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Jon Dempersmier Recounts the Impact of WUOT on His Life
Jon Dempersmier knew about public radio long before moving to East Tennessee—there were a couple of syndicated shows such as Car Talk that had occasionally grabbed his attention—but it wasn’t until one day when he was driving his toddler son to daycare that he got hooked on WUOT 91.9 FM. “One morning I was just flipping through…
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Jessi Hudgins is Soaring High in Information Sciences and Skydiving at UT
Jessi Hudgins is reaching new heights as she launches a student organization on campus. A senior at the School of Information Sciences, Hudgins is double-majoring in data science and information sciences, concentrating on data, information management, and analytics. She is currently the president of the ParaVOLS skydiving club and aims to attract adrenaline enthusiasts and…
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Tombras School Well Represented at AAA where Assistant Professor Sitan (Stan) Li Wins Best Conference Paper Award
The Tombras School of Advertising and Public Relations had a strong presence at the 2025 American Academy of Advertising (AAA) conference, from faculty winning the Best Conference Paper Award to ensuring the event ran smoothly. AAA supports research that is important to the advertising field and creates opportunities for academic and professional members to share…
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Young Alum Gina Abitante Growing Career at NYC Agency
Gina Abitante spoke to a group of students from the Tombras School of Advertising and Public Relations during their January 2025 visit to New York City. In Gina Abitante’s (‘23) line of work, one social media influencer posting a video praising a shampoo can put her workday into overdrive. As an account executive at Marina…
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Thatcher, Durben Selected for 2025 Carnegie-Knight News21 Project
Juniors Gracyn Thatcher and Alexa Durben, both journalism and media majors, will represent the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, this summer at the 2025 Carnegie-Knight News21 Fellowship at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University. Two School of Journalism and Media students have been selected to participate in a prestigious…
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Tombras School Student Wins American Advertising Award for Class Project
Lainie Pastoor didn’t expect her class project to win an American Advertising Award, but it did, thanks to the encouragement of her professor, Assistant Professor Minjie Li. Pastoor is a senior studying advertising at the Tombras School of Advertising and Public Relations. Originally from just outside Chicago, Pastoor took a leap of faith when she…
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The Election Project, Student Journalists Win Big at 2025 Southeast Journalism Conference
Students in the School of Journalism and Media earned several awards for their reporting coverage including Best Public Service Journalism for The Election Project and Best TV Station at the 2025 Southeast Journalism Conference The Election Project won “Best in the South” in public service journalism at the 2025 Southeast Journalism Conference (SEJC). A collaborative…
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Information Integrity Institute Postdoc Matthew Craig Attends Social Science Foo Camp at Meta
Matthew Craig, postdoctoral research associate at the Information Integrity Institute, was one of 150 select people invited to the 2025 Social Science Foo Camp at Meta headquarters in Palo Alto, California in early February. The event, often referred to as an “unconference” due to its unstructured schedule, allows attendees to determine topics on the spot…
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Communication Studies Senior Donté Mullins Aims for Great Heights in the Sports Industry
“When it comes to the sports industry, so many people want to work in it. I just want to make sure that when my resume comes across the table, it’ll be something you haven’t seen before,” said Donté Mullins, a senior and communication studies major at the College of Communication and Information. Mullins has an…
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Alumnus’ Paralympic Coverage Earns Top 10 Spot in Hearst Journalism Awards Competition
School of Journalism and Media alumnus Lukas Vysniauskas’ (‘24) with US Paralympian Carson Clough in Paris. School of Journalism and Media alumnus Lukas Vysniauskas’ (‘24) reporting on US Paralympian Carson Clough at the 2024 Paralympic Games has been recognized by the Hearst Journalism Awards Program. Vysniauskas finished ninth in the 2024-25 Hearst Multimedia Narrative Video…