Class of 2020 Commencement events to be held Sept. 17-19

Syracuse University will host a Commencement ceremony—delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic—and other celebratory events for the Class of 2020 during the weekend of Sept. 17–19.  

Commencement will be held Sept. 19 at 10 a.m. at the Stadium. This University-wide ceremony, where Syracuse University Chancellor and President Kent Syverud will formally confer degrees, is for all undergraduate, graduate and doctoral candidates. Doors open at 8 a.m.

Following Commencement, all 2020 Newhouse graduates and their families are invited to join Dean Mark J. Lodato and the faculty and staff for a celebratory reception. The event will include a dean’s welcome, recognition of participating graduates and an opportunity to reconnect with faculty. A precise time and location will be announced soon; stay tuned for details.

For more information about Commencement activities for the Class of 2020, see the event listing.

Newhouse Associate Professor Anthony Adornato Named Fulbright Specialist to Kosovo 

The BDJ department chair, Adornato will travel in summer 2025 to the southeast European country for the nearly three-week Fulbright Specialist assignment. He will train staff at Radio Television of Kosovo in new trends in media and communication.  

The Specialist Program, which is part of the larger Fulbright Program, was established in 2001 by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. It is designed to provide opportunities for short-term academic collaboration (two to six weeks) for faculty and professionals from the United States.  

Previously, Adornato was named a Fulbright Scholar in 2020 and spent a semester teaching and conducting research at universities in Milan. Adornato explored the impact of mobile and social media on journalism and journalism education in Italy.  

Newhouse Impact: Fall Symposium Set for Dec. 6; Research and Creative Activity Updates

The next Newhouse Impact Symposium will take place Friday, Dec. 6. Held in the fall and spring each year, the symposium showcases and celebrates the school’s wide range of student and faculty research and creative activities.

The Newhouse School’s Office of Research and Creative Activity sponsors the symposium. Visit the event listing for more information, including a list of presenters.

Newhouse Impact Podcast

A collaboration between WAER and the Newhouse School, the podcast provides another platform to share the research and creative work of students, faculty and staff across a range of topics in media and communications. Recent episodes include:

• “How concerned should you be about AI-generated content in media and communications?” Faculty guests: Jason Davis and RC Concepción.
• “Extended Reality: What are we seeing in immersive media and what is it doing to us?” Faculty guest: Makana Chock.
• “Women’s opportunities in sports media: On the rise?” Faculty guest: Olivia Stomski.

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Recent accolades, highlights and notes

Jon Glass co-wrote a book “Occupancy 250: Fans, Bands and Fried Chicken: The Stories of Einstein A Go-Go.”

Arien Rozelle, along with several Newhouse students, hosted a panel discussion at the PRSA Northeast District conference.

Jason Davis talked on a podcast about developing tools to detect what’s real and what’s fake when it comes to content posted online and on social media.

Nick Bowman and Dan Pacheco are part of the interdisciplinary team assisting with a project that engages refugee and immigrant youth in immersive STEM storytelling.

Nausheen Husain led a data journalism project that investigates the expansion of secretive units in the federal prison system.  

Anthony Adornato was named a Fulbright Specialist to train journalists in Kosovo on best practices for reporting across platforms.

Brad Horn wrote an article on global anti-doping.

Newhouse School faculty members and doctoral students are participating in the National Communication Association convention in New Orleans, Louisiana. 

Bryce Whitwam was featured on the podcast “Sinica.”

Doug Barrett’s monograph, “Experimenting the Human: Art, Music, and the Contemporary Posthuman,” was reviewed in the peer-reviewed journal Music & Letters.

The ElectionGraph project at the Institute for Democracy, Journalism and Citizenship released findings on negative ads on Facebook and Instagram.

Roy Gutterman, director of the Tully Center for Free Speech, was the featured speaker at Finger Lakes Community Colleege for the Oct. 23 presentation, “Free Speech and Title VI: Implications for Higher Education Institutions.”

Jason Davis discussed fake news headlines in an CBS News article.

‘Surprise!’ Newhouse Alumni Release 2nd Independent Feature Film

For their next film, Newhouse alumni Rosie Grace and Nate Hapke focused on a surprise. 

Graduates of the television, radio and film (TRF) program in 2014, Grace and Hapke couldn’t wait to get to their next project after debuting their first feature, “Two Dash One One,” in 2022.   

“We’re not people who wait for the next opportunity,” said Hapke, an Emmy Award-winning director and filmmaker. “We make our own opportunities.”  

That ambition resulted in their second feature, “Surprise!,” which was acquired by Freestyle Digital Media and released on Aug. 13, 2024. The film tells the story of a surprise birthday party-that’s actually an engagement party-that gets repeatedly and hilariously derailed by the attendees. Hapke directed, produced, wrote and acted in the film; Grace wrote and produced. 

“Surprise!” is the second feature film released by their independent production company small/TALL Productions, and they’re currently in production on their third feature film, “We’re Bad at This.”

A TRF 235 course at Newhouse brought Hapke and Grace together, and a Newhouse LA study away semester—Hapke attended in 2012 and Grace in 2013—was instrumental in helping set them up for success in their filmmaking careers, Grace said. The foundational lessons—whether it was production scheduling techniques courtesy of Newhouse LA director Robin Howard, screenwriting or how the film industry functions—stick with Grace to this day.

Those skills came in handy during “Surprise!,” which takes on a more lighthearted tone than “Two Dash One One.” In searching for a story for “Surprise!”, Hapke and Grace looked towards their personal lives for inspiration. The duo, who were dating at the time of filming (and are now married), said they felt the pressure of engagement and marriage from the people around them. They channeled those dynamics into their screenplay.  

“The whole movie is about communication, which means we have miscommunication, which leads to so much humor and drama for the story,” Grace said. 

With a story in place, the script and cast for “Surprise!” came about organically. Much like “Two Dash One One,” the production team was overflowing with Syracuse University and Newhouse School alumni, including their frequent collaborator and TRF program alumnus Nicholas Ferreiro ’15, the film’s editor and director of photography.

“Nick and I have been working together since I was a sophomore [at Syracuse] and he was a freshman,” Hapke said. “It’s amazing to think back to when we were first in that Newhouse classroom [for an extracurricular,] and all these people have a shared interest and desire, but we don’t necessarily have the skill set. So let’s learn the skill set together, and here we are 13 years later. ” 

And more than a decade later, Hapke still enjoys the hurdles that sometimes come with independent filmmaking.

“I love the challenge of pushing the boulder up the hill because I would rather do [that] and fail, then not do because I was scared of failing,” he said. 

Those challenges included the “Surprise!” production shutting down for a few months due to multiple positive COVID-19 tests; Hapke and Grace faced similar struggles with their film “Two Dash One One,” which was written and shot during the pandemic. 

The key to navigating the challenge was “really making sure everybody’s bought in and communicating what the stakes are,” Hapke said. Once the team was on the same page about best practices and pre-production, they moved forward with “Surprise!”

 Hapke said he hopes that the drive that he and Grace have as independent filmmakers inspire Newhouse students to create their own opportunities.

“Making a short film is a lot of work, but you don’t make it in a day,” he said. “You start today. You pick your shooting date and you break it up into a million pieces and you figure out ‘what can I do today to start that ball rolling up the hill?’” 

Added Grace, “Make something, have the experience of creating, and get to walk away knowing you did it.” 

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“Surprise!” is available for viewing on AT&T U-Verse, DirecTV, Dish Network and Sling TV, Vubiquity, Hoopla, Amazon, Apple TV,  Microsoft (Xbox), Google Play, and YouTube Movies. The DVD is now available via Amazon.com, Bestbuy.com, Walmart.com, and barnesandnoble.com.

Newhouse Alumna Serves Hometown Community Through Work With the Buffalo Bills Foundation

Growing up on a cattle farm in Alden, New York, a rural community 30 minutes east of Buffalo, gave Morgan Foss G’20 an understanding of agriculture, food production and life on a farm.

The master’s degree in public relations Foss graduated with from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications gave her a strong foundation of communication, writing, relationship-building and strategic thinking.

Today, she puts it all together as program manager for the Buffalo Bills Foundation, the nonprofit arm of her hometown football franchise. The foundation supports a wide breadth of initiatives dedicated to improving the quality of life in the Western New York region, but its primary focus is addressing child hunger, food access and supporting healthy eating.

“Buffalo is the sixth most segregated metropolitan region in the country and 1 in 5 children—1 in 8 people overall—are food insecure,” Foss says, illuminating the importance of her work with the foundation. “There are many food deserts within the city and in surrounding communities, despite there being many agricultural areas, like where I grew up.”

The Bills Foundation supports several nonprofit organizations and programs that uplift the food system and provide healthy foods to underserved families. Foss is one of three employees who liaise with the foundation’s board of directors to respond to funding requests and direct resources to the many hunger-fighting organizations doing the work.

“The Bills organization has such a large platform and influence in the Western New York region. So in this position, I can connect the community’s needs with resources and bring awareness to specific causes.”

A Pandemic-Inspired Pivot

While Foss was always drawn to nonprofit and community-based work, she went to Newhouse intent on entering entertainment public relations after completing an undergraduate degree from the University of Alabama.

In the spring of 2020, she was planning to visit Los Angeles for the entertainment immersion experience and was pursuing an internship in Nashville with Sony Music Entertainment, and then … we all know what happened next.

“All of a sudden I was finishing up my master’s degree, teaching undergraduate courses online and doing a virtual internship all from my childhood bedroom while simultaneously working on my family farm,” Foss says.

Not only were her personal plans put on hold, but the entire PR and entertainment industry was a question mark as the COVID-19 pandemic took hold. With so much uncertainty, Foss began looking for opportunities closer to home, ultimately leading to her dream career with the Bills.

“It was a crazy time and while many businesses closed, my family farm and the agriculture industry trudged forward to ensure food was produced and stocked on shelves,” says Foss. “The pandemic certainly changed the trajectory of my career, but I’m grateful for it.” She emphasizes that her experience in 2020 built life skills that have wildly benefited her career—including adaptability, organization, being innovative with her time and space and the ability to build relationships through a screen.

A Newhouse Creative Advertising Student Created a Solution to AI Misinformation. It Was So Innovative, It Won a Clio Award.

In an era when artificial intelligence floods our social media feeds with content that makes the fake seem real, how are people supposed to discern what is true? Creative advertising student Brooke Hirsch ’24 came up with a solution to this problem.

As misinformation surges online, Hirsch became increasingly concerned with how AI has made the creation and spread of fake news easier than ever. Her innovative solution? Use the same technology driving misinformation to combat it.

Hirsch wondered, “what better way to protect people from false AI content than using AI to detect it?” This thought sparked her idea, which she cleverly titled “AI vs. AI.” Her two-minute case study video shows how this idea would work.

This past May, 10 student ideas from around the world won a 2024 Clio Award for Student Innovation. Hirsch’s idea was one of them. Winning a Clio as a student or a professional in the industry is one of advertising’s highest honors, and Hirsch earned this distinction while a student in the creative track for advertising majors at the Newhouse School at Syracuse University.

“Brooke Hirsch created an innovative AI idea that would help move the needle on protecting people from believing deceptive AI content,” said Mel White, a creative advertising professor of practice at Newhouse. “This student work was created after I gave a presentation in my Portfolio III course on how to effectively use emerging technologies for brands. Our creative advertising students learn how to create original ideas utilizing emerging technologies to solve problems, all so that they are prepared to work as copywriters or art directors in the advertising industry. Brooke nailed it. This idea is excellent.”

The Story Behind Her Win: How Did Hirsch Create “AI vs. AI”?

After her presentation on emerging technologies, White tasked her Portfolio III students with this brief: Create a digital idea using new technology for a global brand that solves a problem.

When brainstorming problems to solve, Hirsch recalled recent news coverage about how the deceptive use of AI is tricking people into believing that fake news is real. Coverage of AI’s problematic usage led Hirsch to pick AI-generated misinformation as the problem to address.

“I’m deeply concerned about the impact of AI,” Hirsch said. “That’s when I started thinking—what if we could turn AI against itself? I know that AI has the potential to be a powerful tool for social good. This led me to explore how we could harness it to combat the problem it’s created. That’s how the idea for ‘AI vs. AI’ was born.”

Hirsch chose The New York Times (NYT) as her brand because of its demonstrated commitment to safeguarding the truth. As Hirsch developed her idea, White helped her think about how each component of the digital idea would appear in the NYT app, asking “How will this feature work?” and “What’s the user experience from start to finish?” White also guided Hirsch to decide on the creative name of her idea.

“Professor White’s superpower is knowing when an idea is good,” Hirsch said. “The sentence to pit AI against AI was somewhere in one of my write-ups. It was just something that I wrote, and she was like, that should be the name. That should be everywhere. It was just a sentence that I threw out there. For that to be the crux of the idea, I needed her to tell me that.”

As Hirsch worked on the idea, her Portfolio III mentor Carl Peterson gave her helpful feedback. In Portfolio III, White uses her industry connections to pair each student team with a creative director from a top ad agency to receive additional feedback on their work. Peterson, an award-winning creative director at Mischief—named Ad Age’s #1 Global Ad Agency of the Year and Creative Agency of the Year— introduced Hirsch to Droga5’s “The Truth is Hard” campaign, helping Hirsch to capture the Times’s voice in her “AI vs. AI” case video.

“The hardest part was making the case study video script because it’s all about getting the language right, Hirsch said. “Each brand has a specific voice, and The New York Times has a very specific voice. They’re witty but not goofy. It was a great experience to learn how to write for a brand as big as this one.”

How Does “AI vs. AI” Protect the Truth?

“The New York Times has always believed that the truth comes before anything,” Hirsch’s case study video starts. “But how do you find the truth when you can’t tell between what’s real and what’s fake?”

To fight in the war against AI, “AI vs. AI” would create a revolutionary AI tool that detects and notifies people of AI-created misinformation on their phones and computers, in real-time.

“AI vs. AI” would scan images for signs of AI creation or manipulation, articles for signs of AI writing that is deceptive and videos for deepfakes and AI voices that misportray people or information.

To get the word out, Hirsch created ads to get Americans to question the “news” they see. These ads would read “How do you know that AI didn’t write this article? Now you can find out. Spot AI using AI. Free with a NYT subscription.”

Banner ads would be placed on YouTube, where deepfakes circulate. These ads would read “There’s no way to tell what you’re watching is a deepfake. Until now. Spot AI using AI. Download the NYT app.”

Hirsch’s student idea “AI vs. AI” is about the preservation of human truth.

The case study video concludes: “In order to protect ourselves, we need to protect the truth. Because human truth is everything.”

Why Does This Matter?

In a world where people use their phones to rapidly access information, they rely on their social feeds for their news. The danger of AI-driven misinformation is that it is increasingly convincing and difficult to spot, making it a huge threat to those relying on social media for their information.

Hirsch’s idea protects people from this AI-driven misinformation by turning AI against itself, creating a tool that finds AI-generated misinformation. This tool is more important than ever, as it provides a vital method to safeguard our democracy from AI-driven deception.

Crucially, “AI vs. AI” does not infringe on the right to free speech. Instead, it helps people effectively dodge AI-driven misinformation by teaming up with a trusted source: The New York Times.

How the Creative Advertising Program Helps Students Succeed

Hirsch credited Newhouse’s creative advertising program for pushing students like her to achieve such extraordinary feats.

“The program pushes students to be creative and encourages them to stretch an idea as far as possible, with just the weight of the idea,” she said. “This program pushes you to start with a huge idea, and Professor White won’t let you go any further without one. I think that’s what makes the program create so many amazing creatives. I watched my classmates develop campaigns that you would imagine a huge agency to do, or are even better than what huge agencies do, because all the work stems from the power of an idea. This program demands you be creative with what you already know and what you can do.”

Newhouse Journalism Student Reflects on Helping Lead Investigative Reporting Project

When I first started at Newhouse, my heart was set on becoming an investigative reporter, but I wasn’t sure what kind of projects I was interested in. I was introduced to data journalism by assistant professor Nausheen Husain’s Data and Digital Journalism course, a requirement for undergraduate magazine, news and digital journalism (MND) majors. Though many of my peers told me the class was a hurdle they were planning to overcome and leave behind, the course gave me a sense of direction and the opportunity to work on my first investigative project.

Professor Husain became one of my biggest supporters in Newhouse, and that support pushed me to try things that I never thought myself capable of, including the piece we worked on together for more than a year. Our project — “‘Little Guantanamo’ Gets Bigger” — is now published in both The Nation and The Appeal, but as amazing as it felt to see months of research summarized and released, the process of carrying out that research was infinitely more fulfilling.

Communication Management Units (CMU) consist of two facilities located in Marion, Illinois, and Terre Haute, Indiana. The federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) has said that these units function as a method of terrorism prevention, and have enforced strict regulations on communications and contact with the outside world. Through our research, we found that these units are expanding in both population and infrastructure.

When these units first opened, Muslim men made up 70% of the population inside these facilities. Now, the total population has since increased by 140% between 2007 and 2022. The BOP has also signed a $2.8 million dollar contract to convert a medium-security prison in Cumberland, Maryland, into another CMU.

These statistics came to light from the research of our team, which also included MND students Olivia Boyer, Nada Merghani, Sorem Oppenheimer and researcher Aly Panjwani. We compiled a working database of almost 200 people who have been incarcerated in these highly restrictive units.

Research for this project was time-consuming since almost all of the data was not freely accessible on the internet. Much of our work was conducted through the Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) system, which provides access to a vast collection of federal court documents for a fee. A lot of the time spent building the database was also comprised of digging for old news articles or records. 

The database is still being updated now, months after the article’s release, with new information. The stories we uncovered about people incarcerated in CMUs were hard to read, as many of them had been wrongfully convicted or ethnically profiled. 

Despite the difficult subject matter, our team worked well together and collaborated to answer questions as we worked to gather information. For me, much of the process was a matter of learning how to read court documents, allocate workloads and use my knowledge of data collection and cleaning gained from my experience in the data journalism course. I was so fortunate to have such kind editors such as Saliha Bayrak, our diligent fact-checker, and even more grateful to have had the experience. 

Some of the project was familiar, such as conducting interviews. I spoke with psychology and criminology experts Terry Kupers and Keramet Reiter, who provided valuable insight about the aftereffects of incarceration. I also gained valuable experience interviewing high-risk sources, and I hope to continue to do the important work of telling meaningful stories of anyone who’s  experienced hardship. 

It was our team’s hope that in writing this story, we would be able to spread awareness about social injustices and prevent further expansion of these units. My time working on an investigative project this past year has taught me so much about leadership, collaboration and my long-term career goals and interests. I have a newfound sense of confidence in my ability as a data journalist, and a sense of pride in the story that my team and I were able to tell.

Newhouse LA Student Spotlight: Dalton Deitz

Living in Syracuse, moving into college has always been nothing more than a 20-minute drive for me, so flying across the country for this semester was nerve-wracking. But the vibrant atmosphere and friendly people immediately made me feel welcome here in LA. My days quickly filled up with exciting experiences, from navigating the Metro to my internship at TREND: Music PR, to exploring iconic spots like Universal Studios, Dodger Stadium and even camping in Joshua Tree!

One of the highlights has been a Q&A session with the senior staff at TREND, where I gained invaluable insights about the music industry. I also had the chance to attend a Fredagain.. concert at the LA Memorial Coliseum, which was an electrifying experience. Balancing my classes and internship has been challenging yet rewarding, especially with supportive professors and peers. Days spent at Santa Monica Beach and Warner Bros. Studios with fellow students were moments of community that I’ll cherish forever.

My time here has been a whirlwind of learning, growth and fun, and I am incredibly grateful for the opportunities and friendships I’ve made. I’m excited to see what the rest of my LA journey holds!

Syracuse University’s Trailblazers

Each year Syracuse University recognizes the 50 fastest-growing businesses owned or led by Orange alumni with the ’CUSE50 Alumni Entrepreneur Award. The ceremony takes place on campus and includes a symposium at the Martin J. Whitman School of Management—giving the awardees the chance to share valuable business insights with current Syracuse students and faculty.

Below are snapshots of some of the awardees showcasing the diverse range of industries represented.

Michelle Schenandoah G’19

Founder and Executive Lead; Rematriation; Syracuse, New York

Rematriation is dedicated to supporting the movement of rematriation, which is Indigenous women-led work to raise human consciousness toward a relationship with Mother Earth. The organization uplifts Indigenous women’s voices through their digital storytelling platform and in-person gatherings—ensuring their stories and knowledge are widely shared. She’s also releasing a talk show and podcast series, “Rematriated Voices with Michelle Schenandoah,” in 2025.

Schenandoah earned a master’s degree in magazine, news and digital journalism from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. Her favorite course was offered through the Center for Digital Media Entrepreneurship, where she engaged in real-time business development of her organization.

“The program at Newhouse truly helped shape my understanding of the current digital landscape of multimedia publishing and social media,” she says.

Fun fact: As an Oneida Nation member of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, it’s important to Schenandoah to stay connected to the Syracuse University Indigenous community, which she does as an Orange alumna and adjunct professor in the College of Law.

Rob Long ’12, G’14

Executive Director; Uplifting Athletes; Doylestown, Pennsylvania

By funding research and connecting individuals and families with a network of athletes and athletic organizations, Uplifting Athletes uses the power of sport to build a community that invests in the lives of people impacted by rare diseases.

At Syracuse, Long studied marketing management and supply chain management as an undergraduate in the Whitman School of Management and then pursued a graduate degree in new media management from the Newhouse School. He was also on the football team, which he says was an incredibly impactful experience in learning the true meaning of being a teammate.

“My time at Syracuse was instrumental in preparing me for many of the challenges I faced while building Uplifting Athletes,” he says.

Fun fact: Since 2018, Uplifting Athletes has funded more than $1 million in research grants to the next generations of rare disease researchers and, since 2022, has provided Uplifting Experiences programs to more than 1,200 individuals impacted by a rare disease.

Newhouse Student Awards Fall 2024 Roundup

Eppy Awards

The Newhouse Spotlight Team earned a Second Place honor for Best College/University Investigative or Documentary at the Editor & Publisher’s 2024 EPPY Awards.

As part of broadcast and digital journalism professor Jim Osman’s Investigative Reporting course, the team of Nardeen Saleep, Zach Richter, Jamie Korenblat and Josh Feldstein revealed Onondaga County’s countless hidden shops selling cannabis for their story, “The Green Black Market.”

Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication

Broadcast and digital journalism sophomore Sophie Braun won First Place in the AEJMC News Engagement Day video competition for her video highlighting how to vote and research political candidates.

Associated Collegiate Press

Newhouse School students and publications earned 25 honors from the Associated Collegiate Press’ annual awards and Pacemaker contests that spanned the journalism and military programs, as well as The Daily Orange, NCC News Spotlight team, The NewsHouse and SALT magazine.

Newhouse Wins Big at Associated Collegiate Press Awards

College Media Association

Film and Audio Festival

Newhouse has four films, produced by 44 Films, The Fall Workshop and assistant professor Milton Santiago’s cinematography courses, that were recognized at this year’s College Media Association Film and Audio Festival.

Short Documentary, First Place: “Full Circle” by Murphy McFarlane
Short Documentary, Third Place: “The Thread Remembers” by Maxine Wallace and L.J. Guerra
Short Documentary, Honorable Mention: “Dandelion” by Wendy Wang
Long Documentary, Honorable Mention: “Papa’s Beast: A Judah Mintz Story“ by Van Norris

Pinnacle Awards

Newhouse students and media outlets received a dozen honors including four First Place awards at this year’s College Media Association Pinnacle Awards announced last week in New Orleans.

Newhouse Triumphs With 4 First Place Wins at College Media Association Pinnacle Awards

Newhouse Public Relations Professor, Students to Host Panel Discussion, Network at PRSA Conference

Part of a professor’s job is to help students amplify their voices. Arien Rozelle is doing just that. An assistant teaching professor of public relations, Rozelle is welcoming four students to her panel discussion at the upcoming Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Northeast District conference Friday, Nov. 15, in Syracuse.

The discussion, titled “Disrupting the Narrative: How Gen Z is Reshaping The Field,” includes Newhouse seniors Cara Steves, Emma Harby and Mariana Godinez-Andraca, and Rozelle’s former student from St. John Fisher University, Michaela Meleca.

“By giving students a platform to share their perspectives, we’re validating their professional insights, encouraging critical thinking and demonstrating that their voices matter in shaping the evolution of our industry,” Rozelle said.

Anthony D’Angelo, a professor of practice and chair of Newhouse’s public relations department, is also presenting a session during the conference titled “This Isn’t a Drill: AI in PR.”

Below, Rozelle talks about the upcoming panel, Generation Z in the PR industry and more.

Your panel discussion is about Gen Z reshaping the public relations field. Why is this an important topic to talk about?

Gen Z represents not just a new demographic of professionals, but a huge shift in communication, authenticity and strategic engagement. Gen Z is the most digitally savvy, ethically driven generation to enter the workforce. They are the first truly digital-native generation. They’ve grown up with social media, real-time communication and an intrinsic understanding of multi-platform storytelling. This means that they have a lot of skills that potential employers want to put to great use. But Gen Z also has expectations of their employers that stand out: They expect to feel like their work has purpose, they expect work/life balance and they expect a high level of transparency and authenticity. This means that if employers want to truly harness Gen Z’s unique capabilities, they need to reimagine their employment practices. That’s a big task.

How will Newhouse students be participating in your discussion and why is this an important experience for them?

Our Newhouse students are really the primary subjects of this conversation. They’re panelists who will provide insights based on their own experiences, which are predictive and actionable. By giving students a platform to share their perspectives, we’re validating their professional insights, encouraging critical thinking and demonstrating that their voices matter in shaping the evolution of our industry. And, the opportunity to speak on this panel also further involves our students in The Public Relations Society of America, the country’s leading organization that serves and supports those in the communications industry. The Northeast District is one of 10 districts that make up the Public Relations Society of America and is comprised of over 1,100 members spread out over nine PRSA chapters in NY, MA, RI, NH, VT and ME. It’s a great networking experience for them!

How will you bring your research on Gen Z in the public relations field into the classroom at Newhouse?

As an assistant teaching professor, I use my research to primarily inform my teaching. I think it’s important to really get to know my audience and teach them in ways that resonate with them. Research about Gen Z has been used in my classes to update and create new assignments, develop new teaching strategies and to introduce activities about ethics, diversity and AI in the classroom.

What do you want the audience to take away from the discussion?

If we really hear what Gen Z is saying, we will understand that this is a transformative moment in professional communication. We’re witnessing a reimagining of public relations that goes beyond generational differences—it’s about creating more meaningful, transparent and impactful communication strategies. It’s a really big moment for the field, and for our students as they prepare to enter the workforce.