by Brianne Welch | Sep 20, 2014 | News Slider
The Lipscomb University Department of Communication and Journalism hosted the inaugural Morality in the Media conference Friday. The conference consisted of a variety of journalists and speakers who talked about different aspects of the media. From the changing dynamic of the media and its consumers, to sessions about how to cover gun control issues and gay marriage. Department of Communication Chair Alan Griggs opened up the conference with a welcome to introduce the first speaker Kelly McBride. McBride is the Vice President of Academic Programs at the Poynter Institute. She discussed how the media has changed since the 20th century, and different trends in the media as it relates to consumers. “Students who are going into journalism, or any other form of communication, need to know that our ethics are changing,” McBride said. “They’re changing because the audience is changing.” McBride wanted to make it clear that young journalists need to be aware of their surroundings and paying attention to the changes in the world. “They constantly need to be developing new knowledge about how that audience is changing, and you do that by watching what technologies does the audience adopt,” McBride said. “In addition to all the knowledge you gained in your studies, you have to be adept enough at looking at what the audience is doing, how they’re doing it, particularly around technology.” Following McBride’s speech, there was a panel of guests who discussed the way the media covers controversial issues. The first issue was gun control. The speakers were: retired editorial page editor for The Tennessean Dwight Lewis, WREG-TV news director Bruce Moore, WSMV-TV news reporter...
by Emily Snell | Mar 3, 2011 | News Slider
Last week, President Barack Obama instructed the Department of Justice to stop supporting the Defense of Marriage Act, or DOMA, which defines marriage as being between one man and one woman. Lipscomb political science professors Marc Schwerdt and Dwight Tays shared their opinions on the issue. Tays, assistant professor of political science, said he thinks the president’s announcement doesn’t necessarily reflect Obama’s personal beliefs; rather, Tays said, it shows his official, political decision on the issue. “His personal stand is that he does not support same-sex marriages,” Tays said. “But one’s personal stand and official actions at times may be different.” Some consider the announcement to be a shift from Obama’s 2008 campaign stance on this issue. But Tays and Schwerdt said they think the announcement against DOMA is perfectly in line with his position. “His position is, I think, consistent with what he has always done,” said Schwerdt, assistant professor of political science and head of the department. “He has always taken a middle-of-the-road approach. He recognizes civil unions, but he doesn’t really want to recognize gay marriage.” Tays said he doesn’t think the president’s stance on DOMA will have much impact. He said that the act was “really an affirmation of heterosexual marriage.” “It really does not govern marriage,” Tays said. “It was more a political statement instead of a legal reality.” Both Tays and Schwerdt said that a federal statement about marriage doesn’t inherently carry great significance because states are most responsible for what happens regarding same-sex marriage. “I don’t think they’re going to mess with this issue,” Schwerdt said. He explained that, at this point...
