The College of Journalism and Communications is an academic college of the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

. The centerpiece of the journalism programs at UF is WUFT, which consists of both a

WUFT (TV) WUFT (channel 5) is a PBS member television station in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is owned by the University of Florida alongside low-power independent station WRUF-LD (channel 10), NPR member WUFT-FM (89.1), and commercial rad ...

Public Broadcasting Service (PBS)

Public television Public broadcasting involves radio, television and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service. Public broadcasters receive funding from diverse sources including license fees, individual contributions, public financing ...

and

WUFT-FM WUFT-FM is an NPR member radio station owned by the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, broadcasting news and public media programming from NPR along with other distributors including APM, PRX, WNYC Studios and the BBC. The station ...

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

public radio station. The commercial broadcasting radio station, WRUF, is also one of the oldest stations in the state.

History

The college traces its origins to 1925, when the Department of Journalism was formed in Language Hall (now Anderson Hall). Orland K. "O.K." Armstrong was the first head of the department. The first three journalism degrees were awarded in 1928. The department moved into

Buckman Hall Buckman Hall is a historic building located in Murphree Area on the University of Florida campus in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It was designed by architect William A. Edwards in the Collegiate Gothic style and opened in 1906 as one of ...

, a renovated dormitory, in 1937. Rae O. Weimer, former managing editor at the

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

daily newspaper '' PM'', began teaching in the Department of Journalism in 1949. In 1950, the journalism program was

accredited Accreditation is the independent, third-party evaluation of a conformity assessment body (such as certification body, inspection body or laboratory) against recognised standards, conveying formal demonstration of its impartiality and competence to ...

, although it still had only "one classroom, no equipment and only two teachers." In late 1953,

broadcasting Broadcasting is the distribution of audio or video content to a dispersed audience via any electronic mass communications medium, but typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum ( radio waves), in a one-to-many model. Broadcasting beg ...

was transferred to journalism and the department became a school, the School of Journalism and Communications. In 1967, the school became a full-fledged college. Weimer was named the first

dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...

; the current journalism building, Weimer Hall, is named for him. From 1976 to 1994, Ralph Lowenstein served as dean and carried out the digital transformation of the college. On July 1, 2021, Hub Brown assumed the role of Dean. Hub Brown was an associate dean and associate professor at the Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. He succeeds Diane McFarlin, who retired after having served eight years in that role.

Academics

The department comprises four departments: *Department of Journalism (

journalism Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the " news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree. The word, a noun, applies to the occupation (pro ...

) *Department of Media Production, Management, & Technology
MPMT
*Department of Advertising (

advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...

) *Department of Public Relations (

public relations Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. ...

) The College of Journalism and Communications offers several

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University o ...

Journalism Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the " news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree. The word, a noun, applies to the occupation (pro ...

Media Production, Management, and Technology

Advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...

, and

Public relations Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. ...

. It offers

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Th ...

in Journalism,

mass communications Mass communication is the process of imparting and exchanging information through mass media to large segments of the population. It is usually understood for relating to various forms of media, as its technologies are used for the dissemination o ...

, and Advertising, along with

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

The Center for Public Interest Communications

The Center for Public Interest Communications operates as a unit of the College of Journalism and Communications. The first of its kind in the nation, the Center studies, tests and helps organizations apply behavioral, cognitive and social science to create strategic communication designed to achieve positive social change. Public interest communications is a science-driven approach to strategic communications that results in lasting change on an issue that transcends the interests of any single person or organization and advances our greater good. The Center provides training to government agencies, universities, foundations, public interest communications agencies and nonprofits on how to incorporate elements of public interest communications in their work. It also partners with a number of organizations to help them create more effective communications strategies to drive positive social change. In addition, The Center develops workshops to share research with social change leaders and scientists to help them develop better communication strategies, and it hosts frank, an annual conference dedicated to public interest communications. It also publishes the Journal of Public Interest Communications, the first-ever, open-access, interdisciplinary journal featuring peer-reviewed research in the emerging field of public interest communications. The Center grew out of The Frank Karel Chair in Public Interest Communications made possible by a $2 million grant made to the university in 2008 from Trellis Fund. The endowment was used to create a curriculum in public interest communications, and to mentor and advise students who plan to build careers in the field. In May 2019, The Center for Public Interest Communications, in collaboration with UF CJC Online, launched the nation's first master's degree program in Public Interest Communications.

UF CJC Online

The College of Journalism and Mass Communications launched its online graduate program
UF CJC Online
in 2012 with an MA degree in Mass Communication with a specialization in global strategic communication. The college currently offers a master's degree with eight areas of specialization including Audience Analytics, Digital Strategy, Global Strategic Communication, Political Communication, Public Interest Communication, Public Relations, Social Media, and Web Design. Additionally, four graduate certificates are offered in Global Strategic Communication, Media Sales, Social Media and Web Design. The online graduate program has been recognized as a top rated online program (Ranked #1 online Master's in Communications Program by The Best Schools in 2019) UF CJC Online is administered by an in-house staff. Dr. Evan Kropp was named the Director of UF CJC Online in May 2019.

ABC News at UF

ABC News ABC News is the news division of the American broadcast network ABC. Its flagship program is the daily evening newscast ''ABC World News Tonight, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir''; other programs include Breakfast television, morning ...

opened a "mini-

bureau Bureau ( ) may refer to: Agencies and organizations * Government agency *Public administration * News bureau, an office for gathering or distributing news, generally for a given geographical location * Bureau (European Parliament), the administra ...

" at the College of Journalism and Communications in September 2008. It was one of five universities chosen for the ABC News on Campus program, along with Arizona State University, Syracuse University, the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

, and the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,07 ...

Student organizations

In October 2011, the University of Florida chapter of the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) was named Most Outstanding Chapter of the Year.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Florida Journalism and Communications, University of Journalism and Communications Journalism schools in the United States Educational institutions established in 1925 1925 establishments in Florida