Heading out, thinking about the past, doing the present, looking at the future

Well, here I go -- on the way to Boston. I'm a big history buff. In case I haven't said anything to you yet -- READ 1776 by David McCullough. Outstanding read about a year that means so much and could have meant so little. In fact, you should read it before the fall semester starts.

As I get ready for the trip to the Association for Education in Journalism & Mass Communications conference, I'm heading to a place that is historic for alot of reasons. Yes, I'm going to try and see as much as I possibly can. I'm very excited, though, to be able to run into colleagues. In fact, I'm having dinner with a group of academics on Wednesday who participated in a Scripps Howard Academic Leadership Academy. We all spent a week in Baton Rouge learning more about the leadership at universities. The dean of the College of Communication at Boston University, Tom Fiedler, will be there. They are doing a really unique curriculum there. In fact, undergraduate students can take shortcourses at their Center for Digital Imaging Arts . I'd love to figure out how to do the same here at Texas Tech.

Speaking of TTU, my students in social media this summer have done some excellent work related to the strategic planning for the college's social media presence. There have been some outstanding ideas posted. For my students: remember, how I said to write 3 of 4 blog entries -- if you read this far, just write 2 of 4. Feel free to enjoy this moment of knowing that you might be the only one who reads this....hmmm....also for the graduate students -- just knock it down to 10 pages. That'll do.

Now, back to thinking about social media and academia. What are your thoughts about if a "traditional form of media" does NOT have a social media presence? Is that a credibility issue? Will it damage their reputation? Do you think people would even care? It really brings to the forefront all of what we've been talking about this semester. I challenge you to be willing to take risks, but also remember your ethics, your need for strategy and your ability to manage (and provide regular updates).

I've really enjoyed thinking and studying social media this summer. It's been a blast. Make sure you check this blog out tomorrow with information and updates from Boston.