M.A. students have the opportunity to work with award-winning faculty on theses and professional projects that examine a variety of subjects.
Susan Barnett ('25 M.A.)
The Evolving Spanish Language Media Landscape in Tucson
This project provides a look at the history and current state of Spanish-language media, specifically newspapers and digital news outlets, in Tucson, Arizona.
Samantha Callicutt ('25 M.A.)
Driving Into Change: How Women Have the Potential to Change the Trucking Industry
This project, which resulted in the documentary film, "Drive Like A Girl," explores challenges faced by women truck drivers.
Natasha Cortinovis ('25 M.A.)
Susurros del Desierto de Sonora: An Encounter with the O'odham People
This personal collection of stories aims to highlight the cultural practices and lifestyles of members of the Tohono O’odham Nation.
Laura Holánszky ('25 M.A.)
Voices on the Walls: A Time Capsule of Tucson Murals
This project features the artwork and testimonials of Tucson muralists.
Zoe Lambert ('25 M.A.)
This short documentary covers a cutting-edge topic in brain imaging research.
Liliana López Ruelas ('25 M.A.)
A Desert in the Desert: News and Information in Spanish in Tucson
This project analyzes the viability of a new Spanish-language publication in Tucson.
Analeise Mayor ('25 M.A.)
How Do We Talk About Displacement? Analysis of Internal Climate Migration in the Media
This project analyzes the ways climate migration is discussed by news media following climate crises.
Alexandra Mora Medina ('25 M.A.)
Climate Migration in the Borderlands: El Impacto de los Desastres Naturales
Pricilia Mugwa ('25 M.A.)
Breaking Ground: Women in Mining
This project is centered around the experiences of women in the mining industry and aims to explain why women make up just a fraction of the mining workforce.
Dawn Page ('25 M.A.)
Perfiles: Latine Representation in Mainstream Media and Film in Hollywood
This projects features one-on-one interviews with influential Latine figures in the mainstream media and entertainment industries.
Ainsley Thomas ('25 M.A.)
Not Even a Story: An Examination of the News Coverage of Education Topics in Arizona
Flo Tomasi ('25 M.A.)
This is Not the Story You’ve Heard
This project examines media coverage of underserved Latin American communities and follows the protests that broke out in Caracas, Venezuela, in 2024 following the country's presidential election.
Alejandro Torres Calderón Arrieta ('25 M.A.)
El Hispano: Space in the Editorial Market for the Creation of a Bilingual Cultural Magazine for an Affluent and Educated Audience in Hispanicmerica
Thatcher Warrick Hess ('25 M.A.)
Journalinguistics: Visualizing the Ethnolinguistic Vitality of Japanese-Brazilian Print Media in Sao Paulo and Tokyo
Kiana Watchman ('25 M.A.)
Warriors of the Court: Culture, Community, and History
Audrey Yossem ('25 M.A.)
Reproductive Rights Laws in Arizona
This project aims to provide a detailed timeline of reproductive legislation in Arizona and explores the state's laws currently in place.
Heishly Acevedo Ramirez ('24 M.A.)
Hispanic Journalists in the U.S.: Cultural Heritage and Identity
This project looks at the role of bilingual Spanish language speakers in the American news media industry, the challenges they face and the opportunities they encounter in their professional careers.
Eva Marie Hube ('24 M.A.)
The Future of Food: Growing
Climate-Smart Foods in a Drier World
The short-form essays and video interviews that make up Hube's project focus on efforts in Arizona and the Southwest to promote and implement climate-adapted agriculture.
Sohi Kang ('24 M.A.)
A Case Study on the Daily Wildcat
Kang's project outlines how student media organizations, such as the University of Arizona's student-run newspaper The Daily Wildcat, can use Instagram to reach an online audience.
Zulema Herrera ('24 M.A.)
Herrera's final project focuses on the work and experiences of Latine muralists in Chicago and features a documentary, a mural map, and a website in both English and Spanish.
Claude Akins ('23 M.A.)
Arizona's Incarcerated Workers
Akins produced a website and podcast aimed at exploring the experiences of incarcerated workers in Arizona's prisons. (Professional Project)
Bryan Savic (’23 M.A.)
Savic's multimedia project includes a website and podcast aimed at providing diverse perspectives and insights on the variables that may be significantly contributing to the disinterest levels many Americans have for soccer. (Professional Project)
Emily Ellis (’23 M.A.)
Ellis produced a podcast and website that dives into how over 130 trespass cattle complaints have been filed with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) by the Center for Biological Diversity in the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area (SPRNCA) . Watch her defense on Youtube here. (Professional Project)
Denise Meeks (’24 M.A.)
WATER: A website about our precious resource
Meeks coded this website from the ground up. WATER is a library of everything there is to know about water. (Professional Project)
Luke Wink Moran (’23 M.A.)
Moran's magazine article investigates the rise of #booktok and its affect on the book publishing industry.
Vanessa Lucero (’23 M.A.)
Ecuadorians en Nueva York: Keeping La Cultura Viva
Lucero is a bilingual journalism program graduate. Her multimedia project covers the Ecuadorian community in New York City. (Professional Project)
Jake O'Rourke (’23 M.A.)
PFAS: The Subsurface Contaminators
O'Rourke created a multimedia project about the scientific and bodily impact of PFAS contamination in Tucson, AZ. Find his documentary at the link above. (Professional Project)
Shawn Burrage (’23 M.A.)
CRITICAL RACE THEORY IN IOWA: AN ANALYSIS OF THE DES MOINES REGISTER'S COVERAGE.
Watch Burrage's thesis defense on Youtube by clicking the play button on the right.
Ashley Morales (’23 M.A.)
Changing the Script
"The main objective of this final project is to inform others on mental health illness based on my psychology background, experience of being a behavioral technician, and a journalism student," according to Morales' website. (Professional Project)
Mar Ruiz Barraza (’23 M.A.)
LA FRONTERA Y SUS OJAZOS NEGROS: Una Mirada Hacia la Vida y Cultura Fronteriza
Barraza is a bilingual journalism program graduate. She said her project was meant to highlight the positive aspects of life at the US/Mexico border through touch, site, smell, taste and hearing.
Paula Diaz (’23 M.A.)
Migrantes Desaparecidos/Missing Migrants
Diaz is a bilingual journalism program graduate. Diaz's website is a guide for families who have a loved one missing at the US/Mexico border. (Professional project)
Andrea Morabito (’23 M.A.)
LICENSING OF JOURNALISTS: ‘L’ORDINE DEI GIORNALISTI ITALIANO’, A HISTORICAL REVIEW AND COMPARISON
Watch Andrea's thesis defense by clicking the YouTube play button on the right. (Thesis)
Kynzie Watahomigie (’22 M.A.)
#ilovemydog: the versatility of social media in the online dog community
A collection of essays about the versatility of social media in the online dog community. Watahomigie's essays cover rescue organizations, dog influencers and the communities that develop around the topic of dogs on social media. (Thesis)
Emma Brocato (’22 M.A.)
A Different Burn: a collection of stories about the fire regimes of Southern Arizona
A collection of three long form stories about the Southern Arizona fire regimes (Professional project). Her work was published in the AZ Luminaria. Read her article here.
Peiyu Lin (’21 M.A.)
International Front: Hong Kong 2020
A documentary on how overseas Hong Kong activists in Taipei, Houston and Seattle promoted the democracy of Hong Kong. (Professional project)
Alexandra Pere (’21 M.A.)
A podcast series that looks into the psychedelic revival movement in Southern Arizona. (Professional project)
Sofia Revilak (’21 M.A.)
A Critical Discourse Analysis of Media Coverage of the 2018 Central American Migrant Caravans by US and Mexican News Media Outlets. (Thesis)
Conor Villines (’21 M.A.)
News Media and Mineral King
Framing Californian Development, Environmentalism and Recreation, 1965-1978. (Thesis)
Samantha Bishop (’20 M.A.)
Heroines: Stories of Tucson Female Entrepreneurs
In 2019, Tucson's percentage of women-owned businesses was 38.6, higher than the national average. (Professional project)
Katelyn Caldwell (’20 M.A.)
Reporting on Mass Shootings
An Analysis of Journalists’ Perceptions of Mass Shooting Coverage and the Impact it has on their Professional Work and Personal Lives. (Thesis)
Nick Smallwood (’20 M.A.)
Saving the Last of the Mount Graham Red Squirrels
Smallwood captured rare footage of the squirrel for his documentary film. (Professional project)
Alisa Ivanitskaya (’20 M.A.)
A project about food security in Arizona. (Professional project)
Nina Kolodij (’20 M.A.)
Science communication from every angle. (Professional project)
Meridith O'Neil (’20 M.A.)
A podcast that looks at belonging and nostalgia through food. (Professional project)
Justin Wylie (’20 M.A.)
A podcast that focuses on the local and global challenges African-American student-athletes face in society. (Professional project)
