Dana L. Cloud (she/her) is Professor in and Director of the School of Communication, Film, and Media Studies at the University of Cincinnati. After receiving her PhD in rhetorical and media studies from the University of Iowa in 1993, Professor Cloud served as professor and director of graduate studies at the University of Texas at Austin and Syracuse University before joining the faculty at Cincinnati. Professor Cloud is the author of many journal articles and four scholarly books, most recently Reality Bites: Rhetoric and the Circulation of Truth Claims in U.S. Political Culture (Ohio State University Press, 2018). She is also the author and co-author of two textbooks on the rhetoric of social movements. Her work includes the development of critical Marxist, feminist, and queer theory; the critique of race, gender, and class in popular culture; and the history and rhetoric of movements for social change. Professor Cloud is also a longtime activist for social justice. The recipient of many awards for research and social engagement, Professor Cloud is a Distinguished Scholar of the National Communication Association.
Keynote Address: “Breaking Barriers to Academic Freedom”
This talk explores the definition and history of academic freedom in the United States. What is academic freedom and whom does it protect? After answering this question, the presentation surveys contemporary threats to academic freedom in Ohio and across the nation and the impact of those threats on our work as scholars and teachers of communication. Finally, the talk describes potential strategies of overcoming these barriers including institutional action and collective mutual support and organizing. Even in the face of barriers to academic freedom, we are obligated to carry on the field’s missions of studying and teaching communication for democratic agency and communal transformation on an ethical and inclusive basis.