BEA2026

With a focus on documentary and non-fiction storytelling Mobile Journalism author Robb Montgomery returns showcase fresh case studies from the field. Participants will get an exclusive screening of winning documentary films from the recent Mobile Journalism Awards that were shot on smartphones and small cameras. He will also demonstrate how to create a 3D modeled immersive multimedia online exhibit using a free phone app, open source software, and Anthropological qualitative research methods. Montgomery also will reveal how he filmed a documentary film scene about virtual sex using a MetaQuest VR headset.
Moderator: Robb B Montgomery, Visual Editors, NFP

This panel explores how generative AI can be applied responsibly in photo, audio, and—most notably—video storytelling within the field of journalism. Panelists will share class projects and real-world experiences, address technical challenges, and examine the ethical considerations surrounding the use of AI-driven tools in storytelling.

Moderator, Jiachun Hong, Utah Tech University
Panelists: Kyle Dorius, Utah Tech University
Yanfang Wu, University of Miami

BEA is debuting Special Interest Groups (SIGs) in 2026.  The Social Media SIG seeks scholarship that examines the ever-evolving role of social media. Topics can include engagement, algorithms, ethics, pedagogy, misinformation & more.

Moderator: Amanda Czuprynski, Regent University

Panelists: Tabitha Ann Bartoe, Regent University; Exploring The Impact of Meteorologists’ Language on Public Response

Mohammed Huraysi, King Khalid University; Mobilizing the Margins: A Frame Analysis of Zohran Mamdani’s Digital Campaign Strategy and Audience Activation

Michael R. Kotowski, University of Tennessee, Knoxville; Christopher J. Carpenter, Western Illinois University; Catherine A. Luther, University of Tennessee,Knoxville; Matthew J. A. Craig, Central Michigan University; Benjamin D. Horne, University of Tennessee, Knoxville; Martin Johannes Riedl, University of Tennessee; Opinion Leaders’ Social Media Usage and Counter-Misinformation Practices

Yanqin Lu, Bowling Green State University; Yining Yan, Shanghai International Studies University; Social media influencers equalize civic engagement gaps: Evidence from a national survey in China

Year two for a panel of students offering their voices on their importance to college radio. Hear about the new and different perspectives college students provide, including their experiences in college radio. Listen to how they encourage others to speak up/out when they see their peers doing the same. They will discuss the challenges of running a station and working with their peers. Lastly, hear the truths they want their leaders to know.

Moderator: Shawn Isaacs, University of West Georgia
Panelists: Seth Berquist, Indiana State University
Jay Jacinto, UT-Arlington
Lauren Koppelmann, John Carroll University
Drew Walker, University of West Georgia

This panel features the first, second, and third place winners of the annual Two-Year College/High School innovative assignment contest. Come in and steal some great assignment ideas!
Moderator: Tom McDonnell, Metropolitan Community College
Frank Barnhart, Columbus State Community College
Brian Wheeler, Pikes Peak State Community College

This session will focus on incorporating high-tech tools into your curriculum. Tech tools featured include Artificial Intelligence, Virtual Reality, and Augmented Reality.
Moderator: Andy Curran, University of Cincinnati-Clermont College
Panelists: Amanda Czuprynski, Morgan Community College

Paul Hemenway, Lamar University

Don Hancock, University of Cincinnati

Faculty and former students from the Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communication outline the “Hubbard Reporting Experience.” In this collaborative two-week bootcamp, broadcast students go from basic production and reporting knowledge to day-turning news packages for broadcast. Students pitch stories at 8 a.m., then interview, shoot, write, track, edit and air a live newscast at 4 p.m., including remote live shots.

Moderator: Scott Libin, University of Minnesota
Panelists: Sara Quinn, University of Minnesota

SPORTS BROADCASTING SHOWCASE

This session will feature panelists from several universities that teach sports broadcasting. Some universities have full-fledged sports majors, while other colleges include sports activities as part of a general broadcast major. The panelists will highlight their programs, including how students, staff, and faculty are involved in the process. Student production excerpts will be shared with the audience. The programming may come from sports segments in radio or television newscasts, weekly shows, or specials. The program carriers vary from campus closed-circuit systems to community cable channels and public broadcasting stations. Issues to be discussed will include the balancing act of producing quality programming and providing students with a positive learning experience at the same time, the sometimes-challenging relationship between academics and the Athletic Department, and the ongoing budget battle.
Moderator: Kenneth A. Fischer, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Panelists: Brett Kurland, Arizona State University
Miles Romney, Brigham Young University
Alan Eno, University of Nebraska-Lincoln 

You can't learn how to be a journalist or a media professional from a textbook or by simply sitting in a class. You learn by getting your hands dirty, doing the hard work and gaining field experience. This panel will be a look at tried and tested experiential workshops — some multi-day workshops — put on by different
universities around the world. These workshops and our panelists run the spectrum: A sports workshop incorporating multiple classes,
an immersive photo and multimedia storytelling workshop, global documentary workshops on social change and environmental issues. We want to include what works and what doesn't work, some step-by-step guides for creating a successful, hands-on workshop. Many of these workshops also provide portfolio pieces for students and/or have a community service component to them as well.

Moderator: Jen Smith, University of Kentucky
Panelists: Jen Smith, University of Kentucky
David Stephenson, School of Journalism and Media, University of Kentucky,
Robin Canfield, Actuality Abroad
Robb B. Montgomery, Visual Editors, NFP
Tynymgul Eshieva Eshieva, American University in Central Asia

Join us for this series of sessions showcasing the work of our Festival of Media Arts Student News winners.

Moderator: Boriana Treadwell, University of Miami

News Competition
Television Long Feature Reporting Category
Best of Festival: Alex Land, University of Florida; The New Florida Follies

Television News Magazine Category
1st Place: Katelyn Kucharski, Delanie Haddad & Gracie Palmer, University of Miami; Hometown Heroes: 2025 Edition

Sports Competition
Video News Program Category
1st Place: Griffin Bloomstein & Nathaniel Cunningham, Syracuse University; Syracuse Women’s Soccer vs Cornell Pregame Show

Television Short Feature Reporting Category
Award of Excellence: Josiah Rozek, Regent University; Canaries in the Coal Mine

This annual panel provides the opportunity for student writers to pitch their films, television shows, or other narrative media to professional screenwriters. The students receive feedback on both their scripts and their pitches. This session is part one of a two-parter with the same writers; it is followed immediately by their second panel, “Media Writers Q&A Session.”
Moderator: Raymond Dennis Seymour Anderson, University of Guam
Panelists: Rosanne Welch, Stephens College
Jon L. Vandergriff, Cal State Fullerton
David Morgasen, California State Fullerton

This annual panel provides the opportunity for attendees to hear real-world stories about writing professionally in the entertainment industry. Q&A allows attendees to gain inside perspectives on the challenges and successes of writing in “Hollywood.” This session is part two of a two-parter with the same writers; it is preceded immediately by their first panel, “Media Writers Pitch Session.”
Moderator: Edward J. Fink, California State University - Fullerton
Panelists: Rosanne Welch, Stephens College
Jon L. Vandergriff, Cal State Fullerton
David Morgasen, Cal State Fullerton

Student News Live debuted with 24-hour streaming coverage on Election Day 2024, featuring young journalists from across the world, including reporting live from the White House. Building on that success, the program is launching a podcast to amplify student voices on campus and community issues nationwide. This session will feature Student News Live board members outlining opportunities for students to get involved.

Moderator: Rob Quicke, Marshall University
Panelists: Nick Hirshon, William Paterson University
Rob Quicke, Marshall University

The threat to the integrity of journalism is at an all-time high. Media is adapting to technological changes such as AI, combating widespread disinformation, and the constant change in how the public consumes news. In addition, high school and college broadcast programs deal with roadblocks such as: as misalignment of curriculum, credit transfer issues and liability considerations. Changes such as these highlight the need to strengthen dual-enrollment programs. Statistics show this educational advantage improves the career opportunities for future journalists especially for students living in underrepresented areas and demographics.
Moderator: Chalise Macklin, University of Memphis
Panelists: Roxane Coche, University of Florida
Harrison Hove, University of Florida
Brian Bentley, Clark Atlanta University

Please join us as we recognize all of the Faculty Festival winners from News competition.  

After the awards are handed out, we will hear from our Best of Competition winners from News, Film & Video and Audio.
Confirmed Presenters

Faculty Film & Video
Commercial or PSA Category
House of Honey; Jonathan Vinson, Huntington University

Mixed/Pedagogical Category
ALL ONE; Rodrigo Gómez Claros, Skye Baxter, Cooper Rogers, Seth Savage & Stacey Teves, Middle Tennessee State University

Faculty News
Television Feature News Reporting Category
From Denver to Mecca: A CNN producer’s personal pilgrimage to Islam’s holiest site; Kareem El Damanhoury, Muhammad Darwish, Angelica Pursley & Matog Saleh, University of Denver

Faculty Audio
Radio Station Promo, PSA, Commercial Category
Universal Electric Scooter and Skateboard Life Insurance; Don Connelly, Western Carolina University

Why aren’t more local TV news stations embracing news influencing on social media? In 2024, Pew Research Center found that 20% of adults regularly get news from influencers – and most have no affiliation or background in a news organization. Learn from two professors who began a social media news influencer project and took those lessons into the classroom; and from a local TV news reporter on the challenges of breaking through.
Moderator: Jamie Hoskins, Syracuse University
Panelists: Catherine Loper, Syracuse University
David Charns, Investigative Reporter, KLAS 8 News NOW

While every production program faces difficulties, DII and DIII programs often face unique resource challenges. This panel explores ways that smaller academic programs have successfully partnered with their university athletics department and overcome common hurdles. We will present specific experiential learning opportunities tied to student media and course curriculum, take a closer look at our partnership models, and discuss unique ways of addressing common human, budget, and equipment resource issues.

Moderator: John Mcuire, Oklahoma State University
Panelists: Chris Shofner, Bethel University
Jasen Sokol, John Carroll University
David Allen Nelson, University of Central Oklahoma

Consistent with BEA’s mission to advance research on media technologies and education, this panel addresses how AI reshapes the study of journalism — not only as an object of analysis but as a methodological revolution in media research itself. It aligns with the convention’s focus on technological transformations, algorithmic cultures, and the future of scholarly inquiry in media and communication.
This panel offers a timely and urgently needed scholarly conversation for the BEA 2026 Convention by illuminating how artificial intelligence is transforming journalism not only as a professional practice but also as a rapidly evolving domain of academic inquiry. Uniquely distinguished by the prominence and interdisciplinary reach of its participants, the panel features leading scholars and industry experts whose work has shaped national and international conversations around AI, media innovation, and communication research. ICA Fellows Don Shin and Shuhua Zhou bring perspectives on AI epistemology, algorithmic fact-checking, and audience cognition; Kerk F. Kee, an interdisciplinary principal investigator with over $13M in prestigious grants, contributes cutting-edge insights into AI-driven risk communication systems and their implications for journalistic verification; Alexandra M. Merceron, a senior industry executive and faculty expert in emerging media technologies, connects academic theory to real-world innovation as she examines the rise of LLM-based information ecosystems and generative engine optimization. Nigerian journalist, founder and executive editor of Minority Africa Caleb Okereke speaks on the panel both as a researcher and practitioner with a focus on questions of ethics and representation in AI and journalism. His current research work examines automating the journalistic "gut feeling." His research team uses LLMs to select images to accompany news stories in a large-scale study. Collectively, these leading AI experts demonstrate the depth, rigor, and forward-looking vision that aligns with BEA’s mission to advance research and education on emerging media technologies. Their combined expertise ensures that this session will offer attendees unparalleled insights into the theoretical, methodological, and practical transformations reshaping journalism in an AI-integrated media environment.

Kerk F. Kee
Professor, Texas Tech University

Alexandra M. Merceron
Executive Vice President, Rubenstein Communications
Faculty, New York University

Caleb Okereke
Founder and Executive Editor of Minority Africa

Don H. Shin
Professor, Texas Tech University
Editor, JoBEM (Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media) Special Issue “AI, Misinformation, and the Future of the Algorithmic Fact-Checking”
Doctoral Fellow, Northeastern University