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Contemporary Media Ethics: A Practical Guide for Students, Scholars and Professionals, edited by Mitchell Land (’82 M.A.), associate professor of journalism and director of the Frank W. Mayborn Graduate Institute of Journalism, and Bill W. Hornaday (’05 M.J.), business reporter for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (Marquette Books).

The editors worked for five years on this guide, which analyzes ethical dilemmas in the media and introduces a new model for attempting to resolve them. Emphasizing a philosophical foundation as a starting point and using real-world cases, the book compares two approaches to decision making: a utilitarian approach based on “the greatest good for the greatest number,” and a communitarian approach that balances personal ethics with community values.

Among the cases analyzed are the Dallas Morning News’ publication of Timothy McVeigh’s Oklahoma City bombing confession and media use of the video from the terrorists who captured and killed Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl. Other topics covered include balancing patriotism with reporting duties since Sept. 11, AIDS in Africa and ethics in public relations campaigns.

UNT contributors to the book include faculty Alan Albarran, Elizabeth Koehler, Jacqueline Lambiase (’84, ’92 M.A.) and Dan Malone; former faculty Michael Bruner, John Mark Dempsey and Tom Reichert; and alumnus James Whitfield (’77), dean at Hawaii Pacific University.

Queer Images: A History of Gay and Lesbian Film in America by Harry Benshoff, associate professor of radio, television and film, and Sean Griffin, SMU associate professor of film and media studies (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers). This book chronicles the representation of queer sexualities during 100 years of American film. The authors write about a wide variety of films, individuals and subcultures, including cinematic responses to the AIDS crisis and the rise and impact of New Queer Cinema in the 1990s.

The Painful Warrior: A Jerry Valdez Novel by Gene Wright, professor of English (PublishAmerica). As Wright picks up the story of Jerry Valdez, sheriff of Kendall County, Texas, the sheriff is summoned to Washington, D.C., by an old Army friend whose wife has been kidnapped. In Valdez’s search for the victim he encounters “threats of terrorism, unscrupulous and incompetent military officers, fatally flawed helicopters, inquisitive congressmen, interfering federal agents, a dangerous renegade special ops soldier of fortune and greedy corporate executives.”

Motivating Marvin: Helping Your Bright Underachiever Succeed in School by Steven G. Gray (’83 Ph.D.) of Colorado Springs, Colo. (Living Water Press). Gray explores some of the common pitfalls that lead to academic underachievement and offers parents and teachers strategies to help motivate students to do their best in school. Gray is a board certified pediatric neuropsychologist and director of Gray Neuropsychology Associates Inc., with clinics in Texas and Colorado.

Hers, His and Theirs: Community Property Law in Spain and Early Texas by Jean Stuntz (’96 M.A., ’00 Ph.D.) of Amarillo (Texas Tech University Press). Under Spanish law in early Texas, married women could own property in their own names and seek redress if their property rights were infringed. Some Spanish traditions in community property and women’s legal status were eventually written into the state constitution. Through documents and court cases, Stuntz explores the evolution of Castilian law and why it survived in Texas. She is an assistant professor of history at West Texas A&M University in Canyon.

Alice in Corporate Wonderland: Down the Long Hallway by R.T. Talasek (’93 Ph.D.) of Meadowlakes (PublishAmerica). This “corporate fairytale” follows Alice, a new and idealistic Ivy League M.B.A. graduate, as she explores the “somewhat insane” corporate world and encounters characters similar to those from the original Lewis Carroll work. Talasek has spent the last 25 years in technical, sales and general management roles in the semiconductor industry.

Ink in the Blood: A Memoir of the Easy Years by Phil Vinson (’63) of Fort Worth (Virtualbookworm.com Publishing). Vinson, who grew up in a family of journalists, became a journalist himself and was involved in the coverage of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy as a reporter for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. He writes of his life in the ’40s, ’50s and ’60s, covering what he calls “a boyhood marked by enchantment, confusion, faith, doubt, guilt, love and pretty much what most boys of my generation will recognize in their own lives.” He is a lecturer in journalism at the University of Texas at Arlington.

Other Media

Lodestar by Stockton Helbing (’03) of Florence, S.C. This is the debut album as bandleader for Helbing, the drummer for jazz trumpet player Maynard Ferguson. Blending jazz and pop, the CD was selected by Ferguson for his MF Presents series, making Helbing the only drummer and the youngest musician to hold that honor. The CD also features UNT master’s student Ken Edwards on trumpet and flugelhorn, Tom Luer (2002-2004) on tenor saxophone, Noel Johnston (’00 M.M.) on guitar and Brian Mulholland (’05 M.M.) on four-string electric bass. It was co-produced by Craig Butterfield (’99, ’02 M.M.) and recorded, mixed and mastered by Erik Herbst (1993-1995).

Back With the Cats by Hiro Morozumi (’00, ’04 M.M.) of Ichihara, Japan. In addition to jazz pianist and composer Morozumi, these originals and standards feature UNT alumni Shelley Carrol (’92) on saxophone and flute and Ryan McGillicuddy (’01, ’03 M.M.) on bass. Morozumi won the 2003 best extended composition award from Down Beat Magazine and received a 2004 Henry Mancini Institute composer scholarship. He was a semifinalist in the Montreux Jazz Festival solo piano competition last year.

Sounds of Samuels by Jerry Samuels
(’69 M.M.Ed.) of Dallas. Samuels, a professional pianist for more than 40 years, says this CD
of his compositions reflects influences “absorbed by a lifetime of playing many different types of gigs ranging from solo piano to big band.” It was named one of the best CDs of 2005 by the KNTU staff. In 2004, Samuels and bassist Al Wesar released the double CD set Samuels and Wesar Perform the Music of Clare Fischer, dedicated to the music of “one of the greatest living jazz composers.” In addition to teaching jazz piano, Samuels accompanies the Brookhaven Vocal Jazz Ensemble and has toured with the Fort Worth Symphony.

 

 
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