Plan for today

Session structure and goals

1. What we mean by public scholarship

2. Why this matters

3. Practical Tips for implementation

4. Q&A
Virtual Introductions
About Me

u British
u Married (Habiba)
u 3 x Children (Nyla, Yara and Rafi)
u 1 cat (Oreo)
u Love(d) to travel (55 countries)
u BA and MA Oxford University
Many hats

Carolyn S. Chambers Professor in Journalism

University of Oregon

Fellow, Tow Center for Digital Journalism

Columbia University, Graduate School of Journalism

Honorary Research Fellow

Cardiff University, School of Journalism, Media and Culture Studies

Life Fellow
Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce
(RSA)
 Background + timeline

1995 2022

1995 – 1999: The Local Radio Company

1999 – 2003: BBC
2003 – 2008: CSV Media
2008 – 2012: Ofcom (UK Office of Communications)
2012 - 2014: ictQATAR (Ministry of Information and Communication Technology)
2012 + Freelance writing + training
2015+ University of Oregon
I like to keep busy…
5 x Research Reports
148 x Media Mentions
16 x Conferences / Workshops
28 x Articles for Trade Press
5 x classes (1-3-1*)
2 x Thesis Chair
175 Academic Citations
* Incl. course release for new baby!
Examples of places I have written for
Recent
Research
includes
In the works:

u World Press Trends 2021-22

u Social Media in MENA 2021
u Local Journalism and
Media Policy
u Community-Centered
Journalism playbook
Some recent
media interviews
and pick-ups
Examples of expert speaking
u United Nations (Turkey)
u International Journalism Festival (Italy)
u news:rewired (London)
u Columbia University (New York)
u Georgetown (Qatar campus)
u International Broadcasting Convention (Amsterdam and Dubai)
u US State Dept sponsored lecture series (Germany)
u World Association of Newspapers (Singapore)
 Training
delivered
 Those hats…

u Journalist

u Researcher

u Expert Commentator

u Educator and Trainer

Lens for this session…

What do we mean by
“Public Scholarship?
“Public scholarship is research-based work intended for audiences
beyond the university. At its best, public scholarship bridges the gap
between scholarly expertise and the public's desire to better
understand current events.

Public scholarship of religion and philosophy, for instance, provides

important textual, cultural, and historical context for pressing issues
like healthcare legislation, climate change, and immigration
reform.”

Ethics Institute, Northeastern University

 Examples
Via Center for Community and
Civic Engagement, Carlton
College, Minnesota
Tell us about…
Your Public Scholarship experience
Why this
matters
The need to grow trust

2022 Edelman Trust Barometer

Across 28 countries:

u Technology (74 percent) was the

most trusted sector, followed by
education (69 percent) and
healthcare (69 percent).

u But means nearly 1/3 don’t trust

education…
Well known partisan divides closer to home
 Accountability
and justification of
public spending
 Public Scholarship should be part of the
narrative that explains why education matters
and the positive impacts it brings to society
10 things
you can do
Before you start…

And why…
This will shape…

What you do

How/Why you do it

What success look it

1. Blog (aka Public Writing)

Where?
u Medium
u WordPress
u Other platforms

What?
u Research progress/update
u What you’re reading
u Class notes / syllabi
u Reading lists
2. Guest Articles (low hanging fruit)

u University / Faculty websites

u Local paper

u Sites of your peers

3. Guest Articles (more ambitious)
4. Guest Lectures
 5.
Public Events
6. Get Off Campus
7. Say “yes” to Media Interviews
 8.
Create your
own media
u Podcast

u Newsletter

u Vlog
9. Embrace social
Example of a
Twitter thread
 Example of a
Facebook Live event
Example of an
Academic
Instagram
account
 Example of an
Academic
YouTube channel
 1. Public writing (aka blogging)

2. Guest articles (low hanging fruit)

3. Guest articles (bigger fish)

Recap
4. Guest speaking

5. Public events

6. Get off campus

7. Say ‘yes’ to media interviews

8. Create your own media

9. Embrace social
What else?
15 Tips for Implementation
1. Be visible

u Faculty Page

u University Experts Page

u Social Media e.g. LinkedIn

2. Be contactable

q Phone number
q Email address

q Up to date publications

q Social Links
3. Make your work accessible

Be cognizant of:
u Paywalls
u Time Zones
u Time

Solutions:
u Author copies
u Catch-up (multiple formats e.g. audio/video)
u Provide transcripts
u Summaries (e.g. social, newsletter etc.)
4. Learn to communicate
to a lay audience
5. Be everywhere

u Research repositories
o ResearchGate
o Academia.edu
o SSRN et al

u Wikipedia
u University Media Mentions
6. Talk to your Comms Team

u How can they help?

u What training do they / others offer?
u Who is approaching them?
v And for what topics?

Make clear your interest in doing public

work / scholarship.
7. Take (or ask for)
Media Training
8. Start Small
9. Look for news hooks

u News Story

u New research you can comment on

u Your own new work

 10. Be proactive

1. Develop a plan

2. Get buy in from your Chair/Comms

3. Identify potential “homes” for your work

4. Build your network

11. Find your tribe

Develop relationships with civic

partners, news outlets and journalists
12. Work with partners
Acclaimed chef Andrew Wong and
food anthropologist Dr Mukta Das
discuss everything from cheese in the
Chinese kitchen to chilli, crispy duck
skin and creativity in the first season
of their podcast XO Soused.
13. Help them to amplify
14. Be consistent
15. Learn from your peers

u Who is doing this well?

Don’t just look
u What are they doing? internally, look
externally too
u Why does it work?
Q: Who do you see doing this well?
 1. Be visible
Recap 2. Be contactable
3. Make your work accessible
4. Jargon Free
5. Be everywhere
6. Talk to your Comms Team
7. Take/Ask for Media Training
8. Start small
9. Look for news hooks
10. Be proactive
11. Find your tribe
12. Partners
13. Amplify
14. Be consistent
15. Learn from your peers
Final Thoughts
Pros Cons
• Makes you a better writer/communicator • Takes time. And energy!

• Probably need to play the long game

• Supports public mission of HE (takes time to build an audience + reputation)

• Opens up new opportunities • Opens you to criticism/trolls

• Can be supported by institution • Not necc. supported by institution

 Questions?
uEmail: damianr@uoregon.edu

uTwitter: @damianradcliffe

uWeb: www.damianradcliffe.com

Thanks for listening!