Biography
Hans Schmidt received his Ph.D. in Mass Media and Communication and his B.A. and M.A. in Communication Studies. His research focuses on journalism and media literacy education at the university level. With disciplinary interests ranging from interpersonal communication to media studies, he has taught a variety of communication, media, and journalism courses.
In addition to his teaching and research, Hans Schmidt has served on the executive council of the Pennsylvania Communication Association, as second vice president of the Eastern Communication Association, and on the editorial review board of several peer reviewed academic journals. Currently, he serves as campus coordinator of the Jane E. Cooper and Schreyer Honors Programs.
Prior to joining the Penn State Brandywine faculty, he taught at several other colleges and universities, served as assistant director of a student academic support program, served as faculty advisor to a student newspaper, and worked as a professional journalist and photographer in southeastern Pennsylvania.
Selected Recent Publications
Schmidt. H. C. (2018). Forgotten athletes and token reporters: Analyzing the gender bias in sports journalism. Atlantic Journal of Communication, 26(1), 59-74.
Schmidt, H. C. (2018). Media literacy in communication education. In R. Hobbs & P. Mihailidis (Eds.), The international encyclopedia of media literacy. Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell.
Schmidt. H. C. (2018). Sports reporting in an era of activism: Examining the intersection of sports media and social activism. International Journal of Sport Communication, 11(1), 2-17.
Schmidt. H. C. (2017). Training tomorrow’s environmental journalists: Assessing the extent of environmental-themed training in college-level journalism programs. Journal of Applied Environmental Education and Communication, 16(1), 17-28.
Schmidt, H. C. (2016). Women’s sports coverage remains largely marginalized. Newspaper Research Journal, 37(3), 275-298.
Schmidt, H. C. (2015). Student newspapers show opinion article political bias. Newspaper Research Journal, 36(1), 6-23.
Schmidt, H. C. (2015). More than writing and reporting: Examining the overall media literacy of today’s journalism students. Teaching Journalism and Mass Communication, 5(1), 43-56.
Schmidt, H. C. (2015). Helping students understand media: Examining the efficacy of interdisciplinary media training at the university level. Journal of Media Literacy Education, 7(2), 50-68.
Schmidt, H. C. (2015). “Still a boys club”: Perspectives on female sports and sports reporters in university student newspapers. Qualitative Research Reports in Communication, 16(1), 65-74
Selected Recent Presentations
Schmidt, H. C. (2018). Political reporting in student newspapers: Analyzing real and perceived bias in college media during recent elections. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the National Communication Association, Salt Lake City, UT.
Schmidt, H. C. (2018). A return to protectionism in media literacy education? Paper presented at the annual meeting of the National Communication Association, Salt Lake City, UT.
Schmidt, H. C. (2018). Student newspaper political reporting in a hyper-partisan world. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Eastern Communication Association, Pittsburgh, PA.
Schmidt, H. C. (2018). Learning from the past or repeating our mistakes? Considering what can be learned from the history of media literacy education in America. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Eastern Communication Association, Pittsburgh, PA.
Schmidt, H. C. (2017). Sports media and social activism: Understanding how journalists cover sports in an era of social activism. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Pennsylvania Communication Association, Pittsburgh, PA.
Schmidt, H. C. (2017). Environmental reporting in an era of growing threats. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Eastern Communication Association, Boston, MA.
Schmidt, H. C. (2016). Understanding news in a digital environment: An analysis of student news literacy competencies. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Eastern Communication Association, Baltimore, MD.
Schmidt, H. C. (2016). Sidelined: Analyzing the limited media coverage of women’s sports. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Eastern Communication Association, Baltimore, MD.
Schmidt, H. C. (2016). The role of women in business and financial reporting: Exploring trends in coverage. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the National Communication Association, Philadelphia, PA.
Schmidt, H. C. (2016). Learning to report on the environment. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the National Communication Association, Philadelphia, PA.