USC Annenberg faculty and doctoral student researchers will be a major part of the annual Association for Education in Journalism & Mass Communication Convention Aug. 9-12 in Washington, D.C., and the School will host a reception called ¡Fiesta Annenberg! on Aug. 9. Annenberg researchers will speak or present papers on such topics as: whether to teach soon-to-be-obsolete technology or focus on critical thinking skills; motivations and consequences of Internet use; and how newspaper ownership changes have affected news coverage and editorial independence.

Faculty, friends and Washington-area alumni will be present for the reception celebrating the appointment of Dean Ernest Wilson and new faculty. To RSVP, visit annenberg.usc.edu/rsvp.

Nine USC Annenberg faculty or doctoral candidates will moderate sessions, be panelists or present papers at AEJMC. They include:

	Journalism professor and director of the Image of the Journalist in Popular Culture Joe Saltzman moderates a panel titled Journalism Ethics Goes to the Movies. He will also discuss “Deception and Undercover Journalism: Mr. Deeds Goes to Town and Mr. Deeds.”
	Associate journalism professor Larry Pryor is a panelist for “Finding Balance: Teaching Software vs. Critical Thinking.” The panel will discuss: How to balance the teaching of new technology with critical and creative thinking, and how to prepare students for technological change and adoption when the software release being taught today is obsolete by the time students graduate.
	Jay Harris , Wallis Annenberg Chair in Journalism and Democracy and Director of The Center for the Study of Journalism and Democracy, is a panelist for a session titled “Numbers in the Newsroom: How Newspaper Ownership Changes Have Affected News Coverage and Editorial Independence.” It is part of the Newspaper and Media Management and Economics Divisions.
	Journalism professor Philip Seib is a panelist at the session "Are We a Mouthpiece?: Perspectives & Ethics in War Reporting" presented by the  Mass Communication and Society and International Communication Divisions.
	Communication doctoral student Liuning Zhou presents "Online Consumer Trust in the Context of Internet Experience - Exploring Antecedents and Consequences" in the Communication Theory and Methodology, International Communication and Communication Technology Divisions.
	Communication doctoral students Seungyoon Lee and Jae Eun Chung present " Internet Use and Political Empowerment" in the Communication Technology Division's Refereed Paper Research Session: Internet Use: Motivations and Consequences.
	Communication doctoral candidate Nikki Usher presents a paper called “Recovery in New Orleans and the Times-Picayune: Reviewing the Limits of Objectivity, the Possibilities of Advocacy and the Reform of Public Journalism.”
	Communication doctoral student Hayeon Song presents "The Dual Role of Ethnic Media With Its Dual Content: The Effect of Local News and Home Country News Connectedness of Ethnic Media on the Sense of Belonging to the Residential Area" in the Mass Communication and Society Division's Refereed Paper Research Session: What Are They Saying and Why Are They Saying It? News Frames, Antecedents and Effects.

View the AEJMC Convention program