KNOXVILLE – A scholarly book on hate speech co-written by John Haas, associate professor and director of the UT Knoxville School of Communication Studies, has been recognized by the National Communication Association (NCA).
The Communication of Hate, co-written by Haas and Michael Waltman of the University of North Carolina, has won the NCA’s Franklyn S. Haiman Award for Distinguished Scholarship in Freedom of Expression.
“My goal in writing the book was to provide a tool to mitigate the damage caused by hate speech and provide helpful strategies for overcoming its often devastating effects,” said Haas.
In its award notification, the NCA wrote that the book “provided a comprehensive examination of how hate speech is employed in the United States and how it can be countered with anti-hate discourse” and offered “enduring value” for advancing First Amendment ideals. The award is named for Franklyn Haiman, the author of several communication studies texts and a noted scholar and advocate of civil liberties.
“John and his co-author have produced an outstanding work of scholarship on a very important topic,” said Mike Wirth, dean of the College of Communication and Information (CCI). “As the college and the university strive to encourage and promote civility on campus and throughout the community, this book makes us more aware of the problems associated with hate speech and helps us learn how to combat it.”
Read more about the book at Quest, the University of Tennessee’s comprehensive research initiative, http://quest.utk.edu/2011/the-communication-of-hate/.
For more information on the School of Communication Studies, visit http://www.cci.utk.edu/commstudies.
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C O N T A C T :
Donna Silvey, College of Communication and Information (865-974-6727, dsilvey@utk.edu)
John Haas, School of Communication Studies (865-974-2090, jhaas1@utk.edu)
Charles Primm, Media and Internal Relations (865-974-5180, primmc@utk.edu)