Boston University

My role as the writing assistant for the Boston University (BU) College of Communication gave me a chance to apply my reporting and interviewing skills to a different medium. In this position, I had the opportunity to write articles about the accomplishments and projects of school alumni, current students, and professors.

COM students take home national grand prize for PR case study

An eye for social justice in the corporate world earned recent Boston University College of Communication alumni Caitlin Dickinson and Clay Patrick the top award in a global public relations student competition. The Jack Koten Page Principles Case Study Award recognizes students’ original analyses that best further the practice of corporate communications and is perhaps the most prestigious honor given to students of public relations in the country. 

COM’s Hong awarded first BU center grant on infectious diseases

Photo by Guramar Lepiarz

The link between the spread of COVID-19 vaccine misinformation on social media and hesitancy to get inoculated has been explored here in the United States, a place where social media is heavily used. Less is known about such a link in middle-income countries, however, where the use of social media is still growing. That’s what Boston University College of Communication Media Science professor Traci Hong seeks to understand, aided by one of the first grants made by BU’s new Center for Emerging Infectious Diseases (CEID) Policy & Research.

Hometown Hockey

Photo: Paul Bilodeau

While reliving high school experiences only happens to most of us in our dreams — or nightmares — COM Lecturer Jay Atkinson is going in for the third time. In 1999, Atkinson returned to his high school as a volunteer assistant coach for his old hockey team, the Methuen (Massachusetts) Rangers. There, he spent a year observing the lives of the players for his book Ice Time, a deep-dive investigation into youth hockey culture in small towns. Now, the book is finding new audiences with the release of a new, 20th anniversary edition.

Film & TV grad captures (virtual) reality of Tokyo Olympics

While the world shrank for most of us during the COVID-19 pandemic, Chris Roewe’s expanded into capturing another dimension. With about 45 other teammates, the Film and Television grad had the opportunity to shoot a variety of events at the Olympic Games, including mountain biking, table tennis, BMX, and karate. He then edited his 360-degree footage into virtual reality experiences.

All-nighter provides PR for local nonprofits

Photo: PRLab

Armed with nothing but pizza and positive thinking, almost 90 Boston University students gathered at the College of Communication (COM) to face a daunting task: develop a public relations project for one of the area’s nonprofit organizations in 12 hours. “Lots of classes are theoretical, so it’s good to do actual work as opposed to a mock press release that nobody will see,” said junior Seth Delise, a PR and political science major. 

Queer Eye earns COM alum fourth EMMY

Queer Eye executive producer Michael Williams (COM’79) picked up his fourth Emmy Award in a row in the Outstanding Structured Reality Program category, the show’s ninth overall. The Netflix series, a reboot of Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, focuses on a team of gay men giving fashion makeovers and lifestyle advice to guests. Williams attributes the show’s longevity to “having unique characters people can identify with, as well as laugh and cry with.”

Bright Future for Teen Reporter

Teen journalist Sunaya Mueller made the most of the COVID-19 pandemic when she attended the Boston University Summer Journalism Academy, a two-week workshop where high school students hone reporting techniques and develop their own stories. One of Mueller’s final products was a piece about young people fighting long-term effects of COVID-19, which was published in Teen Vogue.