Abstract
This article addresses the challenges of defining liberal education and the place of journalism and mass communication within it. It reviews competing conceptions of liberal education as content, faculty intent, or student outcomes, and argues that professional fields can make meaningful contributions to liberal learning through skills such as communication, contextual awareness, adaptability, and critical inquiry. The discussion critiques the tendency of traditional disciplines to resist emerging fields and the tendency of professional programs to overemphasize narrow vocational goals. To advance a more integrated approach, the article proposes four steps: evaluating journalism and mass communication programs for fundamental commonalities, building connections with traditional disciplines, collaborating with media professionals to broaden liberal education, and identifying common goals across professional fields. It concludes that reaffirming the university tradition requires cooperation across academic areas to prepare students for both intellectual growth and societal participation.
Recommended Citation
Blanchard, Robert O. and Christ, William G.
(1988)
"Professional and Liberal Education: An Agenda for Journalism and Mass Communication,"
Association for Communication Administration Bulletin: Vol. 64, Article 2.
Available at:
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/aca/vol64/iss1/2
