Dr. Isaac Abeku Blankson I am an Associate Professor of International/Intercultural Communication and International Public Relations and Chair of the Department of Speech Communication (SPC) at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE). In addition to teaching courses in Public Relations, Electronic Media, Professional and Technical Communication, and Intercultural/International Communication, I serve as the Director of Technology and Advisor to the Public Relations Student Society of America - SIUE Chapter (PRSSA) My undergraduate education was in Geography at the University of Ghana, Legon. I also studied at the University of Oslo, Norway, where I earned a masters (MA) degree in Human Geography and a certificate in Environmental Geography. I later earned a second masters (MA) degree in International Affairs and a doctoral (Ph.D) degree from the School of Telecommunications at the Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, USA. Prior to joining SIUE, I served as a media and public relations consultant in Ghana and also worked in the Division of Student Affairs at Ohio University. My research focuses on communication technologies and media in new and emerging democracies, public relations practices in developing societies, and media criticism. My most recent publication is a book titled Negotiating Democracy: Media Transformations in Emerging Democracies published in 2007 by SUNY Press and a book chapter on Public Relations in Sub Saharan Africa in a PR textbook, Global Public Relations: Spanning borders, spanning cultures  by Frietag and Stokes in 2008. Others include “Globalization, Pluralistic Media and Cultural Identity Transformation in Emerging African Democracies” in the 2005 issue of International Journal of Communication, “Re-examining Civil Society in Emerging Sub-Sahara African Democracies: The State, the Media, and the Public in Ghana” in the 2004 issue of the Global Media Journal, and “Public Relations in an Emerging Democracy: The Case of Ghana” in Tilson, D.J and Alozie, E.C (eds.) (2004) “Toward the Common Good: Perspectives in International Public Relation,” Allyn & Bacon. For a complete list of my research accomplishments please click here. My professional affiliations include memberships in Public Relations Society of America  (PRSA - St. Louis Chapter) and the National Communication Association (NCA). Outside my academic and professional life, I play and sometimes coach soccer at the elementary and high school levels. I also play basketball with my kids and watch sports on TV. I live with my wonderful family.