Related Links: Beat Reporting (J253/263) Syllabus Cross-Cultural Media, Race & Gender Syllabus (J295c) Advanced Electronic Journalism (J362) Syllabus
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Indira S. Somani, Ph.D. Research: Indira Somani studies the impact of satellite television on Asian Indian communities. Her latest research was in Melbourne, Australia where she conducted oral histories with Asian Indians who migrated there between 1990 and 2000. Her research focuses on cross-cultural adaptation and how media is used in the adaptation process. Somani uses the integrative communication theory, specifically two concepts that relate to the theory: enculturation and acculturation. Somani's dissertation focused on Asian Indians who migrated to the U.S. between 1960 and 1972. In her dissertation, Somani examined the stereotypes of India on U.S. television; how Asian Indians used American television to learn about the American culture when they first move here; how Asian Indians felt attracted to Indian programming available via the satellite dish, after living in the U.S. nearly 40 years; and how Asian Indians used American television as a filter to judge the quality of Indian programming imported from India.
Expertise: Somani is an expert on the Indian diaspora, specifically the media that has been available to the Indian diaspora for the past 40 years. She has compiled a historical overview of the various kinds of media that have been available to Asian Indians, such as movies, newspapers, magazines, television programs, and more. Furthermore, Somani has lived the Asian Indian diaspora experience by witnessing her own parents struggle to adapt to the United States. Teaching: Somani teaches "Advanced Electronic Journalism," which is both online and broadcast producing. Washington and Lee's converged newsroom allows students to produce a weekly local news web site and newscast, called The Rockbridge Report in this course. Somani also teaches broadcast reporting where students are in the field covering local stories on deadline. Somani has introduced two new courses called "Media, Race and Gender" and "Cross-Cultural Documentary Filmmaking." Prior to W & L, Somani taught for five years at American University and the University of Maryland.
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Awards: “Honorable Mention”-- Faculty Jury Award- Documentary Category-- Crossing Lines. University Film and Video Association (UFVA) Conference, New Orleans, LA. August 2009 “Best American Documentary,” Crossing Lines. Heart of England International Film Festival, Tamworth, England. June 2009. Gracie Allen Award Outstanding Documentary, Short Format, Crossing Lines, American Women in Radio and Television, June 2009. Publications: "The Indian Soap Opera." In Soap Opera and Telenovelas in the Digital Age: Global Industries, Hybrid Content, and New Audiences, New York: Peter Lang Publishing Group, Editors: Diana I. Rios and Mari Castaneda. (in press, Summer 2010 or Fall 2010). “Becoming American,” Journal of International & Intercultural Communication, in press, January 2010. Juried Papers: "Stereotypes of India on U.S. Television—Effects on Acculturation to Indian Television," NCA (National Communication Association), International and Intercultural Division, Chicago. November 2009. Conference Presentations: “Documentary: From creation to DVD distribution,” Documentary Division, BEA (Broadcast Education Association), Las Vegas, NV, April 2010. “Media and Migration: Negotiating Geography, Language and Cultural Identity,” NCA, Mass Communication Division, Chicago, November 2009. AEJMC, “How Convergence changes everything: Small towns, small programs, big challenges,” Small Programs Interest Group, Boston, MA, August 2009. ICA, Journalism in the 21st Century: Between Globalization and National Identity Conference. Latest Screenings International Film Festival South Africa, Dargle, South Africa, November 2009. |