[Air-L] Hao Winner of Couch Award

[Mark D. Johns]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE -- June 17, 2008

Contact: Dr. Mark D. Johns, Executive Director
Carl Couch Center for Social and Internet Research
c/o Department of Communication Studies
Luther College, Decorah, Iowa USA 52101
email: mjohns at luther.edu

Hao Winner of Couch Award

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa -- The Carl Couch Center for Social and Internet 
Research (www.cccsir.org) is pleased to announce the winners of the 2008 
Carl J. Couch Internet Research Award. The Couch Award is presented 
annually and recognizes excellent student-authored papers.
      Richie Neil Hao, a doctoral student in Department of Speech 
Communication, at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, is the First 
Place winner for his paper, "Virtually Tsinoy: Performing and 
Negotiating Diasporic Hybridity Online."
      Angela Adkins, doctoral degree candidate in the Department of 
Sociology at the University of Akron, Akron, Ohio is the Second Place 
winner for her paper, "The Presentation of Self in Internet Forums: Face 
Work without Being Face-to-Face."
      A tie for Third Place means that there will be two award winners 
in this category. They are Sara Hebert, a master's degree candidate in 
Digital Media Studies at the University of Denver, for her paper, "Your 
World, Your Imagination?: Representation and Social Expectations in 
Virtual Memorials;" and Vilma Lehtinen, a student in the Department of 
Social Psychology, University of Helsinki, Finland, for her paper, 
"Performing Diverse Social Relationships on a Social Networking Site."
       The Couch Center established the Couch Award in 2002 as the 
centerpiece of an extensive awards program. Winning papers apply 
symbolic interactionist approaches to internet studies as advocated by 
the late Dr. Carl J. Couch, long-time professor of sociology at the 
University of Iowa.
      Competition is open to graduate or undergraduate students of all 
disciplines, and winners are selected by a committee of university 
professors in communication studies and sociology from across the U.S.
      This year's competition was rigorous, with entries received from 
students of all levels, from undergraduates through Ph.D. candidates, 
and were submitted by students from Europe, Asia, and Australia, as well 
as North America.
      Winners receive a cash award as well as the opportunity to present 
their papers at a national or international conference. This year's 
awards will be presented at the annual conference of the Association of 
Internet Researchers in Copenhagen, Denmark, October 15-18.
       The Carl Couch Center for Social and Internet Research is a 
non-profit organization established to promote the scholarship of the 
late Carl J. Couch and his academic associates. Couch is recognized as 
the founder of The New Iowa School in sociological and communication 
inquiry, and was a pioneer in the qualitative research of information 
technologies.
       The Center provides networking opportunities for students and 
scholars who conduct social and Internet research, inspired by Couch's work.
     - 30 -