Tina M. Harris, who holds the Douglas L. Manship Sr.-Dori Maynard Race, Media, and Cultural Literacy Endowed Chair at the Manship School of Mass Communication at Louisiana State University, is the 2020 recipient of the Francine Merritt Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Lives of Women in Communication. The award is presented annually by the National Communication Association.
“The end goal is to teach classes and produce research that ask and possibly answer the difficult questions that many people are asking when it comes to how we can communicate across and through our racial, ethnic and cultural differences,” Dr. Harris said. “I want people to understand that there are systems of oppression that affect us all differently, some people more than others. Rather than place blame, harbor guilt, or nurse anger, I hope that the work I do breaks down ignorance and apathy and opens up the floodgates of compassion and allyship.”
Professor Harris’ research focuses on issues related to diversity, access and social justice in media and society. She is the co-author of the textbook Interracial Communication: Theory Into Practice (Sage Publications, 2014, Third Edition). She is currently co-authoring a textbook on public speaking.
Professor Harris joined the Manship School’s faculty in 2019. Earlier, Dr. Harris was a professor in the department of communication studies at the University of Georgia. She joined the faculty there in 1998.
Dr. Harris holds a master’s degree from the University of Georgia and a Ph.D. from the University of Kentucky.
