News
2007-2008 News
Learning, research opportunities abound
Professor Bob Schmuhl has been a true mentor, challenging me to think critically about journalism and American politics. His work has also enabled me to meet and discuss issues with some of the most respected journalists in America—an invaluable opportunity. Professor Collin Meissner is an inspiration in class 
discussions and beyond. My twin brother and I have spent many, many hours after class sipping Starbucks and analyzing the fiction of Henry James, Jonathan Franzen, and Edith Wharton with him. Those conversations taught me that learning and debate don’t stop when the bell rings.
At Notre Dame, I’ve had the chance to focus on empirical research through internships in public policy and journalism. I’ve worked in the Pennsylvania State Senate as a legislative aide, at PBS’s Charlie Rose show in New York, and at ABC News in Washington, D.C., where I contributed to ABC’s political journal The Note, covering the historic 2006 midterm elections. At ABC, I also worked for This Week with George Stephanopoulos, my favorite Sunday-morning public-affairs program. In 2007, I spent a semester as a research assistant to the British Shadow Secretary of State for Health in the House of Commons through N.D.’s London Program, and I worked last summer as an analyst in JPMorgan’s Private Bank, studying the international financial markets. These experiences have enriched my undergraduate years.
This summer, I will be a Robert L. Bartley Fellow at The Wall Street Journal in New York City. I’ll assist editors with numerous projects and help with political coverage. In October, I head to England for graduate school. I will be studying for a master’s degree in politics at the University of Cambridge.
Notre Dame is internationally beloved by so many people—for its football, its faith, and its history. These are definitely strengths at Notre Dame and rightfully so. Yet, my advice would be not just to think about Notre Dame in those terms—think about how Notre Dame can be your school.
Bob Costa
ND Expert: Oprah, Obama and "celebrity politics"
Oprah Winfrey's decision to campaign for Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama before the Iowa caucuses "elevates celebrity politics in America to a new level, maybe even a previously unexplored stratosphere," according to Robert Schmuhl, professor of American studies at the University of Notre Dame and author of the book "Statecraft and Stagecraft: American Political Life in the Age of Personality."
Schmuhl noted that Winfrey's own celebrity is greater than that of Obama's, leaving the "possibility of her charisma and star appeal overshadowing his.
She's an art historian, not an Elvis historian
Don't call her the Elvis expert.
"I'm more than that," says Erika Doss, art historian and new chair of the Department of American Studies at the University of Notre Dame. She arrived in August, after 21 years at the University of Colorado.
Doss is the author of "Elvis Culture: Fans, Faith and Image," published by the University Press of Kansas in 1999. But she's not an Elvis historian, she emphasizes--she's interested in his image and the role his image plays in the life of fans.
"I'm a visual culture historian, which is an art historian. But most people's idea of `art' is limited."
Alumna returns to campus to speak about prime-time television
Katie O'Connell, senior vice president of drama development for NBC Entertainment, will speak Nov. 13 (Tuesday) at 7 p.m. in the Browning Cinema of the DeBartolo Center for the Performing Arts at the University of Notre Dame. Her talk will include video clips from shows that she has developed and a discussion about the process of turning a program from a pilot idea into a television series.
Admission to the event is free, but tickets are required. Ticket information is available at the performing arts center box office or by calling 574-631-2800.
Panel to examine "Confidence in Journalism" Sept. 24
"Confidence in Journalism: Regaining Public Trust" will be the subject of a public forum Monday (Sept. 24) at the University of Notre Dame. It will begin at 3 p.m. in Rooms 100-104 in McKenna Hall and is free and open to the public.
Hosted by the University's John W. Gallivan Program in Journalism, Ethics and Democracy, the forum will feature a panel of journalists from across the country, including members of the Gallivan Program advisory committee, which consists of Notre Dame alumni who work in the media. They will discuss declining confidence in the news media.
ND Expert: Presidential primaries system chaotic and broken
The recent news that Democratic presidential candidates have signed a pledge that would forbid them from campaigning in states seeking earlier primaries is symbolic of the broken and unrepresentative presidential nominating system that currently exists in this country, according to a University of Notre Dame expert.
"Candidates ought to be taking the lead in proposing a fair, coherent and democratic process of selecting candidates for the nation's highest office," said Robert Schmuhl, professor of American studies and a national political analyst.
"What we have now is chaos, with individual states trying to elbow each other out of the way. Nobody, not even the candidates, knows what to expect. One hopes criticism will grow - and force the necessary changes."
Senior Receives Sports Journalism Award
Ken Fowler, an American Studies senior from Long Beach, N.Y., has been selected as the first recipient of the annual Harry Ornest Memorial Award in Sports Journalism. The award includes a summer internship at The Los Angeles Times.
