chairs and presentations

ICA Hackathon 2023
Chairs: Jacob Fisher, Yee Man Margaret Ng

System in the Context of COVID-19 Vaccines
Yee Man Margaret Ng

Using Conversational Agents to Correct Misinformation and Change Behavioral Intentions
Leona Yi-Fan Su

Feminist Media Studies Editorial Board Breakfast
Chair: Isabel Molina

Mediated Quinceañeras: Constructing a Public Facing Exhibit
Angharad Valdivia

Legitimate and Appropriate Science Communication: The Effects of Anthropomorphic and Satirical Humor on Source Likability
Leona Yi-Fan Su

Mobile Devices and Social Media
Ewa Maslowska

Experiencing Climate Change Virtually: A Pre-Registered Experiment on the Effects of Virtual Reality on Climate Change Related Cognitions, Emotions, and Behavior
Ewa Maslowska

Effects of Review Incentive Types on Review Writers, Content, and Readers
Ewa Maslowska

The Impact of Cognitive Load on Recognition for Health Narrative Information
Jacob Fisher

Faculty and student co-presentations

Context Matters: Teachers Talk Media Literacy in the Classroom
Sakshi Bhalla (pictured at top) and Michelle Nelson

Intentions: The Roles of Message Format, Information Source, and Perceived Credibility
Jennifer Shiyue Zhang, Ruochong Ji, Junqi Shao, Leona Yi-Fan Su

Exploring the Boundary Condition of the Proteus Effect: Improving Exercise Efficacy Using Immersive Technology
Chen Chen, Yanyun Wang, Yuki Minamii, Mike Yao

Gender Identity and Influence in Human-Machine Communication: A Mixed-Methods Exploration
Weizi Liu, Nisa Rahman, Mike Yao

An Initial Examination of the Role of Reward Proximity in Driving Attention during Media Processing
Chen Chen, Jacob Fisher

Making Social Cues Invisible: How the Absence of Public Dislike Counts Affects YouTube Users’ Behavior
Maggie Zhang, Yee Man Margaret Ng

What Is “Being There”? An Ontology of the Immersive Experience
Chen Chen, Jacob Fisher

Predicting Streaming Audiences for a Channel’s On-Demand TV Shows: Choice Architecture, Content Attributes, and Consumer Agency
Hritik Raj, Harsh Taneja

Time Perception, Cognitive Load, and Memory for Short Form Video Applications (SVAs)
Veranika Paltaratskaya, Kevin Wise

Student presentations

The Effects of Trump’s Endorsements on Senate Republican Candidates’ Campaign Messaging Strategies in the 2018 US Midterm Elections
JungHwan Yang, Ashank Tomar, Je Hoon Chae, Xiujia Yang

Exploring the Marginal Value of Visual and Textual Information in Online Shopping
Chen Chen

Communication in Interorganizational Collaborations
Organizational Communication
Discussant: William Barley

Multi-Level Resilience Brokering: Refugee Organizations and Interorganizational Networks in the United States and South Korea
Minkyung Kim

How Perceived Knowledge Insufficiency, as a Function of Ease of Retrieval, Affects Health Information Seeking
Elisabeth Bigsby

Parasocial Relations and Embodied Social Presence on the Metaverse: An Exploratory Study of ZEPETO and Influencer-Follower Relations
Jiwon Oh, Ji Yeon Chang

Can We Discern Misleading Messages in the Metaverse? An Effect of Parasocial Interaction and Virtual Presence
Ji Yeon Chang, Jiwon Oh

Problematic Integration and Managing Uncertainty in Abortion Care and Disclosure
Megan Jacobs Farnworth, Shaimaa Khanam, Emily Mendelson

Intuitions in Program Dialogue? A Computer-Assisted Content Analysis
Stewart Coles

Audience Engagement in the US during COVID-19
Jenna Kim, Jana Diesner

When Artificial Intelligence (AI) Crosses Journalistic Boundary: The Audience’s Perceived News Credibility of AI-Written News
Dongchan Lee, WooJin Kim, Jane Yeahin Pyo

Human Communication Research (HCR) Community Meeting
William Barley

Latinas Be Like: A Critical Reflection on Identity and Authenticity of Latina Social Media Influencers
Ariana Cano

Hurt Sentiments or Misogyny? Reading Partisan News Coverage of Agrima Joshua’s “Offensive” Joke
Namita Gupta

Organizational Communication Research Escalator Session
Discussant: William Barley

Authenticity Perceived, Authenticity Performed: How Inconsistency in Self-Presentations Influences User Engagement
Maggie Zhang

Exploring How Personality Trait Affect Implicit Attitude towards COVID-19 Vaccine: An ERP Study
Chen Chen, Yanyun Wang

How Do People’s Media Use Habits Affect Their Emotional Expression? Using EEG to Compare the Effects of Handwriting versus Typing
Yanyun Wang

Sex Talks Between LGBTQ+ Parents and Children
Emily Gerlikovski

Citizen Discourse about Climate Gentrification: The Complementarities of Online and Onsite Communication
Minkyung Kim

Can Happiness and Sadness Overcome Organ Donation Barriers Following Exposure to Radio Ads?
Minhey Chung, Brian Quick

How Organizational Resources Enable Interdisciplinarity: An Ego-Centric Comparative Network Approach
William Barley, Lauren Johnson, Brian Allan

It Matters Where You Are: The Effects of Social Identity Salience on Group Interaction
Maggie Zhang

Hybrid: Influencers, Mass Media, and Conflicts
Popular Media & Culture
Chair: Ariana Cano

Cultivating Copaganda: Black Audiences’ Consumption of Black Law Enforcement TV Characters and Attitudes toward Law Enforcement
Deja Rollins

Right-Wing and Alternative Platforms
Communication and Technology
Political Communication
Chair: Maggie Zhang

Algorithmic Subjectivity: The Care and Control of the Self and Communities through Chinese Algorithmic Platforms
Ran Ju

Students in Media Entrepreneurship course win ‘Graphic Design USA’ magazine’s 2023 American Digital Design Award

June 5, 2023

Update 4/26/2024: Congratulations to the students who created Roomiversity for winning a combined total of $750 in the Cozad New Venture Challenge campuswide competition in Spring 2024!

Four students in the Spring 2023 ADV 409: Media Entrepreneurship course have won 2023 American Digital Design Awards presented by Graphic Design USA magazine. Congratulations to Caroline Azzo, Hope Fowler, and Lillie Ostarello, all juniors in advertising, as well as to Simran Shah, a master’s student in urban planning.

The four students teamed up to create a comprehensive pitch deck for a new mobile app they conceptualized called Roomiversity. Their Tinder-style app (@roomiversity on Instagram) would help college students meet and match with like-minded roommates. Terry Kasdan, adjunct lecturer in advertising who teaches ADV 409, encouraged the team to submit the brand identity they created for their business to Graphic Design USA magazine’s 23rd annual Digital Design Awards competition, and they won in the student work category.

The winners will be published this summer on GDUSA’s website, with select winners featured in their print magazine and annual awards issue in July. More than 2,000 entries were submitted this year, according to Graphic Design USA magazine’s publisher Gordon Kaye. The students’ work will be published alongside entries by Adobe, Molson/Coors, the NBA, Pepsi, and several other student entries from different universities that also won.

Learn more about ADV 409: Media Entrepreneurship.

Journalism student takes on producing role for 217 Today podcast

June 2, 2023

Sydney Wood, a senior in journalism, explains their role as a producer for the 217 Today podcast with Illinois Public Media, and creating audio stories for Illinois Student Newsroom at Illinois Public Media. Through JOUR 400: Newsroom Experience, Wood gained audio journalism skills, got stories aired on IPM, and assisted students in JOUR 280: IPM Radio Practicum.

Hear more from Wood in this College of Media video series where students discuss their roles in campus and community engagement projects.

Learn more about the 217 Today podcast: https://will.illinois.edu/217today/

Learn more about the Illinois Student Newsroom at Illinois Public Media: https://will.illinois.edu/studentnewsroom

CS + Advertising student contributes to research project with MACS professor

June 2, 2023

Jen Li, a senior in computer science + advertising, discussed the work she did as a Mark L. Brandt Public Engagement Fellow for the “Mis/Disinformation in Asian American Communities Research Project” led by Rachel Kuo, assistant professor of media and cinema studies. As part of the project, Li reviewed the process of conducting oral history interviews, working with her peers and family members, and held a Community Conversations workshop.

Hear Li discuss her work in this College of Media video series where students discuss their roles in campus and community engagement projects.

Students in Sandage Project course pitch ad campaign for C-U at Home

Advertising team works on campaign for C-U at Home

June 2, 2023

In Spring 2023, students in ADV 498: The Sandage Project worked on an advertising campaign for the nonprofit organization C-U at Home, which helps people who are experiencing homelessness by providing a safe environment and vital resources.

Ayah Aldadah, a senior in advertising and a media planner on the team, described their campaign as part of a College of Media video series where students discuss their roles in campus and community engagement projects.

Jim Schlueter, generous donor and retired Boeing communicator, receives 2023 College of Media Distinguished Alumni Award

May 18, 2023 | Kelly Youngblood

When it comes to career accomplishments, Jim Schlueter (BS ’80, journalism) could name a few, but none are quite as important to him as his ability to build up others.

It’s an honorable trait Schlueter has carried with him throughout his life—as an undergraduate student at Illinois, during his 33-year career in corporate communications, and more recently, as a very generous and passionate alum.

“If I think about accomplishments, really, it’s about helping people develop and grow and watching what they do,” Schlueter said.

Thanks to Schlueter’s contributions to the college, as well as his notable career achievements, the college’s leadership team agreed no one was more deserving of the 2023 College of Media Distinguished Alumni Award.

“Jim Schlueter has made many investments in the College of Media to benefit students now and in the future,” said Dean Tracy Sulkin. “We are so grateful for his engagement and for his desire to help make Illinois the number one destination for those who want to be part of the dynamic field of media.”

Schlueter is passionate about ensuring students stay ahead with new innovations and changing trends. In 2019, he and his wife, Amy, gave a generous gift to launch the Media Innovation Fund, which supports a wide range of activities that celebrate faculty excellence, faculty and student research, technology advancements, and cutting-edge pedagogy.

Schlueter said he felt humbled and honored when he learned of his nomination.

“I don’t do what I do to get awards, but to be recognized is a very, very special feeling because of [how I] feel about the University and the College of Media, the students, and the folks who have come before me and after me,” he said.

Schlueter, who grew up in rural Edwardsville, Illinois, and had always loved writing and sports, came to Illinois with a plan to study journalism. He joined the staff at The Daily Illini his sophomore year, covering women’s rugby, women’s cross-country, and men’s track. He became an executive reporter in sports his senior year covering football and basketball, and worked as a local stringer for the Associated Press.

“As much as I was looking forward to [attending the University of Illinois] … it was even better than I thought,” he said. “I met all my best friends there, I got to do experiences and things I couldn’t believe I was able to do, and I really stretched and learned a lot from my fellow students.”

After graduation, Schlueter worked as a reporter at a few newspapers, mostly covering the sports beat, and eventually earned his MBA in marketing from SIU-Edwardsville. In 1985, he went to work for an employee newspaper at McDonnell Douglas, an aerospace manufacturing corporation and defense contractor that eventually merged with Boeing in the late ’90s.

Schlueter said his career offered him a variety of opportunities that allowed him to support different fields within the aircraft industry including international communications, military products, and commercial airplanes. He spent the last six years of his career in Boeing’s corporate office in Chicago as the director of technology communications, finally retiring in 2018.

“I got to do a lot of things at an amazing company, so many different things that I can’t believe, from military programs and products to the space programs. I even worked a few shuttle launches, which is incredible,” he said.

Schlueter gives credit to his experience at Illinois, learning from some of the best professors alongside some of the brightest students, as well as his time at The Daily Illini for helping to shape his future career endeavors. He expressed gratitude for the journalism skills he gained that contributed to his success as a corporate communicator.

“When you’re a communications person at a company like Boeing, it behooves you to be able to write like a journalist writes and edit and dive into complicated questions and issues that really get to the heart of the matter,” he said.

Schlueter currently resides in Iowa with his wife, and they also have an apartment in Champaign. As lifelong season ticket holders, they come back to campus often for football and basketball games, and to visit the college for alumni commitments and events. Schlueter has served on the College of Media Alumni Leadership Council for more than a decade, sharing his professional insights and resources with faculty, staff, and students.

“It’s always been part and parcel of me, I guess, to stay connected and involved,” Schlueter said. “That feeling of being part of something bigger than yourself, and that you belong amongst it, is a big deal to me.”

In addition to kickstarting the Media Innovation Fund, a $50,000 donation from the Schlueters helped build the Media Technology Center, which offers a variety of technology and resources that students can check out or access online. The center opened in Fall 2022.

The couple also created the Schlueter Family Endowed Fund for Internships in Journalism to support students seeking real-world experience. Schlueter hopes their contributions will make a difference for Media students by enriching their education and preparing them to become future leaders in their field.

“I want Illinois to be on the forefront of the people who are coming up with the new ideas, the folks who are going to figure out how to do journalism for this century,” he said. “It’s going to be the students. They’re going to be the ones who figure it out.”

Hollywood executive and alumna Emma Miller honored with 2023 College of Media Emerging Leader Award

May 18, 2023 | Kelly Youngblood

When Emma Miller (BS ’08, media studies) graduated from the University of Illinois she wasn’t sure where her degree would take her.

Now, 15 years later as a Hollywood executive taking on a new leadership role at Netflix, Miller can say she’s exactly where she wants to be.

After eight years as the senior vice president of scripted development and programming at AMC Networks, Miller recently joined Netflix as director of overall deals in the series division.

Miller’s early career accomplishments, along with her continued engagement with the College of Media including serving on the Alumni Leadership Council, have garnered her the honor of being named the 2023 College of Media Emerging Leader Award winner. She is the first media studies graduate and the third recipient of the annual award.

“The College of Media is proud of Emma Miller’s career achievements and we’re thankful for her eagerness to be a resource for students,” said Dean Tracy Sulkin. “Emma has shared advice on how to navigate the film and TV industry that has been helpful and inspiring to students who are interested in making a career in Hollywood.”

Miller, who was named one of The Hollywood Reporter’s “35 Rising Executives 35 and Under” in 2018, said she was overwhelmed and excited when she received the news that she had won.

“I have a such a love for Illinois so it’s a real honor to be recognized by a place that I care a lot about,” Miller said.

Throughout her career, Miller has helped develop dozens of hit television series including The Walking Dead universe while at AMC, and The Americans on FX while a junior executive at Steven Spielberg’s production company Amblin Television. More recently, she worked on an AMC project with George R.R. Martin and Robert Redford called Dark Winds, a crime series with a majority Native American cast and crew.

But the Chicago-raised Midwesterner admits when she first set out for Hollywood after college, her path wasn’t very clear.

Miller considered going to law school to pursue a career as an entertainment lawyer but decided to find a job first.

After a lot of persistent if not frenzied effort on her part, Miller said she lucked out and landed her first job as a literary assistant at the talent agency William Morris.

“I just talked to everyone and applied to everything, and I got really lucky through that method, that really chaotic method,” Miller said. “In terms of getting into the industry, my advice is to talk to everyone that you possibly know that could help. Be shameless [about it] and ask for help. That’s how I did it.”

After gaining a couple years of experience as a literary assistant, Miller discovered the concept of development—which she said is similar to being a book editor who supports writers and gives feedback—and realized “there was a place for me here.”

“That’s when everything became way less chaotic and way more focused,” she said.

She has participated in two Media Career Night panels for students, one in 2020 and one in 2022, where she shared her experience and advice. (Recordings of the panels are archived online.) For Miller, it’s important to help students who were once like her and just starting out on their journey to working in Hollywood.

“I want to help Illinois have more of a presence within the industry and I want to help be a resource for [graduates who] come out here,” she said.

Miller originally came to the University of Illinois with plans to study English, but she became intrigued with the idea of working in the entertainment industry after taking a Women in Film course her freshman year. She signed up for more film classes and took advantage of a summer opportunity to work as a set production assistant on a Cartoon Network series produced by her uncle, which ultimately inspired her to switch majors.

“It was the exposure to the industry, and the realization that at Illinois there was a major I could do, that kind of cut me for a potential job in the industry,” Miller said.

She’s incredibly happy where she ended up.

“My life looks like what I thought I wanted, which was just exposure to a lot of interesting things and a sense that I don’t know what the next five years will bring [professionally],” she said. “I like the idea that in theory I don’t know what I’m going to be working on in five years, I don’t know what relationships I’ll have, I don’t know what new experiences I’ll have. And that to me is what I always wanted.”

Finke gives keynote at Senior 100 Honorary for UIUC seniors

College of Media alum Kevin Finke (BS ’92, advertising) was the keynote speaker on May 7 at the Senior 100 Honorary ceremony, which recognizes graduating seniors who exhibit academic success as well as a commitment to campus involvement and community service.

Media students who received the Senior 100 Honorary this year were Zoe Lewis Nielsen and Nate Walinder, both in advertising. Finke, who was named a Senior 100 Honorary 31 years ago and was also the recipient of the UIAA 2022 Comeback Award, spoke to students about facing challenges while staying true to themselves and pursuing his passion, which led him to his current role at Experience Willow, an award-winning consulting firm he founded in 2012 that focuses on making brands, organizations, and lives better.

(Photo by JR Reed.)

Alumna Akouris wins Lisagor Award, Jones-Beck Award for Chicago Tribune work

Tina E. Akouris (BS ’94, journalism), a digital content editor at the Chicago Tribune, won the prestigious Peter Lisagor Award from the Chicago Headline Club for Best Sports Reporting in the large/online print newsroom category. Akouris won the award for coverage of the 50th anniversary of Title IX along with Colleen Kane, Meghan Montemurro, Julia Poe, Kori Rumore, Stacy St. Clair, and Amanda Kaschube. Akouris also won a Jones-Beck Award in April for Outstanding Professional Performance for her work on the Chicago Tribune’s audience team.

Learn more:

ICR hosts “James Carey & Media Studies: The Past in the Present” colloquium

May 15, 2023

The Institute of Communications Research sponsored a two-day colloquium on Thursday, April 27, and Friday, April 28, 2023, to revisit and reconsider James Carey’s impact on the field of communication and media studies, and to highlight the recent launch of the James Carey Faculty Fellowship at the University of Illinois.

Presenters on April 27 featured:

Professor Linda Steiner (University of Maryland)
Professor Emeritus John Nerone (University of Illinois)
Professor Angharad Valdivia (University of Illinois)
Professor Emeritus Clifford Christians (University of Illinois)
Moderated by Professor James Hay (University of Illinois)

Unfortunately, due to technical glitches, not everyone’s presentation from April 27 was available. Below are the recordings from Professor Emeritus John Nerone and Professor Emeritus Clifford Christians:

Presenters on April 28 featured:

Professor Jeff Pooley (Muhlenberg College)
Professor Carolyn Marvin (University of Pennsylvania)
Professor David Park (Lake Forrest College)
Professor Pete Simonson (University of Colorado)
Moderated by Professor James Hay (University of Illinois)

Watch their presentations:

ABOUT JAMES CAREY

James Carey has had a profound impact on communication and media studies, and in shaping the direction of communication and media studies at the University of Illinois—as a professor, mentor, Dean of the College of Communications (now the College of Media), and Director of the Institute of Communications Research. He was, and remains, globally recognized for his wide-ranging contributions and interventions, including as an advocate for interdisciplinary studies of media and communications, as a historian of media, through his perspectives about communication, information, and media studies and their history, through his interests in the relation between communication studies, media studies, and cultural studies, through his attention to the technologies of communication and information, through his engagement with theories and histories of journalism, and as a contributor to theories and histories about the role of media in democratic forms of citizenship.