Volume 50, No. 1, Spring 2024
This special 50th anniversary issue contains an editor’s note from Pam Parry, forward-looking columns from Maurine H. Beasley and Alexia Little & Gerry Lanosga; a remembrance of former editor Mike Sweeney by Aimee Edmondson; columns reflecting the journal’s evolution and importance by Gregory A. Borchard, Patrick Washburn, Earnest L. Perry Jr., Erika Pribanic-Smith, Madeleine Lisebland & Teri Finneman, and Sonya R. DiPalma; and articles by Teri Finneman, Vaibhav Shwetangbhai Diwanji, Melissa Greene-Blye & Chloe Martens and Anthony J. Cepak. Interested in reading these articles? Get information on subscribing here.
Column Previews
“How Media Historians Should Act Now to Preserve Their Field,” Maurine H. Beasley
Journalism History began with a blast: James Carey, brilliant and revered dean at the University of Illinois, pronounced, “Journalism history is an embarrassment.” His words and those of others in the first issue of Journalism History caused the field to take a hard look at itself and make overdue changes. Today, few, if any, would use the word “embarrassment” to describe its scholarship. Over the years Journalism History has been in existence, historical scholarship in journalism has become far more proficient, diverse, and meaningful, laying the groundwork for a better understanding of journalism itself. If only we could rest on our laurels. But we cannot.
“Addressing the Problem(s) of Journalism History,” Alexia Little & Gerry Lanosga
After fifty years, problems of journalism history linger, though in different shades. The field Carey described as dull found vibrance in increasing scholarship devoted to cultural and ritualistic discursive practices, attention to alternative media outlets, and progressively diverse authorship. Nevertheless, other work has failed to register on the spectrum of media history scholarship.
“Mike Sweeney: An Editor for the Ages,” Aimee Edmondson
Mike really was a fantastic editor, and for those of you who knew him, you won’t be surprised when I tell you that he was a joy to work with…A world-class rabblerouser, Mike was also a workaholic. He did the work of three people, and we still feel a huge hole in our faculty here at Ohio. He was and always will be irreplaceable. And he put the journal first.
“Journalism History: Revised and Resubmitted,” Gregory A. Borchard
After an application and interview process in early 2018, members of a search committee from the History Division of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) offered me the role of Journalism History editor. I was happy to accept, and at the same time, quite uncertain about what to expect. For decades, an editor alone had almost single-handedly produced, administered, and distributed the journal, and a new configuration with the History Division hosting it offered both enormous opportunity and uncharted challenges. At the time, I think everyone involved in the transition had an idea of the direction we wanted the journal to go, but we had no clear path for getting there.
“Former JH Editor Shares Tips for Managing an Academic Journal,” Patrick Washburn
Serving as Journalism History editor for eleven-and-a-half years (January 2001 to July 2012) was one of the highlights of my twenty-eight years as a faculty member in Ohio University’s journalism school. What made it particularly special for me was using the journal to promote mass communications historical research as a strong academic pursuit while social scientists tended more and more to relegate it to a secondary importance. In looking back at my tenure as the longest-serving Journalism History editor, I would like to offer advice to others who are considering being an editor of an academic journal.
“Why Peer Review Matters,” Earnest L. Perry Jr.
The peer-review process is critical to enhancing scholarship in all areas of academia, and journalism history is no exception. As a scholar in the field, I take great pride in reviewing manuscripts and working with doctoral students and junior faculty members on research and walking them through the maze of the publication process.
“Building a Digital Platform for Journalism History,” Erika Pribanic-Smith
After Journalism History became the official journal of the AEJMC History Division, building a digital presence for the journal became a priority. I was chair of the division at the time, and a few years earlier, I had built the website for the American Journalism Historians Association. Journal Editor Greg Borchard reached out to me and asked if I’d build the site for Journalism History. I was pleased to take on the task.
“Publications Committee Celebrates Fifty Years of Journalism History,” Madeleine Liseblad & Teri Finneman
In the last five years, the Publications Committee has worked to transform Journalism History’s mission into serving as an active promoter of our field far beyond the four printed issues each year. As a result, the journal is marking its fiftieth anniversary at a high point that far outpaces how other mass communication journals support their researchers.
“The Literary Value and Efficacy of the Book Review Over Fifty Years,” Sonya R. DiPalma
The fiftieth anniversary of the publication Journalism History is an opportunity for the book review editor to reflect on the literary value and efficacy of the book review. Book reviews have been a part of journalism since at least the nineteenth century. The New York Times published the first Saturday Book Review Supplement on October 10, 1896. Journalism History published its first book review in the inaugural issue in Spring 1974. Therefore, Journalism History is more than the oldest peer-reviewed journal of mass media history in the United States; it is also the oldest archive of book reviews within the discipline.
Article Abstracts
“Is It Smart to Be Thrifty?”: How Advertisers Navigated Message Strategies During the Great Depression,” Teri Finneman, Vaibhav Shwetangbhai Diwanji, Melissa Greene-Blye & Chloe Martens
Despite the major historical significance of the Great Depression, little scholarly research exists that analyzes the state of newspaper advertising during the 1930s, particularly in the hard-hit Dust Bowl states. Using Taylor’s six-segment message strategy wheel, this research examined display advertising during one of the most difficult years in the most difficult places: 1934 in the Dust Bowl region of Nebraska, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Texas. Results show that essential services, such as banks, utilities, and transportation, primarily used the informational/rational strategy to provide reassurance and empathy to consumers. However, nonessential industries, such as cosmetics, expensive home goods, and tobacco, often used the transformational/sensory approach to encourage high-quality experiences through spending. This historical analysis offers a unique opportunity for contemporary advertisers to understand how past advertising strategies during a crisis influence the present.
“Nativism, Nostalgia, and Photography: The Legacy of Augustus F. Sherman’s Ellis Island Photographs in the US Press,” Anthony J. Cepak
The following investigation examines the contribution photographer Augustus F. Sherman made to immigration discourse through his early twentieth-century portraiture of Ellis Island immigrants. Sherman’s photographs have been used in both historical and contemporary US press to advance nativist and nostalgic immigration discourse. Using historical archival methods combined with photographic criticism, this article argues that Sherman’s photographs leave behind a legacy of nativist ideology in the US press.
Journalism History journal 