Professor Janet Wasko, Knight Chair in Communication Research.

When the J-school sent out a call for nominations for the Knight Chair in Communication Research, it characterized the successful candidate as “a leader in the research activities of the School of Journalism and Communication…and a faculty member able to define and implement a personal research and publication program and to assist in shaping the School’s research focus.” The choice was not easy—many faculty members at the School fit that description. After a competitive process, during which candidates were evaluated based on a proposal for research agenda and a plan for encouraging research in the School, the Knight Chair went to Professor Janet Wasko.

Wasko, who has been a UO faculty member since 1986, is known internationally for her research focusing on the political economy of communication, its structures and policies, the U.S. film industry and the Disney Company. Students know her for her classes on Disney and The Simpsons.

She has published extensively in these areas, including her books Hollywood in the Information Age (Polity Press, 1995) and Understanding Disney: The Manufacture of Fantasy (Polity Press, 2001). Her forthcoming book, How Hollywood Works, outlines the organization of the film industry in this country and the policies that guide it. She has also co-authored and edited several books on these subjects, as well as incorporating them into her teaching. She also teaches mass communication theories and international communication issues.

According to Dean Tim Gleason, Wasko was chosen from the pool of applicants partly because of “her outstanding record of accomplishment to date,” as well as what she will do in the future. “She will be taking the lead in further enhancing the already strong research agenda of the Journalism School,” he says.

“Over the years, Professor Wasko has been one of the leading scholars, if not the one, in the political economy of communication, both nationally and internationally,” Gleason adds.

Wasko has several projects in the works, including two edited collections. Media in the Age of Marketization takes a general look at the global development of communications and media as market-based institutions, while The Blackwell Companion to Television gathers key authors who have researched and written about various issues relating to television.

While Wasko plans to continue her own research, she feels this chair will allow her to collaborate more. “The Knight Chair in Communication Research provides the opportunity to pursue the research agenda that I have been developing over the last few years and to continue working with other researchers on a variety of projects,” she says, “It should allow more time to work with graduate students on research projects, as well as trying to stimulate other research in the school.”

Wasko received her BA and master’s degree from California State University-Northridge in 1973 and 1974, respectively. In 1980, she earned a PhD in communication research from the University of Illinois.

In addition to the recognition, the prestigious appointment comes with a four-year renewable term, salary enhancement and financial help for researchrelated expenses, such as travel. Nike CEO Phil Knight allocated $15 million for endowed chairs and professorships at the UO as part of his $25million gift to The Oregon Campaign in 1996. In order to qualify for a Knight Chair, UO schools and colleges must raise at least $1.2 million for another endowed chair. The Knight Chair in Communication Research is one of seven endowed faculty positions in the School.