October 18, 2024

Supporting Indigenous Scholars and Indigenous-Owned Media

Whereas, the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) has diversity and inclusion and ethics as two of its core areas of professional freedom and responsibility; and

Whereas, when it comes to professional freedom and responsibility of Indigenous scholars and scholarship, one must balance the right to engage in research on Indigenous issues with the responsibility to do so in an ethical and respectful way, especially if he or she is not a member of the Indigenous community; and

Whereas, in recent years, there have been instances within AEJMC when researchers have sought to engage with Indigenous topics and issues without necessarily ensuring that Native voices are prominent in such efforts as programming, research, or teaching; and

Whereas, the Indigenous Journalists Association (IJA), formerly the Native American Journalists Association, recently celebrated its 40th anniversary; and

Whereas, in the United States, less than one half of one percent of newsroom employees identify as Indigenous and the majority of journalism and mass communication faculties still have no Indigenous faculty members; and

Whereas, IJA President Christine Trudeau, Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation, recently called for at the 23rd session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues to encourage states to legally recognize Indigenous-owned media;

Now, therefore, be it resolved, that the members of AEJMC go on record supporting a more intentional effort to make AEJMC a better space for Indigenous scholars to feel welcome and know their perspective, time, and expertise will be respected and heard; and

Be it further resolved that AEJMC join the call for legal recognition of Indigenous-owned media and increased recruitment of Indigenous scholars as instructors in journalism and mass communication programs; and

Be it further resolved that in consultation with the Elected Standing Committee on Professional Freedom and Responsibility, that Indigenous scholars be front and center in conceiving, planning, and executing at least one program element on the topic of ethics and responsibility in Indigenous scholarship and the state of Indigenous-owned media in at least the next two AEJMC annual conferences in 2025 and 2026; and

Finally, be it resolved, that all AEJMC divisions, interest groups, and commissions be strongly encouraged to seek out Indigenous scholars to serve as leaders in their units.

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CONTACT:
Samantha Higgins, AEJMC Communications Director, 803-798-0271

Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC)

The Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) is a nonprofit scholarly organization with more than 2,000 members in about 40 countries who teach and research journalism, public relations, advertising, digital media, film, and media literacy. Founded in 1912, AEJMC is the oldest and largest alliance of communication educators and administrators at the college level. AEJMC’s mission is to promote the highest possible standards for journalism and mass communication education, to encourage the broadest possible range of communication research, to promote the implementation of a multicultural society in the classroom and curriculum, and to defend and maintain freedom of communication in an effort to achieve better professional practice, a better-informed public, and wider human understanding.

<AEJMC 2024 Resolutions

October 18, 2024

Supporting Black Women in Higher Education Leadership

Whereas, the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) has diversity and inclusion as a core area of professional freedom and responsibility; and

Whereas, Dr. Antoinette Candia-Bailey, vice president of Lincoln University of Missouri, which is home to the nation’s first journalism school at a Historically Black College or university, received a termination letter on January 3, 2024, after having accused the school’s president of bullying, harassment, and discrimination; and

Whereas, on January 8, 2024, Dr. Candia-Bailey died by suicide, shining the spotlight on Black women’s struggles in higher education; and

Whereas, the nationwide controversy came less than a year after the mishandling and mistreatment of Dr. Kathleen McElroy, a Black woman, as a candidate for founding director of the journalism program at Texas A&M University; and

Whereas, research published in 2024 in Journalism & Mass Communication Educator shows that since 1983, when the association’s name changed to AEJMC, 15 of 30 AEJMC presidents have been women, including three who identify as African American; and

Whereas, women have had a dominant presence in several other positions within AEJMC, reflecting the organization’s leadership role in creating gender parity in leadership; and

Whereas, since 1999 when two Black women, AEJMC President Marilyn Kern-Foxworth and ASJMC President Shirley Staples Carter, developed what was then known as the Journalism and Mass Communication Leadership Institute for Diversity (JLID), more than 100 women of color have been among those participating in and receiving mentoring and leadership training;

Now, therefore, be it resolved that AEJMC go on record supporting women of color generally, and Black women in particular, as they seek roles of leadership in higher education, including but not limited to department chair, dean, director, president, vice president and provost; and

Be it further resolved that AEJMC through its divisions, interest groups, and commissions sponsor programming that brings a new level of attention to the importance of mental health status of women leaders; and

Finally, be it resolved that AEJMC through its Institute for Diverse Leadership (IDL) in Journalism and Communication include intentional programming related to mental health and self-care as a part of its leadership development program.

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CONTACT:
Samantha Higgins, AEJMC Communications Director, 803-798-0271

Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC)

The Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) is a nonprofit scholarly organization with more than 2,000 members in about 40 countries who teach and research journalism, public relations, advertising, digital media, film, and media literacy. Founded in 1912, AEJMC is the oldest and largest alliance of communication educators and administrators at the college level. AEJMC’s mission is to promote the highest possible standards for journalism and mass communication education, to encourage the broadest possible range of communication research, to promote the implementation of a multicultural society in the classroom and curriculum, and to defend and maintain freedom of communication in an effort to achieve better professional practice, a better-informed public, and wider human understanding.

<AEJMC 2024 Resolutions