Communication Studies

Department of Communication Studies News

The Department of Communication Studies offers programs focused on relational and public communication. We teach and deploy communication skills in interpersonal, small group, organizational, and political settings, which in turn helps others to develop critical thinking, writing, and speaking skills. Our goal is to best serve communication needs by training citizens to engage, motivate, and impact communities.

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Current Communication Studies News

The Interview: Kaitlyn Amaral
woman throws basketball in air while standing in front of Thomas & Mack Center
People |

The new communications director for women's basketball and softball comes full circle after after working with the NFL's LA Rams.

In the Battle for Public Understanding, Storytelling is a Scientist's Best Tool
woman speaking at front of classroom to students
Campus News |

Communication studies researcher Emma Bloomfield explains why storytelling needs to be used to better explain science.

The Course: The Corporate Scandal
A student talking in a group setting with her laptop.
Campus News |

UNLV Urban Affairs class prepares students to navigate emergency situations from a crisis communication perspective.

The Course: Human Communication Theory
Jeffrey T. Child, Ph.D. Professor & Chair of the Communications Studies department teaches a class on Human Communication Theory.
Campus News |

Our issues with communicating, explained.

UNLV Newsmakers 2023: November
The Las Vegas skyline (Josh Hawkins, UNLV).
Campus News |

A collection of news stories highlighting UNLV’s dedication to community and research.

Fun-raiser to Fundraiser: Russel Kost Celebrates Giving to UNLV
man in red shirt with arms crossed over chest
People |

The Outstanding Alumnus of the Year helps raise millions of dollars in his 28 years with the UNLV Foundation.

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Communication Studies In The News

Emma Frances Bloomfield, "Science V. Story: Narrative Strategies for Science Communicators" (U California Press, 2024)
Scholarly Communication

Listen to this interview of Emma Frances Bloomfield, Associate Professor of Communication Studies at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. We talk about her novel analytical tool for helping you narrativize research! Bloomfield's new book is Science V. Story: Narrative Strategies for Science Communicators (U California Press, 2024)

Debate Dodging: Why Texas Politicians Are Skipping Primary Showdowns
Reform Austin

Each day, more incumbent politicians and front-runners in Texas are skipping debates during the primary elections. Why is this happening?

Why so few Texas front-runners are debating their primary challengers
San Antonio Express-News

Election experts say in today’s political climate, debates can sometimes hurt candidates more than they help. There’s an argument for good government and an informed electorate, but many debates — especially during primaries, when there are few policy differences between platforms — have devolved into contests for sound bites and mudslinging, experts say.

Here’s a toolkit for talking climate change over the holidays
San Bernardino County Sun

Experts share tips for effective — not combative — conversations. Facts and kindness matter.

Christians and climate change: Southern California churches preach very different messages
The Orange County Register

Some Christians feel a duty to take care of God's creation. Others see climate change as a 'wicked' distraction.

Five things to watch in tonight’s GOP debate: Experts on the ‘fight for second place’
The Independent UK

Will Haley take centre stage again? Will Christie continue to go after Trump? And with the former president’s massive lead, do the debates matter at all?

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Communication Studies Experts

Craig Hennigan
An expert on debate and argument theory.
Robert R. Ulmer
Dean of the Greenspun College of Urban Affairs and expert in community renewal, risk and crisis communications. 
Jacob Thompson
An expert in competitive debate, policy debate, argumentation and persuasion, and presidential and political debates.
Donovan Conley
A rhetorical studies professor who researches the impact of cultural influences on how we view food and taste.
Jenny Farrell
An expert on interpersonal communication and long-distance relationships.
Rebecca Rice
An expert in organizational communication that pertains to emergencies such as natural disasters, terrorist attacks, and mass shootings.
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Recent Communication Studies Accomplishments

Jose Llanes, Ursula Kamanga, Daniel Bubb, and Colleagues
Project Wellness President Jose Llanes, faculty co-advisors to Project Wellness Ursula Kamanga (Honors; Communication Studies) and Daniel Bubb (Honors; Academic Affairs), the Project Wellness Executive Board, and the Project Wellness Planning Board published an article in The Beacon, a newsletter distributed to colleges and universities…
Rebecca Rice
Assistant professor Rebecca Rice (Communication Studies) received a top paper award for her paper, "How will Climate Change Change Organizing? An Exploratory Study of How Emergency Organizations Frame Climate Change," from the Western States Communication Conference. 
Rebecca Rice
Rebecca Rice (Communication Studies) published the article, “Constituting absence as reliability: The case of COVID-19 response networks,” in Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management.
David R. Gruber
A new edition of a well-known undergraduate textbook in Denmark titled, "Retorik: Teori og Praksis," [Rhetoric: Theory & Practice] has been published with a chapter dedicated to Visual Rhetoric written by David R. Gruber (Communication Studies). The book was edited by Charlotte Jorgensen and Lisa Villadsen and will be widely used across…
Emma Frances Bloomfield
Emma Frances Bloomfield (Communication Studies) and co-author Samantha Senda-Cook (Creighton University) won the 2023 Oravec Journal Article Award in Environmental Communication for their article titled, "Building Coalitions from Shared Pieties: Polyvocal Religious Environmentalism at the Asian Rural Institute," which was published in the …
Emma Frances Bloomfield
Emma Frances Bloomfield (Communication Studies) has been awarded the Early Career Award by the Rhetoric and Community Theory Division of the National Communication Association. The award honors a current member of the division who has established an innovative and robust research project within eight years of having earned the Ph.D. degree…
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