Colin Donohue

When associate professor of communications Brooke Barnett was trying to find a textbook for the School of Communications Digital Media Convergence class she could not find one that she thought was a perfect fit. The class covers photography, videography, editing, web design and basic visual storytelling practices. And all that information wasn't readily available in one place.

Sometimes an idea will form and all of the pieces will fit together perfectly. And according to associate professor of communications Rich Landesberg, one of his ideas fell into place as he began creating the "60 Minutes" Master Class that’s being offered this spring semester.

From the Wilmington StarNews (4/3/11): Memo to public officials: A closed session is supposed to pertain only to the specific topic for which it was called. In the case of the New Hanover County Commissioners, a closed meeting called to consult with their attorney expanded into an overview of the county's potential classification as an air quality "non-attainment" area and a general discussion of the role of board members in dealing with county employees.

From The Pendulum, Elon's student newspaper (3/29/11): Frank Sesno never intended to be a journalist, but years after he began collecting newspapers at a young age, he admits he was "meant to do this."

Brooke Barnett, an associate professor in the School of Communications and the executive director of the Sunshine Center, was a guest on WFAE 90.7FM to discuss public information and government transparency.

Almost 40 years ago, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill professors Donald Shaw and Max McCombs introduced a theory that drastically changed the field of communications. Earlier in the semester, Elon students got the opportunity to learn about it firsthand from one of the men who originally devised it in a half-semester agenda-setting course.