KNOXVILLE — James Glen Stovall, creator of the popular journalism teaching Web site JPROF.com, has joined the faculty of the School of Journalism and Electronic Media at the University of Tennessee.
James Glen Stovall Stovall, a UT alumnus, will help develop Web journalism offerings in the school, including the development of a news Web site that will display student work.
“Dr. Stovall has a wealth of teaching experience and expertise in Web news,” said Peter Gross, director of the School of Journalism and Electronic Media.
“The Internet is fast becoming the major conduit for news and other information and with the addition of Dr. Stovall to our faculty our school will offer the best preparation possible for students readying themselves for a career in 21st century media.”
Stovall will deliver a weekly lecture about writing to the more than 200 students enrolled in news writing classes. He will serve as one of UT’s Edward J. Meeman Distinguished Professors of Journalism. He was most recently a visiting professor of mass communication at Emory and Henry College in Emory, Va.
Before joining Emory and Henry in 2003, Stovall was a journalism professor for 25 years at the University of Alabama, where he is now professor emeritus. He created DatelineAlabama.com, a news Web site which features student journalists’ work. He also served as director of the Communication Research and Service Center, co-director of the Capstone Poll, and assistant dean in the College of Communication.
Stovall is the author of Writing for the Mass Media, an introductory textbook that has been used at more than 400 colleges and universities.
Other works he has authored or co-authored include “Journalism: Who, What, Where, Why and How, an introduction to the field of journalism;” “Web Journalism: Practice and Promise of a New Medium;” and “Disconnected: Public Opinion and Politics in Alabama.”
Stovall is a co-director of Southern Opinion Research, a private survey public opinion firm specializing in legal, political and media research. He has conducted more than 200 public opinion surveys for clients such as the Birmingham News, the Huntsville Times, the Alabama Press Association, WBRC-Channel 6 in Birmingham, and a variety of newspapers and news organizations.
His reporting and editing experience includes stints with the Chicago Tribune, the Bristol (Tenn.-Va.) Herald Courier, the Knoxville News Sentinel, the Birmingham News and the Tuscaloosa News.
From 1970 to 1974, he served in the United States Navy. During much of that time he was a staff writer for All Hands magazine.
Stovall received his bachelor’s degree in journalism from UT in 1970. He received his master’s degree in political science from American University in 1973 and earned his doctorate in mass communication from UT in 1978.
“I am honored to be returning to my alma mater and to be joining a faculty for whom I have always had a great deal of respect,” Stovall said. “With its sights on the new media and web journalism, the faculty of the school is creating an excellent opportunity for its students, and I am excited to be part of it all.”
UT’s School of Journalism and Electronic Media is one of four schools that make up the College of Communication and Information. The other programs are the School of Advertising and Public Relations, the School of Communication Studies and the School of Information Sciences. Students in the School of Journalism and Electronic Media can choose one of five tracks — traditional and online print journalism; broadcast journalism; science communication; sports journalism; and a magazine option which covers both editorial and management functions.
—
Contacts:
April Moore, (865) 974-0463, amoore9@utk.edu
Amy Blakely, (865) 974-5034, amy.blakely@tennessee.edu