Charlene Simmons
UC Foundation Assistant Professor
A fan of things both new and old, Dr. Charlene Simmons’s teaching and research interests include new media and media history.
Since joining UTC’s faculty in 2005, Dr. Simmons has taught a number of courses including Intro to Mass Communication (Comm 101), World-Wide Web Production (Comm 337), Publication Design (Comm 333), Producing Web Radio (Comm 400), and Summer Internships (Comm 485). She also serves as the faculty advisor for The Perch, the University’s student-run, Internet radio station.
Dr. Simmons received her Doctorate in Philosophy in Mass Communication from the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She also has a Master of Arts in Communication, Culture, and Technology from Georgetown University, as well as a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies and a Bachelor of Arts in History from Virginia Tech.
Before getting her doctorate, Dr. Simmons served as a Senior Research Associate at the now-defunct Center for Media Education, a non-profit that studied children and new media. While at the Center Dr. Simmons worked on a number of projects related to children’s online privacy, children’s television, teens and the Web, and alcohol and tobacco marketing online.
Dr. Simmons’s research interests include media ownership, new technology, interactivity, and media history. Recent publications include:
- “Dear Radio Broadcaster: Fan Mail as a Form of Perceived Interactivity” in Journal of Broadcast and Electronic Media (forthcoming 2009).
- "Protecting Children While Silencing Them: The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and Children’s Free Speech Rights" in Communication Law and Policy 12.2, 119-142 (2007).
- "Radio History" in Encyclopedia of Children, Adolescents, and the Media (2006)
- "Internet Content Ratings Association" in Encyclopedia of Children, Adolescents, and the Media (2006)
To learn more about Dr. Simmons or to access her advising and Web design resources please visit her personal Webs site located at www.utc.edu/Charlene-Simmons
