About SBU

McNall, Carole

Name:
Carol McNall
Carole McNall, J.D.

Academic School:
School of Journalism and Mass Communication

Academic Department:
Journalism/Mass Communication

Titles/Responsibilities:
Assistant Professor of Journalism and Mass Communication

Contact Information:
Office Phone: (716) 375-4042
E-mail: cmcnall@sbu.edu  

Office Location/Hours:
Murphy Professional Building 234 
Hours vary by semester, but I'm also available by chance or appointment

Courses Taught:

Academic Degrees:
  • J.D., State University of New York at Buffalo, 1993
  • B.A., Journalism, St. Bonaventure University, 1975

Professional Background:

I earned my bachelor's degree from the program in which I now teach and the lessons I learned at Bonaventure have served me well in everything I've done since then. After graduation, I spent two and a half years on WPIG Radio, Olean, as a newscaster and disc jockey. From there, I worked almost 12 years with the Olean Times Herald. During most of that period, I served as their Pennsylvania Bureau chief, with responsibility for a staff of three full-time reporters and as many as six part-timers.


I left the Times Herald to attend law school at the State University of New York at Buffalo School of Law. After graduation from UB, I earned a New York State law license. I still practice occasionally. I have also been a part-time tax preparer. Over time, I realized my favorite part of every one of those jobs looked a lot like teaching, which led to where I am now.

Current Research Interests/Projects:

I am always watching for examples of the intersection of the media with the legal system -- either journalists attempting to explain the legal system to their audiences or journalists finding themselves with legal problems because of their work. I am particularly interested in the way communication is developing online and how the law is developing to deal with that online communication.


I am also interested in ethical problems of the media -- how they are handled and how that impacts the communicator's relationship with his or her audience.


And I continue to look for examples of ways a communication degree is useful in jobs that aren't obviously communication jobs. The interest grows from realizing that my journalism background served me very well in law school. My list of "non-traditional" jobs is growing constantly.

Other Interests/Community Involvement:

My on-campus involvement includes these boards:

  • The  First-Year Experience Council. I also serve as chair of the committee which supervises the  program's parent newsletter. I developed and continue to oversee the program through which JMC students write for the newsletter and earn internship credit.
  • The advisory board for the Father Mychal Judge Center.
  • The editorial board for The Seraph, a journal of student writing.
  • The University's Institutional Research Board.
  • I am a current member of the Faculty Senate's Constitution Committee and a former member of the Senate itself.
  • I am the adviser to The Bona Venture, the university's student newspaper.

Off-campus, my interests include these:

  • Reading, which I'll squeeze in even when it seems like I have no time to do anything. A friend and I serve as administrators for a Facebook group on reading and books called Web of Books. I'm also vice president of the board of directors for Friends of the Olean Public Library.
  • Listening to music, including having students introduce me to artists I haven't heard.
  • Blogging. My original blog can be found here: http://penshark.livejournal.com/.
  • Photography.
  • Sports, especially NFL football and my long-time (sometimes frustrating) love for the Buffalo Bills.
  • And, not surprisingly, I'm a news junkie and fascinated, sometimes despite myself, by politics.