Simon Fraser University’s Spring Convocation 2012 will take place this week starting today, Tuesday June 12 with the first ceremony at 2:30 p.m. and two ceremonies (9:45 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.) on each of Weds, Thurs, Friday. For more on SFU’s Convocation schedule as well as this spring’s honorary degree recipients, see http://at.sfu.ca/KvHUWY.

Contact:
Marianne Meadahl, PAMR, 778.782.9017; Marianne_Meadahl@sfu.ca

Convocation hometown lists: http://at.sfu.ca/hcrEAR

Photo on Flickr

The last decade has been seen by many as the sunset years for traditional media, with hundreds of North American newspapers and magazines being permanently archived.

But traditional media still plays a key democratic role as watchdog to legal and political systems.

Tyler Morgenstern’s BA in communication has made him acutely aware of traditional media’s value and made him question whether digital media and its foot soldier, the citizen journalist, will prove worthy of the fourth estate.

Morgenstern, winner of this year’s Gordon M. Shrum Medal for academic achievement and extra-curricular activities demonstrating outstanding character and devotion to the university, is leading scholarship into the brave new world of digital media that is challenging traditional formats.

He has already gained international academic recognition for his research, presenting a paper it in May at the annual meeting of the International Communication Association in Phoenix, Ariz.

Arriving at SFU on a Shrum entrance scholarship, Morgenstern completed three co-op terms during his BA with the School of Communication as an outreach and community engagement coordinator, delivering media education workshops to local high schools.

He was also a lead co-ordinator for SFU’s Media Democracy Days Vancouver, an annual event that supports public participation in the media.

Morgenstern has opted to work for a year or two before embarking on a graduate degree. Currently, he is the program director of the BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Association, helping citizens navigate freedom of information and privacy systems.

The ability to access information is becoming more difficult as governments operate under increasingly secretive mandates.

That puts the average citizen whose own privacy is being eroded in the digital age at a disadvantage with governments, warns Morgenstern, highlighting the need for new watchdog measures to protect the democratic process.

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Simon Fraser University: Engaging Students. Engaging Research. Engaging Communities.