FALL 2009

School of Mass Communication Newsletter

Loyola’s Batemanpublic relations team wonfirst place in the spring withtheir campaign “The BlingStarts Here,” marking thesecond straight year theSchool of Mass Communi-cation has walked away fromthe national competitionwith top honors.

The annualcompetition, organized bythe Public Relations StudentSociety of America, asksteams from universities totackle a full-scale publicrelations campaign fornonprofit organizations. Thisyear, students worked with

the Consumer Bankers Association to raise collegeawareness among public school students. JanineSheedy, Heather Miranne, Sarah Mackota,Ashley Sutton and Vicki Voelker comprised the2009 team. Their campaign focused on showing highschool students the correlation between attendingcollege and maximizing earning potential.

The Loyola team used “The Bling Starts Here”to convey a message that dedication to school willpay off in tangible rewards. The group launched thecampaign at inner-city schools in the New Orleansarea, including Warren Easton, Cohen and St.Bernard Middle schools, talking with students,teachers, and parents about preparing for college.

“We were really able to make them see howimportant a college education is, and we were ableto show them how they can attain it,” team memberand communication senior Heather Miranne said.

“We helped students understand that theirpersonal stories can make great scholarship essaysand they shouldn’t be afraid to tell their story,”Miranne said.

The Loyola University Bateman Team has ahistory of high honors in this competition, havingplaced first nationally in 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005and 2008, and second in 2001, 2004 and 2006.Public Relations Professor J. Cathy Rogers, Ph.D.,supervises the public relations sequence and advisesthe Bateman competitors.

“This competition charge was extremely timelyfor New Orleans as it experiences changes andimprovements in the public school system. For theteam to be a national finalist is great recognition forthe work they did to inspire hope in a group ofeighth and ninth graders,” Rogers said. “The factthat these students are national finalists pales incomparison to the children’s lives that theytouched—some of whom actually said they hadnever given life after high school a thought untilmeeting this team.”

For her work leading her students in this andother arenas, Rogers was lauded by the PublicRelations Society of America’s New Orleanschapter at their annual fall banquet. She wasawarded the Preeminent Plate Spinner award.

“Our awards ceremony is an annual celebrationof talent, research, strategic thinking, andcreativity,” John Deveney, president ofPRSA New Orleans, said. “We give awards to thevery best public relations practitioners in our marketfor their exemplary work.” But the Plate SpinnerAward is reserved for “an exemplary leader — apractitioner and leader who goes beyond their workand makes a difference,” he said.

Deveney, who graduated from Loyola in 1988,especially praised Rogers for her continued successwith Loyola’s Bateman Team. Team members werealso honored by PRSA. They were given the Silver Anvil for their campaign, this timecompeting against seasoned professionals in theNew Orleans area.

Rogers’ record advising Bateman students is one to be coveted,” Deveney said. “It’s simply

The winning 2009 Bateman Team was comprised of Heather Miranne, Janine Sheedy, adviser Cathy Rogers,Sarah Mackota, Ashley Sutton and Vicki Voelker.

Public relations students,professor shine with “Bling”By Michael Caruso, mass communication junior

See BLING, page 7

2

Loyola University’s Travel and Culture Journalismclass criss-crossed the Mississippi Delta last spring tocapture —in stories and pictures — the rich culture thatgave birth to the blues.

The 12 students, led by Professor Michael Perlstein,spent nine days visiting cities from Memphis to Vicksburgand delving into rich history, thick accents, uniquecuisine, and distinctive Delta blues sound that eventuallysparked rock ‘n’ roll.

By day, the group visited museums, historic sites,famous churches, and other cultural touchstones of theDelta. By night, they sought out the juke joints and bluesclubs, experiencing firsthand how Delta blues becameworld-renowned.

In Crystal Springs, Miss., students visited StevenJohnson, the grandson of legendary bluesman RobertJohnson, and learned about his efforts to preserve hisgrandfather’s legacy through a new museum and nonprofitfoundation.

Students joined locals and listened to DJ DoctorTissue’s old school funk and R&B tracks at the Po’Monkey Lounge in Merigold, Miss., a rickety club knownas the last of the original Delta juke joints. This hole-in-the-wall was “made of scrap wood, sheet metal, and evenplastic all nailed together,” student Garrett Cleland said.

In Cleveland, Miss., Dr. Luther Brown, director of theDelta Center for Culture and Learning at Delta StateUniversity, talked about the Delta’s cultural history andefforts to preserve its stark beauty and global significance.

A visit to the Delta Blues Arts and Education programat the Delta Blues Museum in Clarksdale, Miss.,

introduced the class to the past and future generations ofblues music. The after-school program is a place for youngand old musicians to play music, learn new skills, andshare stories.

Cleland said, “My favorite day trip was to the Sunstudios in Memphis, Tenn., where great performers likeElvis and Johnny Cash made their first recordings. Iremember thinking history was made right where I amstanding. It was magical.”

The most impressive part of this whole adventure wasthe journalism that came out of it. The students publishedarticles and photographs of their findings onwww.neworleans.com and www.newsplink.com. Cleland even did some freelance writing for a local music magazine.

Another highlight was the newly opened B.B. KingBlues Museum in Indianola, Miss., a state-of-the-artinteractive history museum. “The museum was differentthan any other museum we visited. The interactive naturemade it the most exciting and gave me hope for the futureof blues music,” Cleland said.

“Since the trip, I’ve been listening to Buddy Guy, Nina Simone, Etta James, Elvis, Chuck Berry, Ray Charles.It’s music with substance. I love it,” student KatieUrbaszewski said.

“I’ve never been on such an educational trip that wasso much fun. The trip was such a good mix of live music,hearing musicians tell their stories, museums, history, food.I don’t think I’ll ever get a chance to learn about musicthat way again,” Urbaszewski said.

2 Loyola University New Orleans School of Mass Communication

Students from the Travel and Culture Journalism class take notes andphotos while visiting the gravesite of blues legend Robert Johnsonoutside of Baptist Town, Mississippi. Photo by Professor Michael Perlstein.

A photo of a blues guitar player by Loyola student ShaneHennessey was one of dozens of photographs and storiesproduced and published by the Travel and Culture Journalismclass during a nine-day journey through the Mississippi Delta.

Writing students become blues travelersBy Janece Bell and Renee Dottolo, mass communication sophomores

Loyola’s library staff is launching a project todigitize nearly 85 years of Loyola’s student newspaper,The Maroon, online.

The Maroon’s online archives now date back toabout 2003, so this project will also make each weeklyissue of the newspaper between 1923 and 2003available to students, faculty, staff and readers online.

“There is no other single resource that you can goto that’s going to show you a snapshot of the first draftof history for every single week in the life of Loyolathan our archives,” Michael Giusti ’00, The Maroonadviser, said.

“So having that online and searchable is going tobe an absolutely crucial asset to anyone who wants todo any kind of research or any journalist who wants togo back and look at the work they did or their parentsor grandparents did in the 85 years of The Maroon,”he said. “It’s almost purely a historical reference, ahistorical asset, it’s not meant for driving traffic oranything,” Giusti said.

The project will cost at least $50,000 tocomplete; the library is seeking funds through tax-deductible donations.

“The problem they have run into is that up untilthe 1970s, we were printing The Maroon on broadsheets of paper and broadsheet scanners are hard tocome by. There is only one at the university so theyare having to outsource it to another company,”Giusti said.

“Plus if you’re looking at the scope of the project,it’s 16 page-issues on average, 24 issues in a typicalyear and 85 years; do the multiplication. That’s a lotof pages to scan,” Giusti said.

3www.css.loyno.edu/masscomm/

85 years of The Maroon going online By Craig Malveaux, mass communication sophomore

For more information or to make a donation to the project, contact: Liz Cashman,outreach and development coordinator, J. Edgar and Louise S. Monroe Library,Loyola University New Orleans, 6363 St. Charles Ave. New Orleans, La. 70118, (504) 864-7045

Maroon writers rack up awards By Melanie Ziems, mass communication junior

Several Loyola students were honored by the Press Club of New Orleans over the summer for their work with the Loyola newspaper, The Maroon.The annual awards recognize outstanding journalismby New Orleans area newspaper, magazine andbroadcast outlets.

Ramon Antonio Vargas ’08 won a first-placebest column award for his “Rack ‘em, Pack ‘em”column in The Maroon, as well as first place for bestsports feature for an article on teen boxer RoyMiddleton, III, that appeared in The Times-Picayune,where he began working part-time while finishing hisstudies at Loyola. Vargas was competing with seasonedprofessionals from around the region.

Loyola students Jessica Williams, Tom Macom, Rachel Strassel and Andrea Castillo also wonsecond-place, third-place, and honorable mentionawards for their work with The Maroon.

Loyola sophomore and Maroon photo editorKevin Zansler was one of three journalism students in the greater New Orleans area who was awardeda Press Club scholarship.

In a separate journalism competition held bythe Society of Professional Journalists, fourMaroon staffers received awards at the regionallevel of the organization’s national competition.

Jessica Williams won first place in generalnews reporting; Katie Urbaszewski won firstplace in online news reporting; Rachel Strasselwon first and second place in featurephotography; Kevin Zansler won second place ingeneral news photography.

Press Clubof

New orleaNs

Loyola University New Orleans School of Mass Communication4

The Center for the Study of New Orleans is a newcenter dedicated to promoting scholarly research andreflection on the history, politics, culture andenvironment of New Orleans. It is headed by School ofMass Communication professor Leslie Parr, Ph.D.

The center, housed in the College of Social Sciences,holds public events that explore New Orleans’ uniqueculture by drawing on the expertise of nationally knownNew Orleans scholars.

A Loyola minor in the study of New Orleans will alsobe offered. Students will complete courses across theLoyola curriculum that support the center’s mission.

The first event featured acclaimed author Jason Berryand musicians Dr. Michael White and John Boutté andwas attended by more than 500 people in September.

During “An Evening of Jazz and History,” Berry toldpoignant, sometimes funny, sometimes serious, anecdotesgathered from years researching the culture of NewOrleans jazz for his book, Up from the Cradle of Jazz.

In between stories, White, a Xavier Universityprofessor and clarinetist, led Boutté and the band in songsrepresenting the styles of music Berry described.

“This center will not only serve the needs of ourstudents, it will be of great value to the community. It’simportant to us to highlight the importance of New

Orleans as the city continues its recovery,” Parr said.The idea for the center was born as Loyola professors

talked informally about the rich array of possibilities NewOrleans offers for scholarly investigation, she said.

“I don’t know if we got the idea for the minor or forthe programming first, but it all just jelled,” Parr said.“This center came together with the help of so manypeople. We have an impressive steering committee thatrepresents disciplines throughout the university. Theyhave put in many hours of planning for these events.”

Events to come include “New Orleans in the ’60s: ATime of Change.” A panel of distinguished scholars willdiscuss segregation, integration, and emerging identitygroups during that turbulent decade. It is set for Jan. 20 inNunemaker Auditorium on campus.

“Taken Against Their Will: Kidnappers, Detectivesand Slaves,” another panel discussion, will be held onMarch 24 at 7 p.m., also in Nunemaker. Historians willdiscuss two infamous 19th-century Louisiana kidnapping cases.

“We think the concept of this center with its focus ona single city is unique. New Orleans is one of the few citiesin the world that can sustain such intense study.”

The plan, too, is for Loyola to be able to dosomething meaningful for New Orleans, Parr said.

New area of study draws applause By Laura Beatty, marketing coordinator, School of Mass Communication

CENTER FOR THE STUDY OF NEW ORLEANS

Author Jason Berry told stories gathered from years researchingthe culture of New Orleans jazz for his book, Up from the Cradleof Jazz, at the inaugural event of the Center for the Study of New Orleans. Dr. Michael White, a Xavier University professorand clarinetist, led John Boutté and the band in songsrepresenting the styles of music Berry described.

Playwright and Loyola English professor John Biguenet, left,moderated the Center for the Study of New Orleans’ second event,

“What is New Orleans?” The event included presentations from LarryPowell, a Tulane University history professor; New York Timesreporter and New Orleans native Susan Saulny; and Richard

Campanella, author of Bienville’s Dilemma.

5www.css.loyno.edu/masscomm/

Graduate lived SMC’s beginning

CENTER FOR THE STUDY OF NEW ORLEANS

By Hedda Asmussen, mass communication sophomore

Paul Steen ’50, a Loyola alumnusliving in Montana, received a copy of thisnewsletter from spring and decided to contact the university and share hisstory of becoming a successful journalistbefore Loyola even offered journalism asa full major.

During Steen’s student time atLoyola, there were not enough journalismcourses offered, so he split his majorbetween journalism and history. He wasthe executive director of both The Maroonand The Wolf.

The Maroon “helps you be a writer,”he said. Every journalism major should beworking for The Maroon, he said. Aftergraduation, Steen became the university’spublic relations director and head of thejournalism department.

Steen describes the differencebetween The Maroon facilities now andthen as “The difference between one ofChristopher Columbus’ voyages and apleasure cruise to Caribbean ports.”

The Maroon office was located inwhat seemed like two dorm rooms puttogether, he said. Steen has recentlyvisited Loyola for a class reunion andadmired the current offices.

Steen witnessed the development ofthe journalism program and recalls a timeno more than five or six journalismmajors graduated in a year. “It was still agood field to practice writing, better thanan English degree,” he said.

After his time at Loyola, Steenstarted Group Seven, an advertisingcompany. In 1978, he was awarded thesilver medal from the AmericanAdvertising Federation in recognition ofcareer contributions to the profession ofadvertising.

Steen said his philosophy is “a writeris only as good as he or she is read. Inother words, read, read, read.”

New Orleans Magazine extols mass communication graduatesBy Catherine Koppel, associate director of Public Affairs

Two mass communication graduateswere featured by New Orleans Magazine asTop Ten Female Achievers in the July2009 issue.

Amy Boyle Collins ’96 was laudedfor her role as executive director of theYoung Leadership Council.

Chimene Grant Connor ’90 waspraised for her work as director ofadvertising and tourism marketing for theAudubon Nature Institute.

Connor coordinates advertising forAudubon Zoo, Audubon Aquarium of theAmericas, Entergy IMAX Theatre, andAudubon Insectarium; she also serves as aboard member and as the liaison to theNew Orleans Tourism MarketingCorporation.

“I also work to keep Auduboninvolved in the tourism arena, byparticipating in programs of the NOTMC,the Convention and Visitors Bureau, theNew Orleans Multicultural TourismNetwork, [and] the Louisiana TravelPromotion Association, among others,”she told the magazine.

Collins was recognized for her workin leading and growing the YLC, whichpromotes volunteerism and civicinvolvement among young professionals.Collins is responsible for fundraising,building community relationships, and iscredited with increasing YLC membershipto 1,300 after a post-Katrina low of 700.

“I do not take sole credit for any of these accomplishments,” she said in thearticle. “The thing I love about the YLCis that everything is a team effort.”

Paul Steen in his adagency days.

Paul Steen today.

Amy Boyle Collins

ChimeneGrant

Connor

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT

6 Loyola University New Orleans School of Mass Communication

Students, professionals meet and mingle at networking eventBy Leigh Pechon, mass communication junior

Loyola University’s School of MassCommunication hosted its second NetworkingNight with more than 90 students attending tocollect names and business cards, distributeresumes, and mingle with professionals in theirareas of interest.

Event organizers opened Loyola’s doors tomore than a dozen local communications-relatedcompanies—including Deveney Communications,Horizon Entertainment, Gulf RestorationNetwork and many others—to provide studentsfrom Loyola and eight other local universities tocome together in hopes of finding futureinternships and jobs.

“I wanted to find out what opportunities therewere for students, and to get my name out topublic relations professionals,” said AshleyStevens, a music major who recently decided tobecome a double major in communication. “I wanted to make sure I was taking the initiative.”

It worked.

“I overheard a conversation where aninternship was available, so I walked up and usedmy new public relations skills and… got aninternship on campus.” Stevens is working in theOffice of Public Affairs at Loyola.

The event itself was also an opportunity forLoyola students to show off their skills. Organizedand staged by Professor Valerie Andrews’ eventplanning class, students lined up 14 sponsors,including Coca-Cola, which donated beverages, andLa Madeleine Restaurant, which donated 12 desserttrays, according to sophomore public relations majorCourtney Mattison. She and several othercommunication students worked throughout theevent handing out food and beverages.

Andrews said her 17 students split into threeteams: promotions/publicity, sponsorship andvenue. Each played a critical role in making theevent run smoothly. Andrews said she incorporatedpublic relations theory and principles into theplanning of Networking Night so students wouldgain a better understanding of the issue.

STUDENTS IN THE COMMUNITY

Students from the school’s event planning class welcome guests to Networking Night. Students had a chance to meet professional members of thecommunity, get advice and even job hunt. Left to right are: Kelsey Jones, Rebecca Molyneaux, Amanda Wood and Dominic Moncada.

Thanks to our Networking Nightsponsors:

Roly Poly

Coca-Cola

Le Madeline

Fresco's

Cheesecake Bistro

Quizno's

Krispy Kreme

Pita Pit

Kupcake Factory

Hubig's Pies

Rouse's

Christy's Flowers

Hike for KaTREEna

Whole Foods

7www.css.loyno.edu/masscomm/

unprecedented and will continue to beunprecedented. No one will ever matchthis record.”

Christine Albert ’99, is associatevice president of marketing at TouroInfirmary. “Bateman is just one way ourstudents can shine,” she said. “But thesuccess is really related to thecurriculum, to the competency instilledin the students. The public relationssequence that Dr. Rogers has in placereally positions Loyola students forsuccess,” she said. Albert herself istestimony to that success. At the awards banquet, she won a “Great Ballof Fire” award for her professionalattitude, and Touro’s various campaignswon six awards.

Bookstore touts faculty authorsBy Masako Hirsch, masscommunication sophomore

The reopening of the Loyolabookstore in September marked theinauguration of a tradition, the facultyauthor spotlight. The first faculty authorspotlighted was mass communicationprofessor S.L. Alexander, Ph.D.

Alexander has written two bookson the role of the media in thecourtroom, Covering the Courts: AHandbook for Journalists (2nd ed., 2003)and Media and American Courts (2004).

Both books are used as textbooks atLoyola for classes that are electives forstudents studying communication andfor those who are taking the new legalstudies minor. Her books are also used atseveral other universities, including theUniversity of Indiana and University ofMassachusetts.

“(Covering the Courts) is used byabout a dozen schools in the country,”Alexander said.

According to Ivon Fascio, managerof the bookstore, the faculty spotlightwill be an ongoing feature. “We want tospotlight one of the faculty every monthin our store,” Fascio said. Next up is Dr.Glenn Hymel of the psychologydepartment.

BLING, from page 1

Service to others, now just a click awayBy Erica Colbenson, mass communication sophomore

The School of Mass Communicationhas a history of community service,incorporating real public relationsprojects for nonprofits in class curriculumfor decades. Now, getting considered forthat service is even easier.

Over the summer, faculty membersDr. Cathy Rogers and ProfessorValerie Andrews hosted four seminarsfor nonprofit community organizationsthat ultimately produced a new programthat streamlines how the organizationscan engage the School of MassCommunication in campaigns andprojects. Through an in-house grant,Rogers and Andrews gathered input fromnonprofit organizations and set their planinto action through the school’s website.

Nonprofit groups seeking Loyola’shelp can now click on a link called“Request for Proposal” on the school’shome page (css.loyno.edu/masscomm/). The link is the first step inengaging mass communication students innonprofit projects. The projects can rangefrom branding with advertising slogansand logos to brochures, press kits, eventplanning, fundraising, and othercommunications challenges. The clientsare chosen based upon a host of criteria,including the group’s track record ofcommunity service and whether the

proposed project is a good match forstudents.

One of the program’s largest clients,the American Heart Association, iscollaborating with students after applyingthrough the new process.

“The American Heart Associationwas the first client we selected throughthis process. It shows the process really isworking,” Andrews said. The publicrelations campaign class is providing theAmerican Heart Association with acampaign titled “Power to End Stroke”that will take effect next fiscal year.

Wendee Bloom, senior director ofmarketing and communications for theAmerican Heart Association said, “As anonprofit organization, we have limitedresources and Rogers did a great jobmaking the program easy and effective.”

Although the main focus indeveloping the Request for Proposalprocess is reaching out to clients, thecomputerized process also helps students,the School of Mass Communication, andthe university.

“Our goals included enhancing thestudents’ education, making LoyolaUniversity an active member in thecommunity and adhering to the Jesuitmission of service to others,” Andrews said.

STUDENTS IN THE COMMUNITY

Prof. Valerie Andrews and Dr. Cathy Rogers facilitated meetings over the summer that resultedin a more formal procedure for nonprofits to engage Loyola mass communication students towork on projects. Above, Kristian Buchanan, left, chats with Andrews, center, and Rogers.

School of Mass CommunicationCollege of Social Sciences6363 St. Charles Avenue, Box 201New Orleans, LA 70118-6143

www.css.loyno.edu/masscomm/

NonprofitOrganizationU.S. PostagePAIDNew Orleans, LAPermit No. 213

School of Mass CommunicationNewsletter Staff Laura Beatty, Editor

labeatty@loyno.edu

Contributing Writers/Photographers:School of Mass Communication Students

Giving to Loyola

Your gift is needed now more thanever. Through the support of alumni,parents, and friends like you, Loyolawill be able to continue offering aquality, Jesuit education.

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Where are you now?If you are an alumnus/na or a friend of the School of Mass Communication, we areinterested in knowing where you are and what you are doing. Please take a few minutesto complete the form below and return it to the School of Mass Communication, LoyolaUniversity New Orleans, 6363 St. Charles Ave., Box 201, New Orleans, LA 70118. Or, visit our website at www.loyno.edu/masscomm, click “School Newsletter” to fill out the form online.

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