This story, written by Max Cole, originally appeared here. 

In the days leading up to the presidential inauguration, Kimberly Moffitt, an associate professor of American studies, joined WEAA’s The Marc Steiner Show for a discussion about the news media and its coverage of President Trump.

A focal point of the discussion was the media coverage of Rep. John Lewis’s decision to not attend the inauguration and when he said he thought Pres. Trump was not elected legitimately, followed by Pres. Trump’s response to that.

Moffitt, whose research interests include media studies/criticism, argued that covering the situation presented a complex challenge for many journalists.

“Sometimes I think journalists do live in the bubble of ‘I am objective,’ and I’ve struggled with even recognizing that as a term synonymous with anything that human beings are participating in. And so I so appreciate [E.R. Shipp’s] willingness to say, ‘you know, this was tough for us as journalists who have a task before us to report the news and give information to the public to be able to respond or react to,’” Moffitt said. “I think it’s so important, because it does show our complexity as human beings and our willingness, or the inability sometimes, to do exactly what that particular estate is supposed to do for our nation.”

In a separate segment earlier this month on The Marc Steiner Show, Moffitt commented on the intersections of social media, young people, violence, and empathy in response to the filmed attack of a young disabled man by four youth in Chicago.

She argued that social media has added an element to childhood in ways that were not visible in past generations.

“It has created this instantaneous celebrity culture that everyone wants to be a part of,” she said. “And by virtue of that, what we tend to do is take certain actions that we then believe will make us go viral in some way, which then means we aren’t even thinking about what might be some of the consequences or repercussions of those actions.”

Listen to both segments below:

Chicago Assault: Violence, Empathy, and Social Media (January 9)
Media Roundtable: Preparing for a New Era (January 17) 

Image: Kimberly Moffitt speaks during a Humanities Forum event at UMBC. Photo by Marlayna Demond ’11 for UMBC. 

The Story of an Iconic Obama Campaign Chant, Animated

Conductor E. Michael Richards, professor of music, and the UMBC Symphony have been awarded honorable mention in the college/university division of The American Prize’s Ernst Bacon Memorial Award in the Performance of American Music for their 2016 performance and recording of William Grant Still’s “Afro-American Symphony.” Alan Wonneberger, lecturer and director of recording for the department of music, mastered the recording of the live performance.

Among the many contests hosted by The American Prize, the Ernst Bacon Memorial Award for the Performance of American Music focuses exclusively on works by American composers from any period and in any style.

Congratulations to the UMBC Symphony and Dr. Richards!  

To read the full story, visit UMBC News. 

 Updated January 18 with more positions and some more detail on existing ads. . .

Several state delegates and senators have recently contacted me to advertise internships for this current legislative session, which runs until mid-April. Most offices need the intern to start immediately and to work for 2 days per week. Typical state legislative intern duties include substantial legislative research work, constituent correspondence, some clerical work, and attendance at various meetings, events, and legislative proceedings with or on behalf of the legislator. UMBC students have consistently reported positive experiences with this program, and for several of them, the experience later led to a legislative staff job.

Most of the legislators who have contacted me pay their interns a modest stipend, which is set this session at $850 for 16 hours per week and $1250 for 24 hours per week. Free parking is also included.

Interns receiving the stipend are considered participants in the Maryland General Assembly’s official internship program and thus are required to be sponsored by a professor and to receive academic credit for the experience – although, as noted below, some legislators hire outside this program and may still pay. The Department of Political Science offers qualifying students 7 graded credits for a combination of the internship and required supplemental academic work. These come from POLI 448, a writing-intensive hybrid class required of all interns, and POLI 401. On those weeks when POLI 448 meets face-to-face, alternative arrangements are available for students whose internship schedules conflict with class time. Traditionally, eligibility has been limited to juniors and seniors with GPAs of 3.0 and higher, but exceptions for high-GPA sophomores or for upperclassmen with GPAs below 3.0 may be considered on a case-by-case basis.

As of Wednesday, January 18, the following legislators have contacted me about internships in their Annapolis offices. Party affiliation and county are provided for your information, but interns are not necessarily required to share these with the legislator. If you are interested, please send your resume to the contact person while contacting me to apply for academic credit. ~Dr. Hussey (lhussey@umbc.edu)

·         Del. Vanessa Atterbeary (D – Howard County) (see details in earlier post)

·         Del. Ric Metzgar (R – Baltimore County) (Contact: Diamond J. Aranda, Chief of Staff, 410-841-3332)

·         Del. Edith Patterson (D – Charles County) (Tu/Th availability needed. Contact: Melinda M. Hamilton, Chief of Staff, Edith.Patterson@house.state.md.us or 410-841-3247.)

·         Del. Marc Korman (D – Montgomery County) (MWF availability preferred, but TuTh OK. Contact: Sean Emerson, Legislative Aide, Marc.Korman@house.state.md.us or 410-841-3649)

·         Sen. Victor Ramirez (D – Prince George’s County) (Spanish speakers especially desired. Needs TuWeTh availability. May still hire and pay stipend even if not meeting 3.0 GPA or requirement for professor sponsorship and academic credit. Contact: Wanika Fisher, Esq., Policy and Constituent Director, WFisher@senate.state.md.us or 410-841-3745)

·         Del. Karen Lewis Young (D – Frederick County) (Contact: Manley Paul Calhoun III, Legislative Director, Karen.Young@house.state.md.us or 410-841-3436)

·         Speaker Pro Tem Del. Adrienne Jones (D – Baltimore County). (Position is unpaid, but promises extensive exposure to the delegate’s meetings and legislative work. Does not involve clerical work. Contact Dr. Hussey for details.)

·         Sen. C. Anthony Muse (D – Prince George’s County) (TuTh availability preferred, W okay. Contact: Keontae Wells, Executive Assistant: KKells@senate.state.md.us)

·         Delegate-elect (just appointed to fill a vacancy) Jheanelle Wilkins (D – Montgomery County) (Send email of interest and resume to Dr. Hussey to forward directly to Del.-Elect Wilkins)