James Benjamin, Ph.D.
(Pennsylvania State University). Professor Benjamin serves as Director
of the Graduate Studies in Communication. He has also taught at University
of Hawaii and at Southwest Texas University. He is the author of over
two dozen research and instructional publications including articles
in Philosophy and Rhetoric, Presidential Studies Quarterly, Communication
Quarterly, and The Southern Speech Communication Journal and the lead
article in Electronic Learning Communities: Current Issues and Best
Practices. His areas of interest are organizational communication,
visual communication, and rhetorical theory and criticism.
Paul A. Fritz, Ph.D. (Bowling Green State University).
Associate Professor Fritz has teaching and research interests in the
areas of conflict management, interpersonal communications and digital
media. He has published in the journal Communication Education,
is the author of the text, Nursing Communication: An Interactive
Approach and has presented numerous papers at national conferences.
Paulette D. Kilmer, Ph.D. (University of Illinois).
Specializing in journalistic history, ethics and reporting, Associate
Professor Kilmer advises the UT chapter of the Society of Professional
Journalists, serves as mentor of UT's student-run newspaper, The
Independent Collegian, and is also active in the Association of
Educators in Mass Communication and Journalism. She is author of Fear
of Sinking: The American Success Formula in the Gilded Age. Her
most recent book is a social history of a Toledo electrical workers'
union.
Richard J. Knecht, Ph.D. (University of Ohio).
Chair of the Department of Communication from 1998 to 2005, Professor
Knecht's research and teaching interests include global communication
and communication law. He is co-editor of Professional Business
Communication and recently presented a paper, "Corporate Communication
in the Classroom" at the International Humanities Conference at Monash
University in Italy.
Jacqueline Layng, Ed.D. (Northern Illinois
University). Associate Professor Layng teaches courses in broadcast
and instructional television. Her research and instructional publication
include articles in Semiotic, Performance Improvement Quarterly,
and American Journal of Semiotics. Her most recent book is Media Design:
The Practice of Communication Technologies (Prentice Hall).
Brian Anse Patrick, Ph.D. (University of Michigan).
Assistant Professor Patrick's research interests focus on propaganda
and social mobilization. He has professional experience as a communication
consultant for state governments and non-profit organizations. His
first book is The National Rifle Association and the Media: The
Motivating Force of Negative Coverage. His research article "Vikings
as Rappers: The Icelandic Sagas Hip-Hop across 8 Mile" is forthcoming
in Journal of Popular Culture.
