Center for Environmental
Communication Studies
University of Cincinnati
P Box 210184
.O.
the LINK... connecting citizens,
policy-makers, and
Cincinnati, OH 45221-0184 businesses & industry in
http://www.uc.edu/cecs environmental contexts
Volume 4, Spring 1999
CONTENTS DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE
1998-99 marks the fourth year of existence for the Center for
CECS Faculty & Staff......................7
Environmental Communication Studies. As you will find in the stories that
Publications and Presentations..8 follow, CECS researchers and students are examining a wide variety of issues
and problems related to environmental communication, including risk commu-
CECS HIGHLIGHTS nication, communication in environmental organizations, and public involvement
CECS Welcomes New Assistant
Professor...............................................2 in environmental decision-making. Once again this year, CECS efforts have
resulted in a number of research publications and presentations, as well as over
Sierra Club Leader Visits $100,000 in research grants awarded by government and industry sponsors.
Department of Communication.....2 An increasing amount of CECS activity is devoted to local and regional
ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE & environmental concerns. CECS faculty and staff are getting involved with a growing
COMMUNITY PROJECTS number of community organizations that focus on the environment,
River Valley Schools: An including the Hamilton County Environmental Action Commission, the Greater
Environmental Controversy Cincinnati Environmental Educators, and the Ohio Environmental
Unfolds...................................................3 Council. We are devoting a great
CECS Participates in
deal of energy to local grassroots RISK
Environmental Resource Center..3 initiatives to improve community OMMUNICA
COMMUNIC ATION
access to environmental information
Youth Environmental Project and decision-making tools. An ENVIRONMENTAL PUBLIC
Enters Year Three..............................3
example of such an initiative is the JUSTICE TICIPA
ARTICIP
PAR TICIPATION
FEATURED RESEARCHER effort underway to establish a
Work Force Restructuring at regional Environmental Resource OMMUNICA
COMMUNICATION
Environmental Remediation Center (see p. 3). We are also IRONMENTAL
ENVIRONMENT
IN ENV IRONMENTAL
Sites...............................................................4 following an emerging environmen- ORGANIZA
ORGANIZATIONS
COMMUNICATION AND tal controversy in the city of Marion,
NUCLEAR ISSUES Ohio, located 150 miles north of
Fernald Living History Project Cincinnati (see p. 3). These activities not only contribute to the teaching and
Report....................................................4 research capabilities of CECS faculty, staff, and students, but they also fulfill a
community service dimension that is vital to the CECS mission.
Pro-Active Public Affairs at DOE’s
CECS faculty and staff continue to conduct research related to the
Ohio Field Office..................................5
Department of Energy's environmental remediation actitivies at nuclear
Inter-Site Discussions on Nuclear weapons production facilities in Ohio and elsewhere. Featured in this newsletter
Waste.....................................................5 are the current organizational communication research efforts of Professor
Gail Fairhurst (p.4). Fairhurst is examining issues related to workforce
CECS Joins Communication and
Nuclear Weapons Research restructuring at environmental remediation sites. We are also pleased to
Group......................................................5 have played a role in the formation of a Communication and Nuclear Weapons
Research Group (p. 5). The group has established a listserv and intends to
PROJECT UPDATES
develop collaborative research efforts related to environmental and other
Great Lakes Fish Advisory
dimensions of America's nuclear weapons complex .
Project Nears Completion..............6
CECS wishes to acknowledge the generosity of UC Communication
Effects of Domestic Violence on Professor Emeritus Rudolph Verderber, whose gift to the department made it
Home Environments.........................6 possible to bring J. Robert Cox, well-known environmental communication
scholar and national leader of the Sierra Club, to our campus in April (see p. 2).
‘Drench’ Effects of Media
Portrayals of Volcanic Disaster...6 We also want to welcome a new faculty member, John Delicath, to the Univer-
sity of Cincinnati and to CECS. Starting this Fall, John will add his interest in
CECS Joins Educators Group......6 environmental justice issues to our team of scholars and teachers (see p. 2). In
CECS Participates in all, 1998-99 has been a busy and satisfying year. We are hopeful that next year,
Environmental Studies Program.7 the fifth for CECS, will be even more exciting.
2 Center for Environmental Communication Studies Spring 1999
CECS HIGHLIGHTS
CECS Welcomes New Assistant Professor
In September 1999, the Department of Communication and CECS will welcome new faculty member
John W. Delicath. As a new Assistant Professor in the Department, John will be teaching classes in environmental
communication, among others, for undergraduates and graduate students.
John comes to the University of Cincinnati from Allegheny College (Meadville, PA) where he taught
undergraduate courses in the rhetorics of environmental advocacy and environmental justice as Visiting
Assistant Professor of Communication Arts. In addition to his teaching appointments at Allegheny and at the
University of Pittsburgh (1996-97), John also served as Director of Debate at Carlow College (1997-1998) and
worked with the Public Debate program at the University of Pittsburgh to execute public debates on environmen-
tal and social justice issues. He is co-founder and member of the Advisory Committee for National Public Debates
on Environmental Justice/Brownfields, in partnership with the United Church of Christ. John was an active partici-
pant in the development of the Environmental Communication Commission with the National Communication
Association, and has been conducting research in the field of environmental communication for eight years. His
academic background includes argumentation, persuasion, and debate, with specializations in rhetorical theory,
media studies, and critical social theory.
Currently, John is finishing his doctoral dissertation at the University of Iowa, which focuses on environ-
mental justice, public participation, and the relationship between scholarship and political advocacy. In addition, he
is working on a grant application that would create a series of national public debates on environmental justice and
brownfields issues.
PUBLICATIONS AND PRESENTATIONS BY JOHN W. DELICATH
PUBLICATIONS PRESENTA BY W. DELICATH
The Rhetoric of Green Consumerism: A Social Ecological Critique. Speaker and Gavel 31, 2-26, 1994.
In Search of Ecotopia: Radical Environmentalism and the Possibilities of Utopian Rhetorics. In S. Muir and T. Veenendall
(Eds.), Earthtalk: Communication Empowerment for Environmental Action. Westport: CN: Praeger. 1996.
Re-presenting the Black-Macho: Boyz N the Hood and the Politics of Black Masculinity. Howard Journal of Communica-
tion. (under review).
The Greening of Communication Studies: Reviewing the Terrain of Environmental Communication.Quarterly Journal of
Speech. (review essay; in progress).
Sierra Club Leader Visits
The second lecture, "Spotlight on Scholarship:
Department of Communication
Major Influences in My Career and Work", gave a more
On Monday, April 12th, Dr. J. Robert Cox, personal look at Dr. Cox's background as a
communication professor from the University of North communication scholar. Sharing stories about his
Carolina at Chapel Hill and former President of Sierra Club, childhood, Dr. Cox explained how at a young,
became the first of a series of guest speakers for the impressionable age, he was motivated by his grandfather's
Department of Communications Verderber Spotlight on stories to partake in a career which would help bring
Scholarship Lecture Series at the University of justice and fairness to the world. As an undergradu-
Cincinnati. Dr. Cox gave two lectures during his ate communication major and as a Ph.D. student in
stay in Cincinnati. This first lecture, entitled "The rhetoric, Dr. Cox honed his communication skills
National Environmental Movement and the and opted for a career that would allow him to ap-
Challenge of Environmental Justice': Notes from ply his extensive academic knowledge. Dr. Cox's
the Field," focused on Dr. Cox's experiences with insights helped audience members see one way that
environmental justice communities. As a distin- a person can combine a communication
guished professor and former President of the Sierra Club, degree with their personal goals and desires and
Dr. Cox worked with many of these communities in an subsequently find a challenging and fulfilling career in the
effort to improve their situations. field of communication studies.
Spring 1999 Center for Environmental Communication Studies 3
ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE & COMMUNITY PROJECTS
River Valley Schools: An Environmental Controversy Unfolds
In 1942, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Since the investigation, a series of soil and air tests
opened the Marion Engineering Depot (MED) northeast of have been conducted at the schools by the U.S. Army Corps
Marion, Ohio. From 1942-1961, it was the largest of Engineers and Ohio Environmental Protection Agency
military operation of its kind, serving as a location for the (EPA). Each time toxins are documented, areas of the River
repair and maintenance of heavy machinery, transformers, Valley campus are roped off from public use. Meanwhile,
and generators. Until its closure in 1962, operational wastes, students still attend classes in the school buildings.
including Trichloroethylene (TCE), Polychlorinated A number of State environmental groups, non-
biphenyls (PCB), and benzene-containing fuels and oils, profit community advocacy organizations, and individuals
were dumped into pits on the east side of the MED. In involved in the environmental justice arena, including Jan
1963, River Valley Schools were constructed, with Schlichtmann (portrayed in A Civil Action) and Lois Gibbs
portions of the high school and middle school campuses (activist from Love Canal, NY), are asking U.S. EPA to take
atop or adjacent to the MED. the case on. To date, actions
Aerial photographs indicate have not been taken to
that as much as 75% of school remediate the site, nor to
grounds are located on the relocate the school children
former waste disposal area. and employees who may be
Between 1963 and exposed to carcinogens daily.
1998, a total of 90 cases of CECS researcher,
cancer, including 25 cases of Rhonda Barnes-Kloth, has
leukemia were documented River Valley High School (Marion, OH) been following this contro-
among River Valley graduates, current students, and others versy since January, 1999, and is working with Ohio
who live and work near the schools. In January, 1997, a Environmental Council to increase State and national
group of local residents began to question the numbers. awareness of this situation. In the coming months, CECS
Later that year, the Ohio Department of Health initiated an will continue monitor the events in Marion, in an attempt
investigation of the high incidences of cancer, and concluded to provide community access to information that might help
that leukemia cases among River Valley graduates and them gain additional support, and increase their chances
students are nearly three times the expected number. for participating in the decisions being made by policymakers.
CECS Participates in corporate and government spon- to help them build leadership and
Environmental sors. advocacy skills that will encourage
Dr. Depoe recently received their neighbors to take an active role
Resource Center funding from the UC Faculty Devel- in improving the environmental health
The Environmental Resource opment Council to conduct work- of their community.
Center (ERC) is a public service shops describing how the ERC can YEP participants are currently pre-
organization whose goal is to provide be used by University faculty and their paring to become master puppeteers
environmental data, news, and students. Over the next several for their latest project,creating their
information that is relevant to the months, CECS will continue to assist own puppets, stage, and scenery for
Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana tri-state ERC with applications for additional an "All About Lead" puppet show. The
region. The ERC will foster research funding. show discusses the hazard of lead
and education on regional environ- poisoning for kids of all ages. YEP will
mental issues, and will enhance Youth Environmental be performing their puppet show this
collaboration among citizens, Project Enters Year spring for various elementary schools
environmental organizations, busi- Three in Lower Price Hill, in order to
nesses, agencies, and instituions. educate younger children about the
CECS researchers Dr. Stephen As part of a four year grant dangers of lead.
Depoe and Ms. Rhonda Barnes-Kloth program funded by the National Dr. M. Kathryn Brown, UC
serve on the ERC Board. Dr. Depoe Institute of Environmental Health Department of Environmental Health,
serves as Chair of the Community Sciences (NIEHS), CECS Graduate is the lead on this NIEHS grant. The
Environmental Calendar Committee, Assistant Amy Lombardo, is working project is administered by the Urban
and Ms. Barnes-Kloth Chairs the with the Youth Environmental Appalachian Council, a community-
Education Committee. Project (YEP) in the Lower Price Hill based non-profit organization, in
Funding for ERCs operating costs neighborhood of Cincinnati. YEP is partnership with the LPH Community
will be raised through grants and geared toward teenagers and young Council, and the Cincinnati Health
contributions from private donors and adults in Lower Price Hill, in an effort Department.
4 Center for Environmental Communication Studies Spring 1999
CECS FEATURED RESEARCHER:
T. FAIRHURST
GAIL T. FAIRHURST
Dr. Gail Fairhurst, Professor of Communication and CECS researcher at the University of Cincinnati, is a nationally-
recognized expert in leadership communication. Her current research interests include: leadership communication
and organizational change; leadership communication during work force restructuring; the communication of corpo-
rate philosophy statements; and leader-member relationships. She frequently publishes in both
communication and organizational science outlets, and she has consulted with a number of businesses and organiza-
tions, including: the U.S Air Force; Boeing; Procter & Gamble; General Electric; Kroger; and State Farm Insurance.
Work Force Restructuring at Environmental Remediation Sites
orc Restruc
For estructuring nvironmental Remediation Sit
Envir ites
Corporate downsizing and work force transition of Fluor Daniel Fernalds (FDF; DOE-Fernald site
have become facts of life for most modern day remediation contractor) innovative managed attrition pro-
corporations. Examples of this can be found among the gram on turnover outcomes over time and with different
Department of Energys (DOE) environmental populations. The goal of managed attrition is to avoid
remediation contractors who involuntary separation of the
have been charged with work force through open-
cleaning up hazardous materi- ness in sharing manpower
als. Issues and tensions arise at planning information. (The
DOE remediation sites due to DOE-Fernald site, located 17
conflicting needs, such as the miles north of Cincinnati,
need to terminate a certain OH, refined uranium from
number of employees at 1953-1989 as part of the U.S.
regular intervals, and the need DOE nuclear weapons
to retain some knowledgeable production complex.)
employees at the site for During the first phase
completing clean-up. Tensions of the study, completed in late
also arise from the multiple 1998, a series of interviews
interests that must be examined leadership com-
managed, including those of Aerial view of DOE-Fernald site (Fernald, OH) munication in the work force
remediation workers, the site restructuring program at the
contractor, the local community, DOE, and the Office of DOE-Fernald site. The second phase will involve a
the Inspector General. survey of current site employees to uncover the key
Conducted by CECS researcher Dr. Gail communication variables and outcomes associated with
Fairhurst, with Project Manager Rhonda Barnes-Kloth, and work force restructuring and its impact on survivors. The
CECS Graduate Research Fellow Dan Cahill, the second phase of the Work Force Restructuring study is
Work Force Restructuring study will examine the effects funded by a sponsored research award from FDF .
media Visual Services. CECS research- interviews with workers and commu-
Fernald Living H istory
istor
Living History ers interviewed six community nity members by the end of fiscal year
oject Report
epor
Project Report members and workers for the video, 1999, in order to document a Fernald
which was shown at various public site history. Full-length copies of the
Over the past year, CECS has meetings to clarify the project concept interviews will be available in the
continued to pursue funding for the and encourage additional community Public Environmental Information
Fernald Living History Project (FLHP), involvement. Additional support for the Center, the public repository for DOE
an effort to preserve and record project has been solicited through the and FDF documents.
Fernald-area community histories. In establishment of a project web site During the coming year,
addition, the FLHP Volunteer Advisory (http://offo2.epa.state.oh.us/flhp.htm), CECS will pursue funding for interviews
Group solicited community interest in developed by the Ohio Environmen- that preserve Fernald-area community
the project during Summer 1998 at tal Protection Agency s Office of histories through various grant appli-
two local festivals. Federal Facilities Oversight. cations. CECS researchers will also
Summertime activities also Most recent developments begin documenting their experiences
included the production of a promo- related to the project include: a shift in with this community-university partner-
tional video for the FLHP by CECS with meeting facilitation from CECS to a ship through papers and presentations
help from Fluor Daniel Fernald (FDF , community member; and a DOE- at various academic conferences.
site remediation contractor) Multi- funded effort to conduct 80-100
Spring 1999 Center for Environmental Communication Studies 5
COMMUNICATION AND NUCLEAR ISSUES
Inter-Site Discussions
er-Sit
Inter-Site Discussions ommuication
Joins Commuic
CECS Joins Commuication and
aste
Wast
on Nuclear Waste eapons Resear
Weap esearch Group
Nuclear Weapons R esearch Group
In June 1998, the League of Women Voters Communication and Ecology at (Former)
Education Fund (LWVEF) convened two national Nuclear Weapons Sites: A Roundtable Discussion was
workshops (Chicago and San Diego) entitled Inter- held at the 1999 Western States Communication
Site Discussions on Nuclear Material and Waste. Each Association Conference in Vancouver, BC. During this
workshop brought together people impacted by the session, a variety of nuclear weapons complex issues
Department of Energys (DOE) policy decisions regard- were discussed by communication scholars from across
ing the management of nuclear materials and waste. the country, including academic projects currently
CECS Graduate Research Fellow Jennifer Hamilton underway that pertain to various U.S. nuclear weap-
served as a facilitator for the workshop held in ons production and/or disposal sites. Participants also
Chicago. discussed ways to encourage collaboration and dialogue
The workshops presented information on among academic researchers and others across the U.S.
upcoming DOE decisions, proposed waste manage- nuclear weapons complex.
ment alternatives, and discussed their implications. The Communication and Nuclear Weapons
Individual DOE sites sent agency and citizen represen- Research Group was created in response to the
tatives to the workshop to share their unique roundtable discussion. The purpose of this electronic
concerns, and to provide a local context for the discussion group is to enhance dialogue among
national discussions. Workshop participants engaged in communication scholars and other interested parties
small group discussions and used an interactive game who are involved in studying nuclear weapons policy,
to generate a list of crucial issues that DOE should technology, and institutions, particularly the U.S. nuclear
consider in its decision making process. weapons production complex. To join the discussion,
The Inter-Site Discussions were the culmina- address an e-mail message to: listserv@listserv.uc.edu,
tion of a two and a half year effort to create a national and place the following command in the body of the
dialogue involving citizens living near DOE sites across message: SUBSCRIBE UC-CNWRG First MI Last.
the country. CECS conducted one of four pilot work- Discussions concerning potential collaborative
shops held from June to November 1997 that research projects will continue at the Summer 1999
provided guidance to the LWVEF on ways the larger Conference on Communication and the Environment
effort might enable a national discussion of these issues in Flagstaff, AZ and at the 1999 National Communica-
across perspectives and sites. tion Association Conference in Chicago, IL.
Pro-Active Public In recent years, the DOE they are effective, a crisis is averted
Affairs at DOE’s field office in Miamisburg has tried to and positive public opinion is
Ohio Field Office focus its efforts on establishing and restored. But when pro-active public
Dr. Jerry Jordan has been maintaining trust and open lines of affairs programs are successful, it
working with the Department of communication with the local seems as if nothing happens in the
Energy since May 1998 to design community. Their public affairs efforts community because less public
effective assessment tools for have been aimed at establishing trust concern is expressed.
pro-active public affairs programs. and building relationships in the Dr. Jordan recently compiled
Officials at the DOE Ohio field office community rather than waiting for the a resource book for the Miamisburg
in Miamisburg, Ohio have developed community to voice their worries and field office which outlined a number
public affairs programs that are concerns. of measurement strategies and
designed to prevent public relations Dr. Jordan has been helping suggested how DOE might imple-
crises from occurring. These pro- the field office develop measurement ment those strategies. You have to
active programs are quite different strategies to assess the effectiveness do something besides a straight
from traditional public relations of their programs. Pro-active public forward phone survey, Jordan says.
activities which are usually reactive in affairs programs are difficult to assess When their [DOE] programs are
nature. That is, many traditional because their goal is to prevent successful, people will not worry
public relations activities are designed certain events from occurring. about DOE activities, they will trust
to address public protests or respond Traditional, reactive public relations that things are being handled OK.
to public concerns. efforts are relatively easy to assess. If
6 Center for Environmental Communication Studies Spring 1999
PROJECT UPDATES
Great Lakes Fish Advisory Project Nears Completion
The Great Lakes Fish Advisory study has now the researchers in order to gauge their understanding of
entered its fourth and final year of operation. Project information about the risks of consuming fish caught in the
researchers Dr. Robert Griffin (Marquette University), Dr. Great Lakes. In the third year of the study, participants were
Sharon Dunwoody (University of Wisconsin-Madison), and given a specially designed brochure that contained informa-
Dr. Kurt Neuwirth (CECS, University of Cincinnati) received tion typically found in fish advisories.
funding from the Agency for Toxic The study is designed to clarify
Substances and Disease Registry relationships among social trust in the
(ATSDR) to study peoples understand- institutions issuing fish advisories, risk
ing of government-issued advisories for judgments of individuals, emotional
fish caught in the Great Lakes. responses those individuals might have
Historically, a number of facili- to information about hazards, and
ties have dumped manufacturing wastes information processing styles. All of the
directly into the Great Lakes. Water study elements are in place and we hope
samples are found to contain harmful to demonstrate relationships between
levels of PCBs (polychlorinated biphe- Fishing on Lake Superior
the kind of information processing most
nyls), a toxic industrial byproduct. PCBs folks do, and what they think, feel, and
remain active in the Great Lakes almost indefinitely, and over how they behave when it comes to eating Great Lakes fish,
a period of time becomes concentrated in the fatty tissue of said Neuwirth.
fish. When people catch and eat those fish, PCBs are trans- The three Great Lakes Fish Advisory researchers
ferred to the bodies of the human consumers. are currently in the process of tabulating and analyzing the
During each of the past three years, some 400 data generated by the project. A final report to ATSDR will
Cleveland and Milwaukee residents were interviewed by be issued in late Fall of this year.
Effects Domestic
Effects of Domestic ch’
‘Drench Effects
‘Drench’ Effects of
Violence on Home
iolenc Media Portrayals of
ortrayals
Portray treatments.The study is currently
nvironments
Environments olcanic Disaster
Volcanic Disaster under review for conference presen-
tation and publication.
Dr. Teresa Sabourin is cur- Drs. C. Mo Bahk and Kurt
rently completing a two year grant from Neuwirth have been investigating
the University Research Council and the drench effects of media portrayals of CECS Joins Joins
Cincinnati Coalition on Domestic volcanic disaster. Drench analysis is a
Violence, to examine the affective ducat ators Group
relatively new approach to media effects Educators Group
behavioral change in abusive men as research in the field of communication. CECS researcher Rhonda
they undergo four weeks of training at In contrast to the cultivation perspec- Barnes-Kloth, has joined the Greater
the Amend Program. tive which regards media effects as Cincinnati Environmental Educators
During the first year, this study resulting from gradual, cumulative (GCEE), an organization of teachers and
involved open-ended interviews with a exposure to mediated representations non-formal educators who believe in
convenience sample of men at the of the real world, the drench analysis the importance of bringing environ-
Amend Program. Behavioral changes acknowledges that some media presen- mental principles into Cincinnati-area
were measured in terms of whether tations and role portrayals may gener- schools and classrooms. On June 17,
these men owned up to the respon- ate intense, lasting impacts on some 1999, Ms. Barnes-Kloth, who repre-
sibility for their actions and changed their individuals. sents the Environmental Resource Cen-
construction of reality. The interviews The results of this study ter, will assist with the GCEE-sponsored
were coded as partial concessions, full particularly demonstrate the potential or symposium Modeling Environmental
concessions, or justifications. The study drench analysis as a micro-level theo- Education in the Classroom. The
is currently in the data analysis stage. retical approach to the explanation of purpose of the symposium is to
By Summer 1999, a paper will media effects that would also be provide K-12 teachers with hands-on
be submitted to Communication compatible with the cultivation analysis educational tools that will assist them
Monographs for publication. The as a macro-level approach. The drench with teaching about environmental
Amend Program will also receive a analysis is expected to more clearly issues. For more information on the
report with evaluations and recommen- delineate the effects of dramatic media symposium, please contact Sara
dations to be able to restructure their messages that may have been obscured Storjohann at the Civic Garden Center
program according to research findings. previously by aggregate analytic (513) 221-0981.
Spring 1999 Center for Environmental Communication Studies 7
articipat
Participates nvironmental
Envir Pr gram
CECS Participates in Environmental Studies Program
As part of CECS ongoing efforts to promote a multi-disciplinary approach to environmental issues, Director
Stephen Depoe currently serves as a faculty member for the Environmental Studies Program (ESP), an undergraduate
major in the Department of Biology at UC. The program offers a Bachelor of Science degree (B.S.) in Environmental
Studies and trains students to become environmental professionals with a broad, interdisciplinary understanding of
environmental issues. The ESP includes faculty members from disciplines including: political science, communication,
business, economics, biology, chemistry, and engineering.
Environmental Studies faculty team teach a three-quarter sequence that introduces freshmen to the diversity of the
environmental field. During Spring 1999, Stephen Depoe teamed up with economics professor Haynes Goddard for
the first course in the sequence. Dr. Depoes portion of the course provides an overview of the environmental
movement and incorporates guest speakers who will discuss a wide range of Cincinnati area environmental issues and
controversies.
CECS FACULTY & STAFF
Dr. Stephen P Depoe , Associate Professor
Stephen P. Dep
. epo Dr. Gail T. Fairhurst Professor of Communi-
airhurst,
Gail T. Fairhurst
and Head, Department of Communication; cation, studies internal organizational
Director, CECS, examines environmental processes and leadership in organizations.
justice issues and public participation. Phone: (513) 556-4460
Phone: (513) 556-4440 FAX: (513) 556-0899
FAX: (513) 556-0899 E-mail: fairhug@email.uc.edu
E-mail: depoe@uc.edu
Barnes-K loth,
arnes-Kloth
Rhonda Barnes-K loth Junior R esearch ennifer (Dufuff Hamilton
on,
Jennif er (D uf f ield) Hamilton Graduate
Associate, studies ecological anthropology, Research Fellow, studies environmental risk
environmental justice, and environmental communication and public participation in risk
policy. issues.
Phone: (513) 556-4001 Phone: (513) 556-4001
FAX: (513) 556-0899 FAX: (513) 556-0899
E-mail: Rhonda.Barnes-Kloth@uc.edu E-mail: duffiejj@email.uc.edu
D r. C. Mo Bahk Assistant Professor of
Bahk
ahk, Dr. Jerry M. Jordan Associate Professor of
erry
Jerr ordan
Jordan,
Communication, explores the nature and Communication, examines how interpersonal
consequences of dramatic media messages sources of risk information factor into the
dealing with health and environmental issues. public’s attitudes toward environmental risks.
Phone: (513) 556-4479 Phone: (513) 556-4474
FAX: (513) 556-0899 FAX: (513) 556-0899
E-mail: bahkcm@uc.edu E-mail: jordanjm@uc.edu
John W. Delicath Assistant Professor of
W. Delicath,
elicath Dr. Kur t Neuwir th Assistant Professor of
urt
Kur Neuwirthth,
Communication, studies environmental Communication, explores how risk messages
justice and rhetorical theory and criticism; influence the risk perception of individuals.
media theory and criticism; and social theory Phone: (513) 556-1571
and cultural studies. FAX: (513) 556-0899
Phone: (513) 556-4440 E-mail: Kurt.Neuwirth@uc.edu
FAX: (513) 556-0899
Dr. Teresa Sabourin Professor of Communi-
eresa Sabourin,
Ter abourin
Daniel J. Cahill Graduate Research Fellow,
ahill,
Cahill cation, examines the role of communication in
studies internal organizational processes. the genesis, maintenance, and prevention of
Phone: (513) 556-5860 domestic violence.
FAX: (513) 556-0899 Phone: (513) 556-4440
E-mail: cahilldl@email.uc.edu FAX: (513) 556-0899
E-mail: Teresa.Sabourin@uc.edu
8 Center for Environmental Communication Studies Spring 1999
Publications Annual National Stakeholder’s Workshop, U.S. Department
Depoe, S.P. (1998). “Talking about the Earth: On the grow- of Energy, Alexandria, VA.
ing significance of environmental communication studies.”
Rhetoric & Public Affairs, 1, 435-448. Griffin, R.J., Dunwoody, S., & Neuwirth, K. (1998). “Audi-
ence seeking and processing of information about risks to
Griffin, R.J., Dunwoody, S., & Neuwirth, K. (1999). “Pro- the Great Lakes ecosystem.” Society for Risk Analysis
posed model of risk information seeking and processing to Annual Convention, Atlanta, GA, December 1998.
the development of preventive behaviors.” Environmental
Research, 80, s230-s245.
Upcoming Presentations in 1999
Presentations Bahk, C.M. & Berger, C.R. (1999). "Too Close for Comfort:
Depoe, S.P., & Hamilton, J. (1999). “Communication and Disaster Proximity and Severity, and Reponses to Threat-
ecology at (former) nuclear weapons sites: A roundtable ening News Stories." 49th Annual Conference of the
discussion.” Panel presentation at the Seventieth Annual International Communication Association, San Francisco,
Meeting of the Western States Communication Associa- CA, May 1999.
tion, Vancouver, BC, February 1999.
Barnes-Kloth, R., Depoe, S.P., Hamilton, J.J., &
Depoe, S.P., Hamilton, J., & Jordan, J.M. (1998). Lombardo, A.J. (1999). “Environmental justice, activism,
“Reflections on the National Dialogue Pilot Field Work- and ethnography: Reports from the field.” Panel presenta-
shop on the Department of Energy’s management of tion at the National Communication Association Conven-
nuclear waste.” Competitive Paper presented at the tion, Chicago, IL, November, 1999.
National Communication Association Convention, New
York, NY, November 1998. Barnes-Kloth, R., Depoe, S.P., Hamilton, J.J., &
Lombardo, A.J. (1999). “Memories of Fernald: Defining a
Fairhurst, G.T., Cooren, F., & Cahill, D. (1998). “Leader- “sense of place” through personal narrative.” Presentation
ship issues and the velvet boot: A pilot study of work force at the Conference on Communication and the Environ-
restructuring at Fernald.” Paper presented at the Sixth ment, Flagstaff, AZ, July, 1999.
The Center for Environmental Communication Studies
Newsletter Design:
University of Cincinnati
Rhonda Barnes-Kloth
.O.
P Box 210184
Cincinnati, OH 45221-0184
Newsletter Contributors:
Jennifer Hamilton
Amy Lombardo
Girija Gothoskar
Web Page Design:
Guowei Jian
CONTACT US FOR MORE
INFORMATION ABOUT CECS
AND OUR PROJECTS.
(513) 556-4001
depoe@uc.edu
mission
The CECS mission is to to
enhance the understanding
enhanc
and quality of communication
quality communic
ommunication
pro esses actic
practices
processes and practices
industry
among citizens, industry, and
gov participants
government participants in
environmental polic formation
olicy
environmental polic y formation
and implementation.
esearchers
resear
CECS researchers pursue this
ariety
mission through variet
mission through a variety of
efforts, including basic
efforts, including basic and
esearch projec
resear ojects
applied research projec ts
elated communit
relat ommunity
and related community
vice
servic initiatives.
servic e initiatives.