SBU faculty and students launch podcast series on media and politics

 

 ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y., Nov. 3, 2025 — In a three-part podcast series, St. Bonaventure University faculty and students will discuss the changing dynamics of media and politics.

 The series, titled Sunrise, will begin Wednesday, Nov. 5, with a discussion focused on the results of the Nov. 4 general election. Additional episodes will follow Nov. 12 and 19. Each podcast will be posted on the Jandoli Institute website (jandoli.net) at 8 p.m. on the day it is recorded.

 “A new generation of political candidates is using TikTok, Instagram and other social media platforms to challenge traditional retail politicians,” said Dr. Richard Lee, a professor in the university’s Jandoli School of Communication. “We will use the podcasts to explore the implications of this development for media, for politics, and for democracy.”

 Lee, who covered politics as a reporter and later served as deputy communications director for two New Jersey governors, will host the podcasts.

 Panelists for the Nov. 5 podcast will be Aaron Chimbel, dean of the Jandoli School; Dr. Phillip Payne, chair of St. Bonaventure’s History Department; and Holden Turek, a Political Science student.

 The Nov. 12 session will include Dr. Ben Gross, associate professor in the Department of Sociology and Criminology; Dr. Pauline Hoffmann, associate professor in the Jandoli School; and Olivia Francis-Gray, a Communications, Social Justice and Advocacy major in the Jandoli School.

 On Nov. 19, the panelists will be Don Gilliland, associate professor in the Jandoli School; Dr. Mary Rose Kubal, chair of the Department of Political Science; and Andrew McGurl, a Journalism major in the Jandoli School.

“Gen Z faces a daily barrage of entertainment, ads, news, rumors and conspiracies in their feeds. Yet a nationally representative News Literacy Project survey found just 18% can accurately tell those categories apart,” said Scott Sackett, a lecturer in the Jandoli School who is leading the production team. “This podcast series with SBU faculty and students is the kind of media-literacy programming democracy requires.”

 In addition to Sackett, the production team includes Jandoli School students Sydney Labayewski, Robin Stone, Brooke Johnpier, Danielle Clark, Ronald Noel and Wynton Dublin.

 

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About the University: The nation’s first Franciscan university, St. Bonaventure is a community committed to transforming the lives of its students inside and outside the classroom, inspiring in them a commitment to academic excellence and lifelong civic engagement. Out of 167 regional universities in the North, St. Bonaventure was ranked #8 for value and #19 overall by U.S. News and World Report (2025).