Communication Studies

Distinguished Scholar and Author, Ronald L. Jackson II, Joining Faculty Roster in Spring 2024

Distinguished scholar and award-winning author, Ronald L. Jackson II, is joining the University of Miami School of Communication faculty in spring 2024. Jackson, a former dean of Arts and Sciences, and past president of the National Communication Association (NCA) and Eastern Communication Association (ECA), comes to us from the University of Cincinnati where he was a Distinguished University Research Professor. He held several faculty appointments at Penn State University and University of Illinois prior to joining the faculty at University of Cincinnati. Additionally, he has been appointed as a Visiting Professor at University of [...]

2023-12-06T12:40:41-05:00December 6, 2023|Communication Studies, Journalism|

Q&A with a Health Communication Professor

By Karina Valdes Nicholas Carcioppolo, Ph.D., associate professor for the Department of Communication Studies at the University of Miami School of Communication, recently sat for a Q&A where he shared a bit about himself, the Communication Studies program, and his perspective on health communication. Q: What is Communication Studies? A: Despite the fact that it’s something we do daily, there is a lack of appreciation for the complexity and nuance of communication. One of my favorite definitions of communication uses the metaphor of flat-pack furniture. Much like flat-pack furniture, messages [...]

2023-11-06T21:07:06-05:00November 6, 2023|Communication Studies|

Debate Team Hosts First Miami Oceans Debates

By Barbara Gutierrez The tournament brought 14 schools and colleges to the University of Miami to engage in a verbal exchange about the pros and cons of aquaculture. Capitalizing on Miami’s unique proximity to the ocean and its vulnerability to the effects of climate change, the University of Miami Debate Team hosted its first Miami Oceans Debates during the weekend of April 22-23 to discuss if “Accelerated Open Ocean Aquaculture Would Be Desirable.” “We were interested in a topic about the ocean because we live here,” said David Steinberg, associate [...]

University of Miami Debate Team Wins Second ACC Championship

By Barbara Gutierrez Delphine Djomo and Iman Sami made up the team that defeated Wake Forest University in a virtual debate, bringing the trophy to Coral Gables. Besides winning the top spot as a duo, Djomo and Sami were each recognized as the top two individual debaters of the competition. For more than a year, University of Miami debaters Delphine Djomo and Iman Sami spent hours researching journals, scholarly magazines, and reams of documents to master topics for their upcoming debates. Inside the School of Communication debate room, they often [...]

Hurricane Debaters Continue Winning Ways

By David Steinberg & Patrick Waldinger On November 5-8, the University of Miami Debate Team traveled to The University of Vermont in Burlington to compete in the Fall Championship of the Social Justice Debates. This was the first face to face competition for the UM Team since the COVID-19 pandemic shut down travel in March of 2020. The team of Delphine Leoue Ngoko Djomo and Iman Sami won three of their four preliminary debates on the topic, “The adoption of a mandatory racial desegregation policy for K-12 public schools is [...]

2021-11-12T11:04:35-05:00November 12, 2021|Communication Studies|

UM Debate Team Wins Two Championships

On the weekend of October 22-24, the University of Miami Debate team competed in and won two online debate tournaments. The UM Debate Intercollegiate Debate Program, unlike most college debate programs, competes in multiple debate formats. U Debate is a broad-based program open to all undergraduate students, offering a variety of debate styles and welcoming student debaters of all experience levels. Competing in the policy tournament hosted by Wayne State University, UM debaters Mollie Blank and Leah Castaneda won the event’s Novice Championship by winning the judges’ decisions in all [...]

2021-11-09T13:29:37-05:00November 9, 2021|Communication Studies|

UM Debaters Advance to Semifinal Round at the Social Justice Debates Fall Opener

On Oct. 21, University of Miami debaters Delphine Djomo and Iman Sami advanced into the semifinal debates at the Social Justice Debates Fall Opener, hosted online by The George Washington University. The two debaters qualified for the semifinals in impressive fashion, winning all four of their preliminary debates against outstanding competition including The University of Vermont, Morehouse College, Howard University, the U.S. Air Force Academy, and The George Washington University, among others. In semifinals, the debating duo lost the decision to the eventual tournament champions from Cal Poly, San Luis [...]

2021-11-02T14:14:58-04:00November 2, 2021|Communication Studies|

New Faculty Feature: Dr. Kallia O. Wright

By Bianca De Paz Originally from Jamaica, Dr. Kallia O. Wright recently joined the School of Communication faculty as an assistant professor and qualitative researcher specializing in intercultural health communication. More specifically, she studies communication about women’s reproductive health. Before finding her research interest, she completed her master’s and doctoral studies at Ohio University. Today, her research focuses on Black maternal health experiences and communicative experiences regarding endometriosis. Dr. Wright says she is thrilled to be a part of the School of Communication and is teaching two courses – Communication Theory (COS [...]

2021-10-26T10:03:46-04:00October 26, 2021|Communication Studies|

University of Miami Advances into Social Justice Debates Finals

On Feb. 19-21, the University of Miami Debate Team competed in the championship tournament of the 2020-2021 Social Justice Debates advancing to the final round. The Social Justice Debates aspire to promote productive and rigorous debates, challenging current and future thought leaders to consider issues of justice in relation to the distribution of wealth, opportunity, and privilege in U.S. society. Debating the issue of Defunding Police and Abolishing Policing, UM student debaters Delphine Leoue Ngoko Djomo and Micah Council advanced into the final round of competition, finishing the tournament in [...]

2021-02-22T13:34:19-05:00February 22, 2021|Communication Studies, School of Communication|