STORY BY MACKENZIE ROSS

Student journalism has been a part of the University of Mississippi campus for over a century. The yearbook, The Ole Miss, was started in 1896. The student-run newspaper, The Mississippian, followed shortly after in 1911. It wasn’t until 1947 that the university finally added a department of journalism to its campus. The chancellor chose to place the department within The School of Business and Dr. Gerald Forbes became the first chair of the newly-formed Department of Journalism.

In February 1947, the department was located in a tiny space in the Lyceum. A few months later, it was moved to two classrooms and two offices in one of the war-surplus buildings near Bishop Hall. Around 80 students signed up for courses, which instantly made it one of the largest departments on campus. New classes included management of the weekly newspaper, principles of advertising, layout and copy editing, news photography and more.

The same year, Forbes established the Mississippi Scholastic Press Institute with the goal of exposing high school students to journalism at Ole Miss. Nearly 150 students and teachers attended the first event. Today, the Mississippi Scholastic Press Association still brings hundreds of high school students from across the state to the university each semester.

In 1948, Sam Talbert joined the journalism team at Ole Miss, aiding in the growth of the program. He later became chair of the department when Forbes stepped down in 1956. From the beginning of his tenure as chairman, Talbert recruited female students to help break the gender barrier at the time. Talbert served in that role until his death in 1972. In 2020, the school created the Talbert Fellows Program in his name, offering scholarship opportunities and financial assistance to students.

In the summer of 1975, the department of journalism left the School of Business and joined the School of Liberal Arts. It wasn’t until 1979 that the department moved from Brady Hall to Farley Hall, the current home to the program.

Another influential professor in the department’s early years was newspaperman S. Gale Denley. As a third-generation newspaper publisher, Denley brought a wealth of knowledge to the department and served as general manager of student media until his retirement in 1996.

In 2003, the university debuted and dedicated a new student media center in his honor. The center is now the home to students working on the school newspaper, yearbook, broadcast, radio and advertising staffs.

In 1979, a broadcast journalism major was added to the department under the direction of Dan Gardner & Kit Rushing and in 1984, the first national magazine service journalism program in the country was launched under the direction of Dr. Samir Husni.

The Overby Center for Southern Journalism and Politics was founded in 2007 with funding through a $5 million grant from the Freedom Forum. It was named after chairman Charles Overby who served as former chairman and CEO of the Freedom Forum, Newseum and Diversity Institute. Overby graduated from the university in 1968 and also served as editor of The Daily Mississippian.

Will Norton was also fundamental in the growth of the journalism school at the university. He served as chair of the department from 1977-1990. He left to be the Dean of the College of Journalism and Mass Communications at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln from 1990 to 2009. In 2009, Norton returned to Oxford to become the first dean as the journalism school expanded to become the School of Journalism and New Media. He resigned from his dean role in 2020 and Dr. Debora Wenger currently serves as interim dean.

Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) was introduced as a new major in 2011. IMC is described as a place where marketing meets creativity in a future-focused, real-world curriculum. The major has grown from 51 students in the fall of 2011 to over 1200 just 10 years later.

The school has grown tremendously over the last 75 years and now offers four different degree programs – the Bachelor of Arts in Journalism, the Master’s of Arts in Journalism, the Bachelor of Science in Integrated Marketing Communications and the Master’s of Science in Integrated Marketing Communications.

1897

The Ole Miss yearbook is founded, highlighting campus and student life

1911

The student-run newspaper, The Mississippian, is founded

1947

The university creates a department of journalism

1948

Sam Talbert joins the journalism department

1975

The department joins the School of Liberal Arts

1979

The department of journalism moves to Farley Hall

1979

Broadcast journalism is added to the program

1984

The first national magazine service journalism program in the country is launched

2007

The Overby Center for Southern Journalism & Politics is founded

2009

The evergrowing Department of Journalism becomes the School of Journalism with Will Norton as dean

2011

A new major, Integrated Marketing Communications, is added to the curriculum

2020

Dr. Debora Wenger becomes interim dean of the School of Journalism and New Media