Candidates
NOTE: Students with an * by their names have defended their dissertations.
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Dohyun
Ahn (Korea)
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Undergraduate
Degrees
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BA,
Asian History, Seoul National University |
Master's
Degree
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MS,
Mass Communication, Colorado State
University |
Research
Specialty
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Entertainment,
Media effects, and Social neuroscience |
About
Me:
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Dohyun
is a fan of the television dramas House and Monk.
Blogging and meditation are his mood
managers. |
Dissertation topic |
Does Tragic Drama Have Hedonic Value? The Social Aspects of Hedonic Motivations and Media Enjoyment |
Dissertation chair |
Jennings Bryant |
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Email |
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Sandra
Braun (Medicine
Hat, Alberta)
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Undergraduate
Degrees
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Diploma,
Public Relations, Mount Royal College
BS, Telecom, Oral Roberts |
Master's
Degree
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MA,
Mass Communications, University of Florida |
Research
Specialty
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International
PR, Political PR, PR History, Women in PR |
About
Me:
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Sandi
is juggling teaching three sections of Business Writing
for the College of Business, working on her dissertation
and single parenthood. Daughter Alexandra, a 4th-grader
at Englewood Elementary, likes math and reading and
wants to be a teacher. Sandi encourages connection
with any other parents out there to exchange information,
tips and general encouragement. |
Dissertation topic |
The Life and Leadership Style of Dorothy Shaver, Public Relations
Executive and President of Lord and Taylor Dept. Store from 1946-1959 |
Dissertation chair |
Karla Gower |
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Email |
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Chandra
Clark (Northport,
AL)
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Undergraduate
Degree
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BA,
Broadcast News, University of Alabama |
Master's
Degree
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MA,
Mass Communication, University of Alabama |
Research
Specialty
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Media
Effects-Video News Releases/Broadcast News |
About
Me:
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A
visiting professor at Samford University, Chandra
has one daughter and a husband who works as a project
manager at Mercedes. Until recently, Chandra served
as the assistant director of Broadcast Marketing
and Media for the University of Alabama, working
on commercials, admissions videos and special projects
as well as working with networks (i.e., MTV, ABC,
and CNN) that did shows and features from campus. |
Dissertation
topic
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Fake News? A Survey on video news releases and their implications on journalistic ethics, integrity, independence, professionalism, credibility, and commercialization of broadcast news |
Dissertation
chair
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Gary Copeland |
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Email |
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Wes
Fondren (Tuscaloosa,
AL)
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Undergraduate
Degree
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BS,
Psychology, University of Alabama |
Master's
Degree
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Masters
of Divinity, Samford University |
Research
Specialty
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Attention
and new media |
About
Me:
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Married
for 18 years to his high school sweetheart, whom
he met in kindergarten, Wes has four children (two boys and two girls). His favorite things include The Simpsons,
Flannery O'Connor, red wine, Woot.com, and a full
night's sleep. |
Dissertation topic |
Warning--Side Effects May Include Paying Attention: Variables that Impact Attention to Warning Information |
Dissertation chair |
Jennings Bryant |
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Email |
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*Jinae
Kang (Seoul,
Korea)
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Undergraduate
Degree
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BA,
Mass Communication/ Christian Culture, Handong University |
Master's
Degree
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MA,
Mass Communication, Sogang University |
Research
Specialty
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Public
relations ethics, health issues & globalization,
issue
management, & government relations |
About
Me:
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Jinae
can't imagine her life without God, piano, and volunteering.
She recently took up tennis as well. |
Dissertation
topic
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Are
Ethical Public Relations Practitioners Happy? Exploring
Antecedent Consequences of Ethical Leadership of
Public Relations Practitioners |
Dissertation
chair
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Bruce
Berger |
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Email |
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John
Latta (Aukland,
New Zealand)
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Undergraduate
Degree
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BA,
University of Aukland |
Master's
Degree
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MA,
Journalism/Mass Communication, University of Alabama |
Research
Specialty
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News
media practices |
About
Me:
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John
describes himself as "a journalist crossing
over from/to the light." |
Dissertation
topic
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The River of God as a Necessary Horizon: Myths of Origin as Hegemonic
Influences in American Journalism |
Dissertation
chair
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Shuhua
Zhou |
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Email |
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*Juan Meng (Shanghai, China) |
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Undergraduate Degree |
BS, Economy, Fudan University (Shanghai) |
Master's Degree |
MA, Communication Studies, Bowling Green State University |
Research Specialty |
Public Relations, leadership, advertising, marketing |
About Me: |
A former journalist in Shanghai, Juan loves writing and traveling as a journalist but considers research a potential career. She also enjoys being a group fitness instructor. |
Dissertation topic |
Excellent Leadership in Public Relations: An Application of Multiple-Group Confirmatory Factor Analysis Models in Assessing Cross-National Measurement Invariance |
Dissertation chair |
Bruce Berger |
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Email |
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Jon
Mills (Lafayette,
IN)
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Undergraduate
Degree
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BS,
Public Relations, Purdue University |
Master's
Degree
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MA,
Comm/Org, Northern Illinois University |
Research
Specialty
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Public
Relations/sports marketing |
About
Me:
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Jon
worked as an account executive for Fleishman-Hillard
in Chicago. |
Dissertation
topic
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Naming
rights of sports venues |
Dissertation
chair |
Bruce Berger |
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Email |
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*Po-Lin
Pan (Taipei,
Taiwan)
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Undergraduate
Degree
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BA,
Journalism, Shin Hsin University (Taipei) |
Master's
Degree
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MA,
Communication Studies, Bowling Green State University |
Research
Specialty
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Persuasion,
social influences news media, public communication |
About
Me:
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Po-Lin
worked as a military officer and a news editor in
Taiwan. He is a movie enthusiast and has collected
more than one thousand film soundtracks. He also
is a big fan of Minimalist Music. |
Dissertation topic |
Experimental
tests of terror management in psychological responses
to news coverage of immigrant threats and implications
of hostility, risk vulnerability and issue judgment |
Dissertation chair |
Shuhua Zhou |
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Email |
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Erika
Pribanic-Smith (Twinsburg,
OH)
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Undergraduate
Degree
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BA,
Communication, Mount Union College (Alliance, OH) |
Master's
Degree
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MA,
Journalism, University of Alabama |
Research
Specialty
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Antebellum
southern newspapers; history and technology |
About
Me:
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A
former community journalist, Erika enjoys vegetarian
cooking and travels the south attending concerts
by her favorite bands. |
Dissertation
topic
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Ideological
origins of secession in South Carolina's newspapers |
Dissertation
chair
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Karla
Gower |
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Email |
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Wendy
Reed (Birmingham,
AL)
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Undergraduate
Degree
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BA,
Secondary Education, University of Alabama-Birmingham |
Master's
Degree
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MA,
English, University of Alabama-Birmingham |
Research
Specialty
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Social/Cultural
frames, effects, products, constructions, Hazel Brannon
Smith (first woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for
editorial writing). |
About
Me:
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"Bookmark," a
program Wendy produces at the Center for Public Television,
was nominated for an Emmy Award. She also has
received an Alabama Humanities Foundation grant for
a documentary she is producing and won a monthlong
artists' fellowship at Seaside Institute for January
2009. |
Dissertation topic |
Portrait of the Journalist as a Young Woman: Hazel Brannon Smith during her College Journalism Years, 1932-1935 |
Dissertation chair |
Pam Tran |
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Email |
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*Guosong "Oliver" Shao (Jiangxi,
China)
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Undergraduate
Degree
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From
China |
Master's
Degree
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MGA,
University of Pennsylvania |
Research
Specialty
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Communication institutions, communication &
technology, and international communication |
About
Me:
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Oliver
is enjoying life in Tuscaloosa, where he has a 3-hour
walking tour of this small town every weekend. He is also
trying to understand American pop culture, economic fluctuations, and political ideologies through exposure to mass media and
communication with local friends. |
Dissertation topic |
Toward a stakeholder model of corporate
governance: Evidence from media companies |
Dissertation chair |
Shuhua Zhou |
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Email |
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Song
Tian (China)
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Undergraduate
Degree
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BA,
Journalism, Sichuan University |
Master's
Degree
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MA,
Mass Communication, University of Louisiana-Lafayette |
Research
Specialty
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Advertising |
Dissertation topic |
An examination of mediated consumer animosity Effects on purchase intentions |
Dissertation chair |
Yorgo Pasadeos |
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Email |
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Thomas
Robert Ian Turnipseed (Montgomery,
AL)
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Undergraduate
Degree
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BA,
Communication, Clemson University |
Master's
Degree
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MA,
Communication, University of Alabama |
Research
Specialty
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Anti-Drug
Public Service Announcements and Third Person Effect/Video
Games |
About
Me:
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Ian
is enjoying life in New Orleans, where he is molding
young minds as an instructor at Southeastern Louisiana
University. |
Dissertation
topic
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A
Reexamination of the Theoretical and Methodological
Concerns of the Third Person Effect: Being an Effective
Custodian of Communication Theory |
Dissertation
chair
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Kim
Bissell |
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Email |
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*Chang
Wan Woo (Seoul,
South Korea)
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Undergraduate
Degree
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BS,
Illinois State University |
Master's
Degree
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MA,
Indiana State University |
Research
Specialty
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Entertainment
industry, especially sports and media effects |
About
Me:
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Chang
Wan, who wrote his master's thesis about baseball,
has become a real football fan since moving to Alabama.
He lives with his wife Grace and their son Johnny. |
Dissertation topic |
Expections and Enjoyment in Mediated Sports: Extended Disposition theory in Sports Entertainment |
Dissertation chair |
Jennings Bryant |
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Email |
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