School of Journalism and Mass Communication

Incoming PBS Western Reserve CEO and Kent alumna Natalie Pillsbury

Following a nationwide search, PBS Western Reserve has named Kent, Ohio, native Natalie Pillsbury as its next president and CEO.A two-time Kent State University alumna, Pillsbury studied in the School of Media and Journalism, earning a bachelor's degree in 2007 and a Master of Public Administration in 2023. She will begin her new role on M...

Celebration! Dan Armelli is doused with champagne during the Washington Nationals Oct. 15 celebration of winning the National League pennant.

As the champagne flowed Oct. 15 in the clubhouse of the National League Champion Washington Nationals, there was a Kent State University connection in the middle of the frenzy that capped the team’s first trip to the World Series. “It’s just an unbelievable time, and I’m so grateful I’m here,” said Dan Armelli less than 24 hours af...

Celebration! Dan Armelli is doused with champagne during the Washington Nationals Oct. 15 celebration of winning the National League pennant.

As the champagne flowed Oct. 15 in the clubhouse of the National League Champion Washington Nationals, there was a Kent State University connection in the middle of the frenzy that capped the team’s first trip to the World Series. “It’s just an unbelievable time, and I’m so grateful I’m here,” said Dan Armelli less than 24 hours af...

Covering the Carnage: Journalists Risk Own Mental, Physical Health In Reporting From Dayton, El Paso

Note: Gretchen Hoak is a former television reporter/anchor and current assistant professor of journalism in Kent State University’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication. Her research survey, “Are We Teaching Trauma?”,  focused on how universities prepare young journalists for the trauma they may endure in covering violence.&nbs...

Kent State University public relations students (left to right) Arkayla Tenney-Howard, Ashley Purnell, Molly Spillman, Samantha Ross and Abigail Winternitz are finalists in the national Bateman Case Study Competition.

A team of Kent State University public relations students are finalists in the national Bateman Case Study Competition after working on a public relations campaign that would increase funding for childhood cancer research. Each year, the annual competition, hosted by the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA), calls for PRS...

David Trebing, Ph.D., an associate professor in the School of Communication Studies (COMM), and Stephanie Smith, an assistant professor who teaches in COMM and the School of Journalism and Mass Communication (JMC), will lead a teaching colloquium on Friday, April 13, in Rm. 226 of Taylor Hall beginning at 2:15 p.m.   ...

Kent State alumnus Jacob Derwin (third from left) and other cast members of the CBS show “Survivor: Ghost Island” pose for a group photo. (Photo credit: Robert Voets/CBS)

From Long Island to Kent State University and now Ghost Island. That is the path Kent State University alumnus Jacob Derwin took to become a cast member on the 36th season of the CBS show Survivor, which will begin airing Feb. 28. This season’s show is called Survivor: Ghost Island. Long before the show’s challenges began, the 2016 Kent...

Advertising major Michael Weber performs on MTV's "Amazingness"

Kent State University advertising student Michael Weber balances a 4.0 GPA with a thriving passion for music – a passion that recently propelled him to win first place on MTV’s talent show, “Amazingness.” The episode featuring Weber, ’19, aired nationally on Jan. 5, 2018. It featured six acts competing for a $10,000 prize, which Weber u...

Members of Kent State Student Media smile with their new awards in the newsroom in Franklin Hall.

The Kent Stater, Kent State University’s independent student newspaper, is the best student newspaper in the nation in its class, according to the College Media Association. The organization announced the annual Pinnacle Award winners at the National College Media Convention, held Oct. 25-29 in Dallas, Texas. The Kent Stater beat out co...

Members of Kent State Student Media smile with their new awards in the newsroom in Franklin Hall.

The Kent Stater, Kent State University’s independent student newspaper, is the best student newspaper in the nation in its class, according to the College Media Association. The organization announced the annual Pinnacle Award winners at the National College Media Convention, held Oct. 25-29 in Dallas, Texas. The Kent Stater beat out co...