News

VP of Journalism for Knight Foundation Discusses Effects of Social Media on Reporting

“If it isn’t right, it’s wrong.”  Jennifer Preston, the vice president of journalism for the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, quoted Bob Dylan to highlight the importance of truthfulness in journalism. She spoke with School of Communication students and faculty on Oct. 11 about the value of storytelling and the impact that social media has on reporting. The Knight Foundation is a national foundation, based in Miami, that invests in journalism and the arts in the cities where the Knight brothers once published newspapers. Preston joined the Knight [...]

PREP is Fashion Forward Helping MCHF with Fashion Gives Back

Miami Children’s Health Foundation (MCHF)’s 5th Annual Fashion Gives Back was a night of high-fashion and high-energy for all students of University of Miami’s Public Relations Experience Program (PREP). The event was held at the exquisite Moore Building, located in the heart of Miami’s Design District, on Thursday, Sept. 29.  Throughout the event, PREP students managed social media accounts, assisted photographers and videographers, as well as aided in the media check-in process. PREP newcomers Micaela Rooney and Abby Hemenway worked one-on-one with event photographers to collect names of those in [...]

DiCaprio’s ‘Before the Flood’ Screening at the Cosford Cinema

An advance screening of Before the Flood, a documentary on climate change, is coming to the Bill Cosford Cinema. From Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Fisher Stevens and Academy Award-winning actor, environmental activist, and U.N. Messenger of Peace, Leonardo DiCaprio, Before the Flood presents a riveting account of the dramatic changes now occurring around the world due to climate change, as well as the actions we as individuals and as a society can take to prevent catastrophic disruption of life on our planet. The film follows DiCaprio as he travels to five [...]

PREP’s First Special Olympics Awards Gala

University of Miami’s PREP students spent Saturday night, Sept. 24, working the Annual Special Olympics Sponsor an Athlete Awards Dinner Gala at the JW Marriot Marquis marking the first time PREP has teamed up with the organization. PREP students assisted photographers and worked with social media platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Periscope, for cocktail hour, the R-word table, and the red carpet. Of the 10 students working the event, this was the first gala for all but the two managers, Kaley Surman and Brianna Valdivia. “I really enjoyed the [...]

Koenigsberg and Nadal Interactive Media Center Opening at UM School of Communication

By Karina Valdes A state-of-the-art space for innovation and creativity is opening at the University of Miami School of Communication. The Koenigsberg and Nadal Interactive Media Center (IMC) is poised to transform experiential education at the University by giving students collaborative spaces and a fully-equipped multimedia agency to create, learn, and expand their portfolios. “Students need to have access to the tools that are driving creative work across communication industries,” says Gregory J. Shepherd, dean of the School of Communication. “But I also think it is essential that we provide [...]

PREP Students Assist in St. Jude’s 5K

University of Miami PREP students had an early yet rewarding start to their Saturday by assisting the staff of the South Florida office of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital with its annual St. Jude’s Run/Walk to End Childhood Cancer at the Miami-Dade County Fair Grounds on Sept. 24. St. Jude is one of the original partners for the PREP program and, as such, students in the course have been gaining valuable experience with the organization for more than six years. For the Run/Walk, PREP students assisted with runner check-in, social [...]

Build-a-Robot

Taylor Gandolfi graduated from the University of Miami in 2016 with a Master of Fine Arts in Interactive Media and an impressive portfolio. As part of the program’s capstone project, Gandolfi built her own robotic hand. After graduating from Eastern Illinois University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Graphic Design in 2014, Gandolfi decided that University of Miami School of Communication was the right fit for her. A physical computing and prototyping class sparked Gandolfi’s interest in robotics. Once she learned the basics, she was given physical computing-related projects [...]

MCHF 5K Keeps PREP Students On The Run

Students of University of Miami's Public Relations Experience Program (PREP) spent Saturday morning, Sept. 17, working the Miami Children's Health Foundation's (MCHF) 5k race at Coral Gables City Hall. School of Communication PREP students assisted with photographers and videographers and aided with content and imagery for MCHF’s social media platforms. PREP newcomers Molly Peot, Emely Amaya, and Eva Tahernia helped photographers and videographers capture crucial moments such as the race kick-off, the start, finish, and award ceremony. PREP veteran Rizelle Zabate, along with three new PREP members, Erika Price, Gines [...]

Comic Cure Celebrates One Year, PREP Part Of The Party

Comic Cure’s Mr. Multiple Personality was arguably one of the best and most important shows as it marked the one-year anniversary of the organization, and the School of Communication’s PREP students were part of the celebration on Friday, Sept. 16 at Miami Theater Center in Miami Shores. “It was a night of non-stop laughter,” according to managing director and co-founder of Comic Cure, Benjamin Leis. “Our year culminated with an incredible anniversary show and we, once again, could not have made this night possible without PREP. It was a perfect [...]

WLRN Anchor Sits Down with SoC Students

All eyes were on Christine DiMattei from WLRN Wednesday, Sept. 7, in Jim Virga’s and Julia Dallman’s Community Science class. DiMattei is the afternoon anchor for 91.3 WLRN, South Florida’s predominant public radio station. This is the second semester Community Science is offered, the first was during the fall 2015 semester. The topic of the course changes each year and this year it is music and the brain. Co-professors Virga and Dallman asked DiMattei to speak to the class and offer advice to students on their first project, an audio [...]