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Brian Swafford
Instructor
Director of Forensics
Education
- M.A. in Communication Studies - Ohio University, 2008
- B.A. in Communication Studies - University of Nebraska -
Lincoln, 2004
Courses Taught
- Fundamentals of Oral Communication
- Argumentation and Debate
- Practicum in Debate and Forensics
- Advanced Practicum in Debate and Forensics
Academic Interests
Sports matter. I can
give you the dollars that are spent on all levels of athletic competitions and
the huge amounts of time spent attending, watching and thinking about sports by
our society. My academic interest in the
study of sport is specifically in sports fans.
Fans in the stands, on message boards, on talk radio, and at watch
parties across the country constitute unique sites of fan community and
identity. By immersing myself in fan
cultures and analyzing various rhetorical texts that are key to each fan group,
I am able to offer insights into how, and perhaps more importantly why, fans
come together in celebration of their team.
My interest in fan cultures does not stop with sports. I am also interested in fans of comic books
and graphic novels. This fan culture is
much more insular since being an avid comic fan does not hold the same social
standing as being a sports fan. Yet the
popularity of comic book movies, from Superman to Spiderman to Batman to the
X-Men, and the prevalence of these characters in popular culture tell us that
the images and personas tap into important parts of our social psyche. Examination of the comics themselves sheds
light on the interpretive community of readers and immersion in key cultural
locations, like the local comic shop and the national comic book conventions,
allow me to reveal what these fans find significant about their love of comic
books in general and comic characters specifically.
Scholarly Activity
Recent Publications
- Ledbetter, A. M., Mazer, J. P., DeGroot, J., Meyer, K. R.,
Mao, Y., & Swafford, B. (2011). Attitudes toward online social
connection and self disclosure as predictors of Facebook communication and
relational closeness. Communication Research, 38, 27-53.
- Swafford, B. (2009). Catching a ballgame from the comfort of home: A Center
Field Shot to the relationship between baseball
and television. Review of Communication, 9, 351-354.
Accepted Manuscripts
- Swafford, B. Counterplans: Rethinking what makes counterplans
competitive arguments in policy debate. (Manuscript accepted at National Forensics Journal)
- Swafford, B. & Hinck, E.
A. Performative fiction: The use of scripts in interactions
between debate competitors and judges. (Manuscript
accepted at National Forensics Journal)
Book Chapters
- Swafford, B. Critical
ethnography: The comics shop as cultural
clubhouse. In R. Duncan & M. Smith (Eds.), Comics Criticism. (Book accepted by Routledge Publishing)
Student Group Advisement
Northwest Missouri State University Speech and Debate Team
Other Professional Experiences
-
Professional Organization Memberships
-
Pi Kappa Delta Forensics Association
-
National Forensics Association
-
National Communication Association
-
Central State Communication Association
-
Ohio Communication Association
-
Professional Service
-
National Forensics Association
- Impromptu
and Extemporaneous Committees
- National Communication Association
- Reviewer,
Student Section
- Central States Communication Association
- Reviewer,
Rhetoric Division
- Ohio Communication Association
- Impromptu,
Extemporaneous, Constitutional Revision Committee
-
Debate Camps and Workshops
-
Trojan Summer Retreat (Lee County HS, Leesburg,
GA) - July 2011
-
Ohio University Summer Speech Camp (Ohio
University) - 2007, 2008
-
Ohio Forensics Association Fall Workshop -
October 2006
-
Ceramic Mug Debate Workshop (Central Michigan
University) - August 2004
-
Fish and Chips Debate Camp (Westover HS, Albany,
GA) - 2003-2005
-
Forensics Coaching Success
-
Boise State University, 2010-2011
- National
Champion, Overall Team Sweepstakes - Pi Kappa Delta
- National
Champion, Individual Events Team Sweepstakes - Pi Kappa Delta
- National
Runner-Up, Debate Team Sweepstakes - Pi Kappa Delta
- Third
Place, Season Team Sweepstakes - International Public Debate Association
- Gold
Program, Individual Events and Debate Team Sweepstakes - Northwest Forensics
Conference
- Idaho
Speech Conference Champion, Team Sweepstakes
- Various successes as an assistant coach with
Central Michigan (2004-2006) and Ohio University (2006-2010)
