News Story

Media School faculty and students are involved in several programs and projects this fall at the Poynter Center for the Study of Ethics and American Institutions, which its director says is fitting given the center’s new home in The Media School.

The Poynter Center became part of The Media School when the new school was established July 1. The center had been part of the Office of the Vice Provost for Research.

“The Poynter Center’s whole reason for being is to stimulate and improve the quality of discussion of ethics and values,” said interim director David Smith, who was director from 1983 to 2003.

The Media School comprises the former departments of  telecommunications and communication and culture, and the former School of Journalism.

Being part of The Media School is significant because of  the center’s ties to journalism at IU. Nelson Poynter, BA’24, founded the Poynter Center for Media Studies in Florida and was owner of The St. Petersburg Times (now the Tampa Bay Times). In 1972, Poynter funded the establishment of the Poynter Center at IU as a five-year research project inspired by the Watergate scandal. Its aim was  to research the reasons people lose faith in public institutions and the larger role of media in public life. He later funded the center as a permanent organization at IU.

Emma Young, program and office manager of the Poynter Center, said she is excited to get back to the roots that Nelson Poynter established. The move to the new Media School is a move to “an incubator of collaborative culture,” she said.

The center will continue its programming, which includes lectures, guest speakers and student activities, and will add a special program for Media School faculty and graduate students.

Two Media School faculty are featured as upcoming speakers.

• Oct. 8, assistant professor Nicole Martins will present “Edutainment? Teen Pregnancy on TV,” for the Healthcare Ethics Seminar.
• Nov. 10, professor of practice Kelley Benham French will present “Never Let Go,” which draws from her Pulitzer Prize-nominated story of her baby who was born four months early. Her talk is part of the Poynter Roundtable series.

Both of these events are at the center, 618 E. Third St., and are free and open to all.

Undergraduate students have formed teams to compete in the Central States Regional Ethics Bowl competition, which challenges members to resolve ethical cases. This year, the center is sponsoring two IU teams to extend the opportunity to more students. Both will compete Nov. 1 at Marian University in Indianapolis. Regional winners advance to a national contest.

The center also offers Research Prizes in Practical Ethics for Undergraduates, awards of $200 for student work that addresses ethics issues in various fields.

New this year is Meaning and Media, a year-long seminar with faculty and graduate students from The Media School meeting to brainstorm ideas and discuss issues.

“I think the function we can play at this stage in the life of The Media School is to get the faculty to know each other,” Smith said. “It’s a nicely diverse and interesting group.”