Bianca Flowers (BS ’13, journalism) was recently appointed to Reuters Global Race and Justice team as its first U.S. correspondent.
In her new role, she will pursue new and ambitious projects with a focus on producing agenda-setting coverage in the areas of race, identity, and social justice.
Flowers, who is based in Chicago, has spent the last two years at Reuters covering global steelmakers, agriculture, and construction manufacturing, centered on the integration of automation in manufacturing and the advancement of smart farm technology.
Her expertise also encompasses coverage of labor unions, including her contributions to reporting on the historic United Autoworkers strike in 2023, the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank’s impact on commercial real estate, and the acquisition of U.S. Steel.
Prior to joining Reuters, Flowers worked as a senior video journalist for Dow Jones where she covered short and long-form feature stories on personal finance, income equality, and diversity in the tech industry. She was one of the lead writers for MarketWatch’s “The Value Gap,” which launched in 2020. She conducted in-depth interviews with business leaders and policymakers on reducing racial and social inequalities in various sectors. Flowers began her career at Fortune magazine and has held editorial roles at Learnvest, Investopedia, and ABC News.
Alumna Karlie Elliott Bowman (BS ’09, ACES; MS ’10, advertising), and her husband Andrew Bowman, were awarded the 2024 Glen “GB” Brandt Prize for Ag Entrepreneurism, announced during the 2024 AgTech Summit hosted by the University of Illinois Research Park.
The prestigious award recognizes a grower, producer, or farmer who exemplifies an entrepreneurial spirit and advances innovation in agricultural practices and products.
Working with the University of Illinois, the Bowmans have developed new popcorn hybrids, resulting in specialty red and blue “hull-less” popcorn. They market the product behind the tagline, “No toothpicks required.” They have also pioneered an automated in-store popcorn demonstration unit, a reflection of their forward-thinking approach to product marketing and customer engagement.
The Bowmans are fifth-generation farmers near Oneida, Illinois, with more than 1,800 acres of corn and soybean seed beans. Karlie is also an account manager at Hill+Knowlton Strategies, one of the world’s leading strategic communications companies.
Derek Long, assistant professor of media and cinema studies, sheds light on a rarely covered piece of Hollywood history in his first book, Playing the Percentages: How Film Distribution Made the Hollywood Studio System.
Praised as “invaluable to media industry scholars of the past and present,” the book is a comprehensive history of film distribution in the United States during the silent era that illustrates the importance of power struggles between distributors and exhibitors over booking, pricing, and playing time (i.e., how long it stays in theaters).
“When people think about Hollywood as an industry, maybe they think about the more glamorous aspects of it like stars, producers, or figures in Hollywood,” Long said. “But I was interested in how Hollywood came to be an industrial institution and the history of that, particularly in the silent era.”
Playing the Percentages, set for release on April 16, considers the economic history of the industry’s film distribution process from 1910 through 1930, including booking, circuiting, and packaging marketing practices.
While many Hollywood histories focus on linear narratives such as industry growth and improvements in technology, Long said there was a “hole in the scholarship” regarding the various ways films were distributed, sold, or marketed.
“That was a story nobody had really told, at least in an American context, and so I wanted to fill that gap,” he said.
Long didn’t begin writing Playing the Percentages until 2017, but the project developed out of his dissertation over a decade ago.
Previous histories basically think about distribution as a mechanism or industrially organized system of shipping films out when there’s a lot more to it than that.
After months of research, Long said it became apparent that developing the system of film distribution was not a straight line and his book highlights those crucial changes in the system brought about by live theater, the rise of longer feature-length films, and the transition to sound.
“Previous histories basically think about distribution as a mechanism or industrially organized system of shipping films out when there’s a lot more to it than that,” Long said. “Actually, the history of building that system is part and parcel of the history of Hollywood as an industry, and how it came to be so powerful, particularly in the 1930s and ’40s.”
Long, whose course specialties include film history, media distribution, and digital tools and historiography, has incorporated his research discoveries into his lectures on classical Hollywood and how distribution works.
In addition to teaching and writing, Long is also the creator and developer of Early Cinema History Online, a filmographic database of credits for over 35,000 early American films. The searchable archive, which serves as a reference tool for scholars, features credits for titles released in the United States from 1908 through 1920.
He also organizes the annual MACS Student Showcase, screening student work that has been produced in MACS classes throughout the academic year. This year’s showcase will be held on Saturday, May 4, at the Spurlock Museum.
Long is already thinking about a sequel to his first book, which would look at film distribution relationships in the 1930s and ’40s, including how race was a factor.
“I want to look at alternative systems of distribution, particularly for race cinemas, films specifically for African American audiences,” Long said. “That was essentially a completely segregated and different form of distribution.”
In the meantime, Long is enjoying the feeling of accomplishment after completing his first book.
“It’s very exciting to see your book in print for the first time,” Long said. “Especially when you’ve been working on it for so long.”
Long’s book,Playing the Percentages, will be available on April 16; use code UTXM25 for a discounted price.
March 7, 2024 | University of Illinois News Bureau
Michelle Nelson, professor and head of the Charles H. Sandage Department of Advertising, says voters should expect to see a lot more generative AI in political ads during the 2024 election cycle, warning that it might be difficult-to-impossible to tell what’s real and what’s fake. (Photo by L. Brian Stauffer.)
It’s estimated that $12 billion will be spent on political ads this election cycle—30% more than in 2020. The sheer volume of ads is remarkable, and there is vast potential to use this political information to contribute to democracy: to reach more potential voters and provide accurate information. There’s also more potential than ever for generative artificial intelligence to misrepresent candidates and policies, leading to confusion in the voting booth. News Bureau editor Lois Yoksoulian spoke with advertising professor and department head Michelle Nelson about the topic.
How is AI used in political ads, and what are some recent examples of AI-generated political ads?
After President Joe Biden announced his re-election bid, the Republican National Committee released an AI-generated political advertisement that depicted a dystopian world should Biden be re-elected. The video ad features a number of “what if” questions (e.g., What if crime worsens?) with AI-generated images. This is a classic fear appeal-negative attack ad. Emotional ads reach us, and we remember them—like the famous Daisy political ad used during the 1964 election cycle or the Willie Horton ad used in 1988. But they may also get some backlash for being too negative, too manipulative, especially because they are using AI.
Some say the Joe Biden RNC ad is the first AI-generated ad, but it’s hard to prove. However, in the top left corner of the ad, you see a disclosure in a small font: “Built entirely with AI imagery.” The video description on the GOP’s YouTube page says, “An AI-generated look into the country’s possible future if Joe Biden is re-elected in 2024.” So they are not hiding the use of AI. There’s also a spoof ad that ran on The Daily Show, which uses an AI-generated voiceover for Biden. It’s pretty easy these days to use AI tools to create content and make it look pretty real.
Are the entities behind these types of ads required to disclose that AI has been used?
The Federal Election Commission, the governmental body that regulates political communication, including advertising in the U.S., sought public comments on amending a regulation related to the use of deliberately deceptive AI in campaign ads at their meeting titled 2023: REG 2023-02 Artificial Intelligence in Campaign Ads. They have not yet made a ruling here. However, states such as California, Texas, Michigan, Washington, and Minnesota have enacted new state laws where any deepfake AI images, video, or audio need to be labeled in. A similar law is being discussed here in Illinois. It’s not clear how these state laws relate to the Constitution.
Some tech companies have started requiring disclosures. For example, Google indicated that all AI-generated political ads shown on YouTube or other Google platforms “that alter people or events” must have a prominent disclosure. There is also a verification process for political ads in some regions.
Microsoft has started their “Content Credentials as a Service” which is like a watermarking tool—it lets users digitally sign and authenticate the media—whether it’s an image or video through their Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity. The idea is that the watermark serves as metadata so users can see the history of the content. For example, “how, when, and by whom the content was created or edited,” whether by a person or AI. This information stays with the content so anyone can see the origin.
To what extent AI-generated political content is now being watermarked or disclosed I have no idea. It seems difficult to police all of these images at this moment in time.
What is the potential harm of using AI in political ads?
The concerns for harm relate to possibilities for deepfakes and disinformation. Others can re-create something using AI voice or images without authorization to create stories and content that are absolutely untrue.
We’ve had tools and technology in the past, like Photoshop to manipulate existing images. Do you remember the 2004 ads featuring altered photos depicting John Kerry, the Democratic nominee for president, and Jane Fonda at an anti-Vietnam War rally? Ads are regularly embellished or altered: The colors or lighting are changed to make people look ominous or more youthful. But this is different. This is a whole new level. Anyone can make AI messages using free tools such as Open AI’s ChatGPT or Google’s Bard. This may be good when used responsibly, or it may be harmful.
Our research shows that many people don’t know that the First Amendment protects political advertising in the U.S. Political advertising is not held up to the same standards as commercial advertising, say for a cheeseburger. The Truth-in-Advertising laws by the Federal Trade Commission do not apply to political ads. That means political ads can legally be deceptive or lie. Of course, there are libel laws, but they are rarely used in this arena.
Beyond this regulatory difference in commercial and political advertising, the idea is that we want free-flowing political information to contribute to a dialogue that can enhance our democracy. Too much regulation can have a chilling effect on political speech. Yet the potential today with AI to lie and deceive and to deploy these messages in a personalized manner and at a grand scale offers a challenge perhaps to our thinking about regulation and political advertising.
Do you have any advice on how consumers can spot the use of generative AI in political ads?
They can’t. You can look for irregularities like the number of legs on the cat. But it is getting harder and harder to tell if AI makes an image or video. Whether it’s Taylor Swift, an image of Trump in jail, or a funny meme, we can’t always tell, especially as we scroll through our social media feeds. The best we can do is hope that the tech industry develops systems able to trace the origin of the content so we can see who made the image and when and how. If this tech is built in, it’s harder to fool people. We could also encourage disclosure mandates among tech companies.
But in the age of this kind of media and in an election year, we need to focus on the basics of media literacy—looking for reliable sources of information, watching the political debates and trying to form our own informed opinions.
Editor’s note: To reach Michelle Nelson, call 217-344-5068; email nelsonmr@illinois.edu
Doug Isbell (BS ’87, Grainger engineering; MS ’88, journalism) looks for opportunities to talk directly with the public whenever possible, such as at this NASA JPL exhibit booth at a popular summer air show at Hill Air Force Base in Utah, near where samples from Mars may one day land on Earth.
After 36 years in aerospace communications, Doug Isbell still thanks those lucky stars he’s always admired for the opportunity to create a successful career that combines his passion for science and his love of writing.
Isbell’s fascination with space began when he was eight years old, around the time the last few Apollo missions landed on the moon. From then on, Isbell knew he wanted to be involved in space one day.
“Those [missions] made a big impression on me,” said Isbell, who grew up in the suburbs of Chicago.
Isbell (BS ’87, Grainger engineering; MS ’88, journalism) set his sights on becoming an astronautical engineer, but as he worked his way through the program and the upper-level courses, he started to have some doubts.
“I felt a little like I was not going to be an outstanding engineer and I wondered, how can I still be involved in aerospace? And I thought about writing,” he said.
Isbell did finish his bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering but went on to get a master’s degree in journalism. Moving to Washington, D.C., to seek a start to his career, his first job was working as a writer for a business technology newspaper, Washington Technology, and then a reporter covering NASA for a weekly newspaper, Space News.
Four years later, he decided to shift from journalism to the communications side and landed a job at NASA headquarters, eventually becoming a public affairs officer for planetary science.
During that time, he helped with communications surrounding the Mars Pathfinder mission and the launch of the legendary mission of the Cassini spacecraft to Saturn.
“That was in the middle of a sort of renaissance of planetary science,” Isbell said. “[The Mars Pathfinder mission] was a huge global hit and kind of the first mission of the Internet age.”
He also served as the United States single-point-of-contact for the International Year of Astronomy 2009—a global celebration recognizing the first astronomical observation with a telescope by Galileo Galilei more than 400 years ago.
Since 2010, Isbell has served as the cross-program risk communication coordinator at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, working on issues related to space nuclear power and sample return, including the most recent two ongoing Mars rover missions, Curiosity and Perseverance.
Isbell develops communications materials related to “spacecraft that would carry nuclear materials and nuclear power, and then kind of a growing area of interest is something called planetary protection,” he said.
Planetary protection is the idea of protecting planets from potential biological contamination during a mission so they can be studied in their original state. It also involves protecting Earth’s biosphere when samples are brought back from other planetary bodies.
“A lot of what we’re working on now is planning for Mars sample return,” he said. “Looking at my career overall, I’ll probably spend almost half of it on Mars missions and leading up to this idea of returning samples, and the value that can be provided by bringing them into Earth-based laboratories.”
At the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (which is operated for NASA by Caltech), his group focuses on launch approval engineering, which means helping on the front end with aspects of the environmental reviews needed before a project can proceed and, on the back end, sharing public safety information around the launches and landings of missions.
Whether it’s writing fact sheets about a mission or training spokespeople on how to share information with the public in engaging ways, Isbell said most of his job is behind-the-scenes, preparing for the tough questions and explaining the “why” behind each project.
“A lot of what I do is to try to explain potential hazards and how we’re handling them,” he said. “My job is to frame these things correctly and train people to talk about them effectively, and anticipate what people’s questions might be. It’s a lot of strategy—what might people be concerned about with this mission or this activity, and how can we address those concerns with as much detail as people can absorb.”
It’s been many years since Isbell was a journalism student at Illinois, learning from professors like Bob Reid and Tom Littlewood, but their teachings about investigative reporting and journalism ethics remain useful in his career today. Isbell also credits Michael Lembeck, an associate professor in the University’s Department of Aerospace Engineering, and a graduate student in the department at the time, for helping kickstart his writing career by encouraging a story on a student design project that led to Isbell’s first published story.
Isbell enjoys staying involved with the University, sharing his knowledge with students as a guest panelist for one of the first virtual Media Career Nights in 2020 and consulting with faculty about the structure of the new master’s in journalism track with a focus on science and technology.
His passion for science doesn’t disappear at the end of a workday. Every couple of months, he hosts a family-friendly “space night” at a nearby brewery, where he brings out a telescope to view the moon and planets with the community.
Isbell or a colleague talk about recent scientific accomplishments and exciting developments in space. About 30 to 40 people usually show up, filled with excitement and interest about the various topics.
“I think [space exploration] is inspirational to people. It’s why I have the career that I have, and do what I do,” he said.
Isbell is still captivated by space and feels grateful his job as a science writer allows him to be immersed in that world every day.
“It is amazing to be involved in this stuff,” he said. “The science questions are the biggest ones that we can ask. ‘Are we alone in the universe, or least in the solar system?’ It’s kind of an interesting answer either way.”
As an HRI Faculty Fellow, Aguayo will be provided with research funds and one semester of release time to work on a new book, titled Collective Matters: Documentary Film Practice and Public Engagement in the US, 1970-Present.
Her book will address the micro-practices of public engagement with documentary production that have led to sustained media culture. When the larger culture is deeply divided, the traditions and strategies of community-centered documentary storytelling build connections between people.
“There is a long tradition of communities representing themselves, acquiring equipment, pinning a sheet to a wall, and projecting images made by the community for the community,” Aguayo said. “These early films addressed social problems, local needs, and aspired to compel hearts rather than turn profits. This tradition had evolved over the years, shaped by technological innovation and years of connecting media-making with communities who need validation, visibility, and representation.”
Drawing upon research in media, communication, and cultural studies, and informed by interviews with media workers, filmmakers, and activists, the book will consider how community-centered documentary storytelling provides frameworks for larger civic-sector conversations.
“These are the types of media that start and sustain conversations in the world, beyond the screening room, about what could and should be done to activate the conditions for a more equitable and just world,” Aguayo added.
Aguayo will join six other faculty members and seven graduate students who will meet at the Humanities Research Institute throughout the year to address how they are rethinking research paradigms. She will take leave from teaching for the Fall 2024 semester.
The upcoming project will be Aguayo’s third book. Her first book was a reader on theories of public argumentation. Her second book, Documentary Resistance, addressed the possibilities for documentary and social change.
HRI grants fellowships to Illinois faculty and graduate students, who spend the year engaged in research and writing. All HRI Fellows participate in HRI activities, including the yearlong Fellows Seminar.
HRI’s 2024-25 theme, “Think Again…,” is an invitation to revisit well-known texts, to upend dominant narratives, to historicize what appears self-evident in the present, and/or to ask what happens when we juxtapose x with y in ways never been done before. “Think Again” underscores the opportunity to think across diverse interdisciplinary formations, and to identify when, how, and under what conditions new ones may be happening.
Directors Malcolm D. Lee and Lisa Cortes, actors Eric Roberts and Mariel Hemingway to attend celebration
Additional filmmaker guests include director Diane Moore with conductor Roderick Cox
Roger Ebert’s Film Festival, also known as Ebertfest, announced today the 25th anniversary, running April 17-20, 2024, at the Virginia Theatre in downtown Champaign, will kick off with an opening night screening of Bob Fosse’s critically acclaimed film Star 80 with stars Eric Roberts and Mariel Hemingway in attendance. Roger praised the film with a glowing 4-star review, calling it “an important movie…. Devastating, violent, hopeless, and important, because it holds a mirror up to a part of the world we live in, and helps us see it more clearly.” Roger has praised performances by both Hemingway and Roberts over the years.
Ebertfest will showcase the 25th anniversary of writer-director Malcolm D. Lee’s wedding-themed, reunion romantic comedy The Best Man as this year’s centerpiece film with Lee coming to celebrate.
“We are thrilled to welcome Lee with his first film which was produced by his cousin Spike Lee, in 1999, the same year as our inaugural festival,” said Ebertfest co-founder, producer and host, Chaz Ebert.“The Best Man has become a classic and introduced stars we all know today including Taye Diggs, Nia Long, Morris Chestnut, Terrence Howard and Regina Hall, among others.”
Lee has directed numerous crowd-pleasing comedies including Girls Trip and The Best Man Holiday.
Lisa Cortes, Academy Award-nominated and Emmy-winning producer and director, will attend Ebertfest to discuss her film Little Richard: I Am Everything, a documentary about Little Richard, the unique, flamboyant, rock ‘n’ roll icon who shaped the world of music with hits like “Tutti Frutti” and “Long Tall Sally.”
Ebertfest will continue its illustrious tradition of music in films and on stage. Chaz Ebert reminds us that Ebertfest was born out of Roger’s conviction that movies can be a machine that generates empathy.
“That conviction has evolved to what I call my FECK Principles: Forgiveness, Empathy, Compassion, and Kindness. Movies, combined with music can have a profound effect on encouraging more compassion in the world,” said Ebert. “The films and musical performances we have chosen for our 25th anniversary are ones that would make Roger proud.”
She will introduce her new book, It’s Time to Give a FECK: Elevating Humanity Through Forgiveness, Empathy, Compassion and Kindness, which will be released on May 7, 2024.
Director Diane Moore, a filmmaker who has worked in the visual arts field for more than 15 years, and Roderick Cox, a world-renowned orchestra conductor and winner of the 2018 Sir Georg Solti Conducting Award, will join the stage to discuss Conducting Life, a documentary that follows the remarkable journey of Cox as he pursues his dream to secure a top position with a major orchestra. Maestro Cox will come in from Berlin to join Ebertfest.
Additional updates to the festival program will be announced in the coming weeks.
Ebertfest passes are currently available to purchase online or by calling the box office at 217-356-9063. Individual festival passes to see all films cost $200, which includes reserved seating. New this year are 4-film passes for $70: choose between an Evening Pass or a Saturday Pass.
Roger Ebert was a Pulitzer Prize-winning film critic for the Chicago Sun-Times, University of Illinois journalism alumnus, and Urbana native. Ebertfest is a collaboration between his widow, Ebert Digital CEO Chaz Ebert, and the University of Illinois College of Media.
For additional information, please visit ebertfest.com and follow Ebertfest on social media:
Get to know some of our College of Media faculty. Carrie Wilson-Brown is a lecturer of media and cinema studies and of advertising.
What’s it like to teach two Media majors? The Charles H. Sandage Department of Advertising has incredibly creative faculty and creative classes, and we tend to dive into the social sciences. Most research by the tenure-track faculty is on effects: how advertising affects populations, why people are persuaded by particular messages, or what pushes us behaviorally. It’s also capitalism and buying, and for me, what’s so intriguing is coming from a creative space to get to the minutiae of what makes people psychologically tick. In the Department of Media & Cinema Studies, there’s a community of creative people who love film and television; they love to talk about film, television, and storytelling, and also the industry. I’m able to mold them together, but I get something so vastly different from the students and faculty as well.
You double-majored in journalism and communication, yet lecture on different topics. What were your reasons?
It doesn’t seem like it would have relevance with advertising, but some of the relevance is that we read advertising texts like any story, if you think about it. When I ask students, “Why advertising classes,” all can point to an advertisement that tugged at their heartstrings or made them cry or joyous. People who love certain ads see them as a way to tell stories, not only as a way to sell products to audiences. Advertisements are created for more than that, building culture with each one that is produced. On the other hand, I’m mostly doing video production classes, and 15 years later, with social media, this is what people do, and it’s such a beautiful process to see. [Students] are storytellers out of the womb, always with a camera in your hand. I love visual culture; I love helping students create visual culture.
What courses are you teaching currently?
I teach three courses this semester, two in advertising and one in media and cinema studies. I teach ADV 301: Becoming an Influencer; ADV 393: Advertising and Society; and MACS 203: Contemporary Movies. I’ve only taught it twice, but MACS 203 is fun to teach because I take “contemporary” very seriously—something I’ve watched in the past three to four years. There are a lot of films that slipped under the radar during COVID-19, so it’s great to pick newer films. We watch the movie, and then we try to apply concepts in small prompts. It’s one of those spaces of joy for students in their day where I’m like, “Let’s go watch movies.”
What has been your best memory from teaching here?
Last semester, I taught ADV 393: Advertising in Society for the first time, and I don’t have a traditional advertising background. I think when I talk about advertising, it’s from a bit of a different perspective, and there were a couple of moments where a group of four or five students wanted to clap after my lecture because it was such a crescendo. Sometimes, as professors, we get hung up on dictating knowledge, but when someone says they want to clap, they feel engaged with what I was saying and want to listen to me.
What’s one piece of advice you would give to students?
There’s no one way to be successful at college. It’s easy to be trapped because you have friends, roommates, or siblings you see are successful—whatever that looks like to you. Maybe they’re paving their way through higher education in a very particular manner, whether that’s joining groups, being in fraternities or sororities, or staying up until three in the morning. But, if you look around, you are in a community of around 43,000 people, and everybody seems to do their successes differently. Don’t figure out the formula to success because that might not be your formula. Find the way that’s best for you.
Get to know some of our College of Media faculty. Alison Davis is a lecturer in journalism and a seven-time regional Emmy Award winner.
Why did you become a lecturer in the College of Media? When I was working for the Big Ten Network, there were times that different professors would go on sabbatical, and I would fill in, teaching their classes, particularly the television production class. I loved it! I realized how fun it was teaching and working with students, seeing them learn new things, and watching their eyes light up when they understood something. Then, I saw a position opening and thought, “Well, maybe I would like to do this full-time; maybe I should consider teaching.” I ended up applying, and this is my fourth year of teaching in the Department of Journalism.
What courses do you currently teach? I teach JOUR 215: Multimedia Reporting; JOUR 240: Introduction to Documentary Storytelling & Production; JOUR 340: Video Reporting & Storytelling; and JOUR 440: Advanced Documentary Storytelling & Production. For the first time this semester, Professor Stretch Ledford and I are teaching a globally focused documentary class, where we’re taking six students to Sierra Leone over spring break 2024 to produce documentaries about the issue of period poverty in Western Africa.
What did your career look like before returning to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign? After I received my undergraduate and master’s degrees here, I worked for many years at the local PBS station, making shows and national documentaries. I worked for the Big 10 Network, creating documentaries about the University of Illinois—some sports stories and also stories that told the richness of the University, ranging from a biography on the man who invented the LED to our first African American captain of the basketball team; kind of the full gamut. My background is in filmmaking, and it’s great to teach that to students here.
For the past two decades, you’ve been producing national documentaries, receiving numerous regional Emmy Awards and over 20 Emmy nominations. What sparked your interest in doing such a thing? I remember when I was an undergraduate, we were divided into tracks, and at that point, I was a broadcast journalism major. I loved doing videos and being able to tell stories—being a storyteller is something I have always loved doing since I was little. When I was in the news, I always felt there was more of a story, and I felt limited by doing a 30-second/minute-and-a-half package. I studied abroad in London, where I worked at a film company, and it was a blast, so when I came back, I did more work in video. After I was a freshly graduated person in my 20s, I had a chance to have my own television show and work in all of these different roles, learning what to do within those roles. It was an experience.
How did it feel to know your work was being noticed in a significant way that was shaping people’s opinions? That was an incredible thing. We would enter the regional Emmys and feel like we didn’t have a shot at winning, but whenever I would, I just felt this unbelievable moment of shock and gratefulness. I remember the first time I won in Chicago. It was for a documentary I did about an architect who graduated from the University of Illinois and had built the capital of Australia, Canberra, but had died in obscurity. I recall sitting at this table—and they put you at a table with nominees in your category—and I was young, in my 30s, against older men. I talked to them about what projects they did, and they all sounded incredible compared to mine; then it was announced that I won. I took my mom and sister to that, and they couldn’t believe it; we were ecstatic.
What’s the biggest piece of advice you have for your students and others? Don’t give up. If you’re making a video or any media project, you’re going to get frustrated. It could be technical problems when you’re trying to film. It could be your editing, and you’re sick of looking at this stuff that you don’t think you want to look at again. But don’t give up. Think about the goal of what you’re trying to create and keep working hard. Students, in general, should attend the whole University. Make use of the resources and all the great things here.
Amanda Ciafone, associate professor of media and cinema studies with an appointment in the Institute of Communications Research, was interviewed on August 19, 2022, at Flesor’s Candy Kitchen in Tuscola, Illinois, for the soda episode of the new TV series ‘A History of the World in Six Glasses.’
From a corner table in the Coca-Cola-branded brick building of Flesor’s Candy Kitchen (est. 1901) in Tuscola, Illinois—with a nostalgic Coca-Cola straw canister positioned nearby—Amanda Ciafone, associate professor of media and cinema studies, shared stories about Coca-Cola’s origins with producers of the new TV series A History of the World in Six Glasses.
Streaming on Fox Nation, the six-episode series stars comedians Dan Aykroyd, co-host Jim Belushi, and their friends Kevin Nealon, Jon Lovitz, and George Wendt. It’s based on a book of the same title by Tom Standage, who is interviewed in the broadcast among other authors and historians, where the history of beer, spirits, soda, wine, tea, and coffee are explored. The episodes are peppered with retro stock footage and ads, bubbly animations, as well as anecdotes, trivia, and taste tests around the bar from the chummy cast.
Ciafone is featured in episode three—”Soda: American Fizz Goes Global”—drawing upon her research of Coke from her first book, Counter-Cola: A Multinational History of the Global Corporation (University of California, 2019). Ciafone’s book examines the Coca-Cola Company and the politics, cultural representations, and social movements around the multinational corporation’s impact on the environment, consumer health, workers’ rights and conditions, and international cultures and economies. She also has an appointment in the Institute of Communications Research and is ICR’s director of graduate studies.
“With the rising temperance movement in the late 19th century, [pharmacist and inventor] John Pemberton realized taking the red wine out will allow his drink to be marketable to a wider consumer base,” Ciafone explained in the episode. “So he’s seeking ingredients that will give you that kind of buzzy uplift without the alcohol, and he turns to coca and kola and puts them together to make this drink: Coca-Cola.”
Ciafone also described how social concerns, such as kids drinking caffeine, affected Coca-Cola.
“While the temperance movement, and eventually Prohibition, was a great boon to Coca-Cola because it didn’t have alcohol, those same forces of concern about people’s consumption of drinks that had ingredients that were potentially risky or unknown eventually brought Coca-Cola under the focus of both popular movements and government regulators.”
But of course, Coca-Cola survived court cases, brand wars, sugar substitutions, and other sticky situations.
Ciafone paraphrased a famous management guru, Peter Drucker, who said that “Coca-Cola is fundamentally an advertiser with access to a distribution system,” she said. “And it’s true. So much of their business is the production of the image around the drinks.”
To learn more about the popularity of soda (or pop), its place in American history, and its global impact, watch A History of the World in Six Glasses on Fox Nation.
