Be part of The Conversation
Faculty can learn how to raise national visibility for their expertise and research Oct. 16
Posted on: September 7, 2018; Updated on: October 3, 2018
By Annika Dahlgren, mrassist@mailbox.sc.edu, 803-777-7704
The online outlet sparking interest in faculty research around the world is coming to the University of South Carolina on Oct. 16. The Conversation deputy editor Emily Costello will join three faculty members on a panel for university faculty members to learn how they can have their expertise and research featured in national media outlets through The Conversation
The panel discussion, originally scheduled last month but postponed due to Hurricane Florence, will take place from 12:45 to 1:45 p.m. in the Karen J. Williams Courtroom (Room 103) in the School of Law.
The Conversation is a news website that features articles written by scholars in collaboration with editors, which are republished by national and international media outlets. Since the university began working with The Conversation in 2017, scholars have contributed 40 articles that have resulted in 1.2 million reads in more than 100 media outlets, which have ranged from The Associated Press, Chicago Tribune and Los Angeles Times to Salon, The Atlantic and International Business Times. Additionally, articles have led to interviews with other media outlets, including NPR and the Wall Street Journal.
Professors Derek Black from School of Law, Lauren Sklaroff from the College of Arts and Sciences and Bill Hauk from the Darla Moore School of Business will join Costello to discuss their experiences working with The Conversation, how the process works and how it has resulted in raising visibility and awareness for their expertise and research.
“I am very happy with my experience with The Conversation. I think the editor and I developed a good working relationship that allows the writing process to move smoothly,” Black says. “Not only has she improved my work and enabled me to reach out to newer audiences, but she has also increased my reader base.”
Faculty articles also have led to more journal citations and collaborations on new projects. Faculty contributors have spanned academic disciplines, including business professor Orgul Ozturk, sociology professor Caroline Hartnett and law professor Joel Samuels.
Here is what other faculty have to say about their work with The Conversation:
- “It was a great experience. I find it exciting to watch it spread throughout multiple websites after it was written. I also felt good about sharing the results of our research with a broader audience.” – Andrew Spicer, international business
- “I was very happy with the number of reads (quickly into the thousands) and enjoyed the challenge of writing for an audience broader than I normally reach.” – Barry Markovsky, sociology
- “Working with the editor was easy. The editor was good at communicating, patient and clear with directions. It was a positive experience, and I even did some radio interviews as far as Vancouver.” – April Hiscox, geography
Researchers working with The Conversation have access to a variety of editing tools including the site’s web editor. This tool not only tracks changes made to the article but also records word count and average sentence and paragraph length. It also “grades” the article on readability, allowing authors to rework their article to reach a broader audience.
“I have currently written five articles for The Conversation, and I will definitely be writing more,” Hauk says. “The results have been outstanding! My work has been republished on well-known websites like Salon, MarketWatch and newspapers all over the globe. According to the Conversation’s author dashboard, my articles have been read over 125,000 times. I have also received interview requests from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Voice of America and the Wall Street Journal after publishing in The Conversation.”
Costello will be available after the panel discussion for faculty to workshop article pitches with her. Faculty members attending the panel are welcome to bring a bag lunch.
Faculty members interested in learning more about working with The Conversation before the panel can speak to their college’s communications manager for more information. The Conversation has editors who cover arts and culture, economy and business, education, environment and design, ethics and religion, health and medicine, politics and society, and science and technology.
The university’s articles published with The Conversation are available online.
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