Faculty Spotlight:

Alison Alexander, Journalism and Mass Communication

"When we combined teaching and service in leading the instruction of the visiting broadcasters, we learned a lot about ourselves," Alexander said. The visiting broadcasters were offered a program that combined the research expertise of the telecommunications faculty, contacts with professionals in the community who also acted as instructors, and work with WUGA-FM, The University of Georgia National Public Radio affiliate operated by the Georgia Center .

"The journalism college faculty gained so much working with them. We have a better appreciation of the concerns of broadcasters in the former Soviet Union. Talking with them enhanced our understanding of the issues emerging and developing broadcasting systems are facing, and I think this will inform our own teaching of our students here at UGA," Alexander said.

The week of instruction for the broadcasters from the Newly Independent States of the former Soviet Union is just one example of outreach on the part of the College of Journalism. Alexander also works with the Georgia Association of Broadcasters, among other professional organizations, which annually holds its conference at the Georgia Center.

"We also have close contacts with professionals in the state through associations and internship programs we offer our students. The school does well in reaching its professional constituents. The telecommunications faculty have worked on, among other projects, a telecommunications proposal with Clarke County, Georgia, schools, and is finding ways to support the telecommunications activities of the 1996 Atlanta Olympics," she said.

Research Interests: Children's Television

Alexander said she finds synergy between research and service in her own research on children's television and the development of children's consumer behavior. She is starting a project that studies how quality in children's programming is defined and how that definition has changed over the years.

"As part of that research, I hope to use the archives of the Peabody Awards, which are administered by the Grady College," Alexander said. The George Foster Peabody Awards, the most prestigious awards in the broadcast and cable industry, are now in their 55th year.

Each March, the Peabody Awards National Advisory Board meets at the Georgia Center to evaluate more than 1,000 entries, including selections in news, entertainment, education, children's programs, documentaries, and public service. The awards are for quality, as opposed to popularity. "They're a great resource for the University," Alexander said.

In addition, she hopes to write a popular book for parents as a service project, which would sift through the academic research on children's television and offer guidelines for children's television viewing.

"Many believe that TV, in any form, is bad for children. The notion that kids sit mesmerized for hours in front of the TV is not true. Limiting the amount of TV is a valuable argument, but often we assume that passive physically means passive mentally. The evidence doesn't support that because of the way kids watch TV. Kids are like popcorn when they watch TV--they're up and down and talking to each other. They talk about what's going on; they explain to younger kids the plot and the characters. They're figuring the program out for themselves."

In addition to teaching classes on research methods and writing, this spring Alexander taught a graduate level seminar on children and TV. As part of the class, students observed children watching television in their homes. "It's very enlightening for people to really watch how kids watch TV."

"TV is one aspect of our lives. Parents are not going to be able to protect a child from TV. The trick is to make it a part of their lives, but only a part," Alexander said.

As a mother of three children--Katie, 9 years old; Jaime, 6 years old; and Torie, 10 months, research in children's television has affected what and how much television she allows her kids watch. "It may not be right for everyone, but for me personally, I limit TV viewing to after dinner only, and I emphasize that all parents need to pay attention to age-appropriate programming. I try to watch what they watch, see that it's attractive to them, and that it has concepts they can deal with."

"The problem I'm encountering, as are other parents, is that most children's programs are targeted to kids aged under 5 or under 7. The 7-12 age range is really a hard market to target. They're moving out of little kids programs, but moving into what? They're not ready for adult programs yet. It's not the quality of children's programs for that age range that concerns me, but the quantity--there just aren't enough programs for that age out there."

Like most faculty, Alexander finds that work and family take up most of her time, although she also enjoys reading, "especially mystery novels." She also serves on the board of directors for the Athens Symphony Orchestra. "I'm involved in several other smaller projects, but my teaching and research, and keeping up with three children and their activities, are where most of my time goes, and that's OK, because that's what gives me the most pleasure."

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