John Durham Peters
Encyclopedia
John Durham Peters is an American
academic and the A. Craig Baird professor of Communication Studies
at the University of Iowa
. A media historian and social theorist, he is probably best known for his first book Speaking into the Air: A History of the Idea of Communication which traces out broad historical, philosophical, religious, cultural, legal, and technological contexts for the study of communication. He has held fellowships with the National Endowment for the Humanities
, the Fulbright Foundation, and the Leverhulme Trust.
Peters grew up in Brookline, Massachusetts
, pursued studies at Brigham Young University
in Provo, Utah, and graduated with a B.A.
in English
from the University of Utah, where he also earned his M.A.
in Speech Communication. He received a Ph.D.
in Communication Theory and Research from Stanford University
in 1986 before accepting a faculty appointment at the University of Iowa
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
academic and the A. Craig Baird professor of Communication Studies
Communication studies
Communication Studies is an academic field that deals with processes of communication, commonly defined as the sharing of symbols over distances in space and time. Hence, communication studies encompasses a wide range of topics and contexts ranging from face-to-face conversation to speeches to mass...
at the University of Iowa
University of Iowa
The University of Iowa is a public state-supported research university located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It is the oldest public university in the state. The university is organized into eleven colleges granting undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees...
. A media historian and social theorist, he is probably best known for his first book Speaking into the Air: A History of the Idea of Communication which traces out broad historical, philosophical, religious, cultural, legal, and technological contexts for the study of communication. He has held fellowships with the National Endowment for the Humanities
National Endowment for the Humanities
The National Endowment for the Humanities is an independent federal agency of the United States established by the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965 dedicated to supporting research, education, preservation, and public programs in the humanities. The NEH is located at...
, the Fulbright Foundation, and the Leverhulme Trust.
Peters grew up in Brookline, Massachusetts
Brookline, Massachusetts
Brookline is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States, which borders on the cities of Boston and Newton. As of the 2010 census, the population of the town was 58,732.-Etymology:...
, pursued studies at Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
in Provo, Utah, and graduated with a B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in English
English studies
English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language , English linguistics English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language (including literatures from the U.K., U.S.,...
from the University of Utah, where he also earned his M.A.
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
in Speech Communication. He received a Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in Communication Theory and Research from Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
in 1986 before accepting a faculty appointment at the University of Iowa
University of Iowa
The University of Iowa is a public state-supported research university located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It is the oldest public university in the state. The university is organized into eleven colleges granting undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees...
.
Selected works
- Courting the Abyss: Free Speech and the Liberal Tradition (2005)
- Canonic Texts in Media Research: Are There Any? Should There Be? How About These? With co-editors Elihu Katz, Tamar Liebes, and Avril Orloff (2003)
- Mass Communication and American Social Thought: Key Texts, 1919-1968. With Peter Simonson (2004).
- Speaking into the Air: A History of the Idea of Communication (1999) - Excerpt about the Dead Letters Office
- “‘The Marketplace of Ideas’: A History of the Concept.” Toward a Political Economy of Culture: Capitalism and Communication in the Twenty-First Century. Eds. Andrew Calabrese and Colin Sparks. Boulder: Rowman and Littlefield, 2004. 65-82.
- “Space, Time, and Communication Theory.” Canadian Journal of Communication 28 (2003): 397-411.
- “Witnessing.” Media, Culture and Society, 23.6 (2001): 707-724.
- “Public Journalism and Democratic Theory: Four Challenges.” The Idea of Public Journalism. Ed. Theodore L. Glasser. New York: Guilford Press, 1999. 99-117.
- “Distrust of Representation: Habermas on the Public Sphere.” Media, Culture and Society 14.3 (1993): 441-471.
- “Institutional Sources of Intellectual Poverty in Communication Research.” Communication Research 13.4 (1986): 527-59.