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.

Current Communication Studies News

A UNLV student studies with the Strip in the distance.
Campus News |

Headlines and highlights featuring the students and faculty of UNLV.

Craig Hennigan
Business and Community |

UNLV political debate expert Craig Hennigan explores how candidates prepare for discourse.

Undergrad researcher Benjamin Sabir helps H. Jeremy Cho examine an atmospheric water harvesting device. (Jeff Scheid/UNLV)
Campus News |

A monthly roundup of the top news stories featuring UNLV staff and students.

Mirage Resort
Campus News |

Roundup of the hottest news headlines featuring UNLV students and staff.

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.

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.

Communication Studies In The News

Newsweek

Sports fans are gearing up for not just the Super Bowl and halftime show, but also the food associated with the annual event. Hot wings, pizza and multi-layered dip are among the country's favorite Super Bowl foods, new research has shown.

Newsweek

A state-by-state analysis of Super Bowl food by Coffeeness highlights the country's favorite game-day eats, revealing a mix of traditional comfort foods and regional specialties based on Google search data.

Newsweek

Football fans are gearing up for one of the biggest sporting events of the year, the Super Bowl, next month. However it is not the game nor the halftime show that people are most excited about—but rather the food, new research has shown.

KNPR News

Experts say that, depending on your viewpoint, last week’s election might have greatly impacted your mental and physical health. It’s not that unusual, especially in these times.

Las Vegas Sun

Harrison Jones, 13, was approached by his history teacher at Thurman White Middle School in Henderson on Wednesday with a message: “It passed.”

KSNV-TV: News 3

Vice President Kamala Harris made a surprise appearance on “Saturday Night Live” in the final days before the election, playing herself as the mirror-image double of Maya Rudolph’s version of her in the show's cold open. Former President Donald Trump was seen riding around in a campaign-themed garbage truck in Green Bay on Wednesday. This comes after President Joe Biden was accused of calling Trump supporters "garbage."

Communication Studies Experts

An expert in organizational communication that pertains to emergencies such as natural disasters, terrorist attacks, and mass shootings.
An expert on science communication, religion and politics.
An expert on debate and argument theory.
Dean of the Greenspun College of Urban Affairs and expert in community renewal, risk and crisis communications. 
An expert in competitive debate, policy debate, argumentation and persuasion, and presidential and political debates.
An expert on interpersonal communication and long-distance relationships.

Recent Communication Studies Accomplishments

Jeffrey T. Child (Communication Studies) recently published an edited book chapter on intentional and mindful social media disclosure practices in a national book for first-year students about enhancing their resilience in college. The citation for the piece is: Child, J. T., & Craig, M. J. A. (2024). Intentional and mindful social media use:…
Jeffrey T. Child (Communication Studies) recently published an edited book chapter on intentional and mindful social media disclosure practices in a national book for first-year students about enhancing their resilience in college. The citation for the piece is: Child, J. T., & Craig, M. J. A. (2024). Intentional and mindful social media…
Tara McManus (Communication Studies) and co-author Courtney Rilinger (Park University) published the paper, "The Influence of Attributions, Emotions, and Sexual Health Knowledge on Support Provision to Friends with Sexual Health Uncertainties," in the journal Health Communication. The results indicate that the more participants assigned blame to…
Rebecca Rice (Communication Studies), published the article "Involuntary Adoption of Information and Communication Technologies During Emergencies: Temporality of Technology Use in Virtual Collaborations" in Management Communication Quarterly, with co-author Natalie Pennington (Colorado State University). 
David R. Gruber (Communication Studies) published a book chapter titled "Material Forces in the Brain Sciences" in the "Routledge Handbook of Rhetoric and Power" edited by Nathan Crick. The chapter initially reviews the scholarly literature sitting at the intersection of the neurosciences and rhetorical studies and argues that three sub-areas have…
Craig Hennigan (Communication Studies), with collaborators Tiana Brownen (Simpson College), Shanna Carlson (Illinois State University), A.J. Edwards (Louisiana State University - Shreveport), Shiela Ritchie (Abilene Christian University), Philip Samuels (Wichita State University), Zachary Thornhill (University of Nebraska - Lincoln), Baker Weilert…