News

The soothing sound of jazz chords and spontaneous melodies accompanied by the rhythmic tapping of fingers typing on laptops resonated throughout the corridors of Kenan Music Building during the UNC Summer Jazz Workshop. For one week in June, students of all ages came together for a unique five-day, high-paced, immersive jazz program

Even before U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy issued a dire warning this spring about the loneliness epidemic in America, two UNC researchers had already teamed up to work on a solution. Loneliness is the absence of social connection, and even before the separations brought about during the Covid-19 pandemic, one in two Americans reported experiencing loneliness. Barbara Fredrickson, Kenan Distinguished Professor of Psychology & Neuroscience, studies the health benefits of positive emotions and positive connections for decades. In a new research project, she has paired up with the UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media’s Associate Professor Allison Lazard, an expert in how visual design influences message perception, especially in a digital environment.

The Daily Tar Heel, UNC's independent student newspaper, recently profiled UNC Hussman alumnus Sharif Durhams' '99 and his move to a new post at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, where he'll serve as the Georgia newspaper's managing editor of news. A former editor of The Daily Tar Heel, Durhams'  journalism career has included stops at CNN, McClatchy and most recently The Washington Post.

Kristen Harrison, professor of communication and media at the University of Michigan, joins the UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media on July 1, 2023, as the school’s Richard Cole Eminent Professor. “We are proud to welcome Kristen Harrison to our UNC Hussman community,” said Raul Reis, dean of the school. “Kristen is an esteemed scholar focused on media psychology, particularly children and media. She adds yet another dimension to the school’s depth of faculty thought leadership across diverse disciplines. We are excited to call her our Carolina colleague.” Harrison, who earned her doctorate in communication science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, has been a full professor at Michigan since 2011. An expert in media’s effects on children, she has consulted with Sesame Workshop and PBS Kids, and her research has been supported by grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the William T. Grant Foundation.

When Brianna Atkinson ’23 decided on doing a story about A.I.’s effects on the maritime industry as her entry in the Hearst Journalism Awards audio championship competition, she knew she needed to find people fishing. So, she Googled fishing hotspots in San Francisco, where the Hearst competitions were taking place, grabbed an Uber to Fisherman’s Wharf and then talked her way onto a commercial boat — using every bit of tenacity she’s learned as a student at the UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media. She earned a national third place finish out of hundreds of students who entered the Hearst audio category competitions over the past year. Atkinson was one of five UNC Hussman students who parlayed their immersive learning experiences at the school into strong finishes in the Hearst individual championship competitions, which took place June 2-7, 2023, in San Francisco. The school also won the 2023 overall national championship in collegiate journalism, its fifth consecutive national championship and eighth in the nine past years.

The Hearst Journalism Awards Program has announced UNC Hussman as the 2023 overall national champion in collegiate journalism.
It is the school’s fifth consecutive national championship, eighth in the nine past years and 12th since 2002 — far surpassing the school’s closest competitors.

Carolina is home to centuries-old traditions and experiences that connect generations of Tar Heels. Learn more about the places and experiences that make the Carolina experience so special in this feature by University Communications, which gives a run-down on everything from the history of UNC's beloved mascot Rameses to events that make campus life so special.

From visuals illustrating the nuances of hummingbirds to the timeline of Jimi Hendrix’s career, projects created by students from the UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media won big at the 2023 Society for News Design (SND) International Student Competition. UNC Hussman students took home 26 of 59 available awards, including first place wins in the categories of Feature Page Design, Sports Page Design, Digital Storytelling, Special Sections and Art & Illustration. It is the most awards won by any school since the annual contest began more than 20 years ago.

A vibrant and collaborative interdisciplinary research culture at the UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media creates new knowledge, advances scholarship and helps reinvent media. This latest roundup includes four publications and a conference presentation by Assistant Professor Lee McGuigan, whose book about digital advertising is set to be published in July. More details on "Selling the American People" are listed below, along with a list of other recently published or presented scholarship by UNC Hussman faculty and students.

The close of the spring 2023 semester brought with it the UNC Hussman tradition of honoring the outstanding contributions of faculty and staff with annual awards and cash prizes totaling nearly $20,000. At its final schoolwide meeting of the 2022-23 academic year, the school recognized two staff members and five faculty members for excellence in teaching and service to the school community.