Justin Dowdall, Communication Studies Club
Dr. Brooke Duffy, Advertising
Justin Dowdall, CMST ’14, is one of few very lucky and ambitious students that received the coveted Diamond Scholars Research Grant this Summer. The grant, according to the website for the Senior Vice Provost for Undergraduate Studies, “provides Temple undergraduates the opportunity to engage in a focused, mentored research or creative arts project during the summer and fall.” Past research has run the gamut from “Wind Energy in the Dominican Republic” (2005), to “Oil Diplomacy” (2007), to “Social Advertising” (2008). This year, Justin is focusing on a project titled, “An Epistemological and Critical Approach to Campanology and its Effects on Social Media Theory.” Whoa. Well what can we say? Comm Studies has some amazing people in its program.
In between research, class and that thing called life, Justin was kind enough to write back to us about his current work and his mentor for the project, Dr. Brooke Duffy, (Advertising) also made a few comments.
Darragh Dandurand Friedman (DDF): First off, please break down the title of your work for those unaffiliated or uneducated in the topic: “An Epistemological and Critical Approach to Campanology and its Implications for Social Media Theory.”
Justin Dowdall (JD): Basically, I am looking at the bells of Philadelphia, and how their history can help us understand our current media moment. I am mainly comparing their role in “collective behavior” and measuring how that has influenced and has been influenced by culture. When I picked the topic I did so because I believe that by studying bells, I would be forced to learn a great deal about the development of media as an institution. By looking at the bells historical structure and hierarchical authoritarian form, I was able to make some interesting connections to the emerging decentralized tendencies of new media technology. In many ways the whole project is just a conversation that I wish I could have with McLuhan.
DDF: Justin, please describe a bit of the process of applying to the Diamond Scholars Research Grant and how you developed skills for future research work by doing so.
JD: First of all, thank you so much for doing this interview Darragh. The [application] process is fairly straightforward, I would say that the hardest part is putting together a project that you are both interested in, and that you believe will have a chance at being accepted. There are so many programs to enhance your Temple experience, but you really have to be proactive in seeking them out. For instance, the CARAS Grant and Library Scholarship are also great opportunities, not to mention Lew Klein.
Getting a better understanding of the IRB (institutional review board) process, poster creation, and even simple things like coding has been great. But more than anything, working one on one with a faculty mentor has been life changing. Dr. Brooke Duffy has really made me understand what it means to be a part of an intellectual pedigree. That is what is so amazing about Temple; you get to work with amazing people!
DDF: Dr. Duffy, this work means so much to Justin. Do you have any comment on what it has been like to be his mentor?
Brooke Duffy (BD): Justin is the type of intelligent, enthusiastic, and highly motivated student that makes my role as his “mentor” both rewarding and enjoyable. I’m continuously impressed by his curiosity and ability to work toward the creation of “new knowledge,” which is essentially what research is all about.
DDF: How are you helping to guide his research through your own experiences researching?
BD: While the process of research is built upon existing theories and methods, there is often a great deal of trial and error. It can be frustrating, but it is also the only path to the magical “Aha!” moment in a scholarly project. It’s exciting to see how much his project has evolved throughout these past few months.
DDF: What lessons / skills are you hoping to teach Justin through this process?
BD: When he began this project, Justin was already widely read in media and communication theory, so I saw this project as a way for him to apply these theories in a specific research context. Not only has he succeeded at this, but he has generated some new theories that can advance our understanding of the interrelationships between communication, technologies, and power. Of course, I have also aimed to teach him about the mechanics of a research project—from conducting a literature review and formulating a research question to selecting a method and drawing conclusions from the data.
DDF: Why is this topic important / interesting to you?
JD: As far as what interests me, I have always been curious about the roots of things. I love anthropology and philosophy for that reason. The Bell just seemed to represent an interesting way to ask some of those questions, while allowing me to explore a diversity of themes in media ecology that I find fascinating.
DDF: Please describe how the Diamond Scholars Research Grant will help you work on other projects and how projects like yours will affect applying to grad school, finding potential mentorships and your resume.
JD: So many ways! I know for many of us in communication, defining what you want to do with your degree is a very difficult process. This project really opened me up to what it means to take part in active research and has solidified my desire to attend graduate school. But more than that, it has given me an opportunity to work with the people that I have been reading and studying for so many years. Actively engaging theorist is such a rewarding process. It forces you to sure up your own understanding, of not only their work, but yours as well. Having big ideas is wonderful but being able to express those ideas is what separates sophistry from having real conversations and developing more meaningful conceptions.
DDF: What did expect to learn about your topic while researching?
JD: My main goal was to correlate the mathematical permutations of a phenomenon called change ringing with the binary system of digital media. But what is so amazing about research is often what you find is even more interesting than what you were looking for. The advice that I have gotten over and over is that research is a dialogue between you and everyone that has researched your topic; but like a conversation you have to be willing to go with the flow and not get stuck in what you think you’re going to find, I mean if you already know then why do the research? The books, Tricks of The Trade by Howard Becker’s and Bruno Latour’s Science in Action, were also so helpful.
DDF: What is the most interesting fact (about your topic / self) that you found
while researching?
JD: That’s a hard question Darragh, I guess I am currently very excited about the idea of media invisibility and the role of invisibility in shrouding political and economic influence. I strongly believe that in this media moment, part of literacy is about being a hyper critical consumer. The project has directed me to Adorno and Horkheimers work in Dialectic of Enlightenment and I hope that I am able to channel a bit of their perspective. Plus, sometimes this can be crazy making, but I feel like you should always say yes when given a chance. Woody Allen said famously life is 80 percent showing up its one of my favorite sayings and I totally believe that.
DDF: How has a project like this one opened up your ideas of academia
and researching in Philadelphia?
JD: Philadelphia is an amazing city and one of the wonderful side effects of my work was that it has got out exploring it. It’s interesting because, I was honestly unaware of the history of Cromwell “acres of diamonds” speech (until you told me about it), but as I walked the streets and visited the churches and bells of Philadelphia, I really got a sense of how much this city means to the world. I think that many people see research as a stiff practice, and that is so far from the truth. For instance one day I would read about a bell and then go the next day and see it. A fellow Diamond Scholar Phoebe Bachman really helped me appreciate the value of taking research out of the books and into the street, and I hope that the adventure aspect is reflected in my paper. I was also very inspired meeting Deborah Lubken from the University of Pennsylvania. She is arguably the, foremost authority on local bells right now and has been so responsive to helping me. When I asked why she agreed to meet, she kind of
shrugged, and said in her own way, that’s the way it goes. I think that after you get past the administrative encumbrances, you get a chance to see that collaboration is the essence of the Academy. It really makes you feel as though you are a part of something bigger than yourself.
DDF: Are there any archives / locations that you have discovered while researching that you want to share?
JD: The Temple Urban Archives in the basement of Paley and the Free Library were both wonderful resources. Aurora Deshatereurs at the Free Library and Kistin De Voe here at Temple were both incredibly helpful. One thing that amazed me was how often I would examine a source at another location and our archives would be cited, we are so lucky to have them at our fingertips. Finally, the National archives in DC, was well worth the trip. We are so close, and if you have a chance, I would suggest taking advantage of such an amazing and free collection. The trip made me truly understand how important it is to maintain our national cultural institutions.
Contact Darragh Dandurand Friedman at darragh.friedman@temple.edu
CMST students create a user’s guide to success at Temple
A School of Media and Communication class was asked to define the quintessential Temple University experience.
Associate Professor Scott Gratson presented to his Communication and Public Life class this semester the concept of the album amicorum, a combination of a social media, a yearbook and a bucket list that was first popularized by 15th century university students in central Europe.
Twenty-two groups of students have created a modern version of the album amicorum for Temple. In it, they showcased 30 things Owls should know to get the most out of their first year at the university. Gratson says the possibilities were endless: Homecoming, Temple Theaters performances, gallery exhibits, sporting events or scholastic endeavors.
With “Ode to Joy” filling the class’s lecture hall in its final meeting of the semeter, Gratson announced the choice for the best album, created by Team Wooo. The winning team will be treated to a meal at Le Bec Fin next semester.
“What we wanted to do is show that people come through Temple a lot and that we’re all connected to Temple,” says Team Wooo member Peter Ellinas, a sophomore Communication Studies major. “We left a couple of pages at the end empty so that new students could put their memories in it.”
The album describes how to maneuver through the financial aid process and the best places to hang out on campus, including under the bell tower.
photos by Daniel Pelligrine
Another group of students centered their album’s content around success, and titled it “Shifting Gears.” Janice Durrant, a freshman communication studies major, says it offers a glimpse into life at Temple from a student’s perspective.
“College is going to be hard,” she says. “What we have done is create a tool that allows students to help themselves.”
Their book guides new Temple students through their experience with an explanation on how public transportation works, tips on campus safety, how to ace an interview and where to seek out disability assistance. They tried their best to make the book applicable to as many students as possible.
“Success is not a formula that fits all people in the same way,” says Sam Knaub, CMST, a sophomore.
Gratson says one of the goals an album amicorum is to drive the user to experience what is in the book first-hand and to network with people there. Each entry in the books offers space for someone who the owner meets at an event to sign, an introduction to the importance of networking.
The “Shifting Gears” group says they discovered more about Temple and Philadelphia through this project. They met several times in the TECH Center’s breakout rooms, which offer space for groups to work collaboratively, a resource of which none of them were previously aware. And freshman strategic communication major Hanna Schoenleber says that she will be making an effort to experience more of the city’s museums.
Each group was to create a physical book, and had the option of supplementing it with an on-line version.
Components of some of the class’s top projects may be used in Temple’s Living Learning Communities, residential communities of Temple students and faculty with a shared passion for learning, as part of its orientation for new students.