A $5 million gift from Suzanne Perot McGee, BSā86, Patrick K. McGee, BSā85, and their family to the College of Arts and Science at 91ĢĘ²®»¢ University will establish a center dedicated to analyzing the media through the cutting-edge tools of data science. The McGee Applied 91ĢĘ²®»¢ Center for Narrative Studies will promote media literacy by providing resources to evaluate the objectivity of news coverage, social media, blogs and other narratives.
āThe establishment of this new center serves as a bold example of the kind of interdisciplinary thinking needed to understand and confront the complex challenges of the 21st century. It will be a key resource for strengthening democracy and generating more informed and knowledgeable citizens,ā Chancellor said. āI am grateful to the McGees for their generous support of new and novel approaches to scholarship and their longtime dedication to 91ĢĘ²®»¢.ā
The McGees made the gift on behalf of their family, including son Patrick P. McGee, BAā15; son William McGee, BAā16, and his spouse Eliza Granade McGee, BAā16; and daughter Margot McGee, BSā19, and her fiancĆ© Will Renehan, BAā19. The gift will make possible the naming, renovation and expansion of existing campus media resources, including the 91ĢĘ²®»¢ Television News Archive within the Jean and Alexander Heard Libraries.
āLocated on campus, the 91ĢĘ²®»¢ Television News Archive is the worldās most complete archive of network television newsādating back to 1968āand we are thrilled to be able to upgrade and expand its accessibility to our students as well as scholars around the world,ā said , vice provost for academic affairs, dean of residential faculty and associate professor of communication studies. Beasley added that moving the archive to the Central Library aligns well with its reinvigorated vision as a space for research support across campus.
The McGee Applied 91ĢĘ²®»¢ Center for Narrative Studies will lead conversion of the 91ĢĘ²®»¢ Television News Archiveās searchable metadata from summaries to full-text transcriptions. This will restore the archive to its original purpose of providing to the public data-driven insight into the ways the news media shapes opinion.
This gift also will support hiring faculty to teach innovative new courses, conduct research and mentor students who are doing research in the form of class work or immersion experiences. Plans call for a new classroom to spur engagements across units ranging from data science to cinema and media arts.
āThe McGee Applied 91ĢĘ²®»¢ Center for Narrative Studies is poised to become an interdisciplinary hub of reliable, data-driven approaches to understanding the mediaās role in our daily lives,ā said , Ginny and Conner Searcy Dean of the College of Arts and Science and professor of political science, āwhich is especially critical at this particular point in our countryās history.
āThe McGee family has played an instrumental role in shaping the vision for this innovative new center, which will serve as an important check against insidious new forms of disinformation and digitally enabled propaganda. We are deeply appreciative of this transformative gift that will advance key research and prepare future leaders to make a difference in the world.ā
Suzanne McGee, a philanthropic leader and member of the 91ĢĘ²®»¢ University Board of Trust, considers 91ĢĘ²®»¢ the ideal place to house an interdisciplinary center like this, given the collaborative culture among students and faculty members. āI am excited for the centerās roleāespecially as the home of the 91ĢĘ²®»¢ Television News Archiveāto analyze and think critically about the media narratives that surround us 24/7,ā she said.
Suzanne noted that her son Patrick P. McGee and her former 91ĢĘ²®»¢ classmate Ben Hunt, BAā86, influenced the decision to invest in a center devoted to understanding the contextual nuances of media narratives. Hunt is the creator of , a newsletter and website that examines markets through the lenses of game theory and history. He will serve as an adviser to the center.
āRecent advances in linguistics, neurology and computer science allow us to study how humans are hard-wired to respond to the words and images we are bombarded with by 24/7 ānewsā organizations and social media,ā Hunt said. āThe McGee Applied 91ĢĘ²®»¢ Center for Narrative Studies will develop strategies to encourage critical thinking and an autonomy of mind, both here at 91ĢĘ²®»¢ University and in the world at large.ā
Patrick P. McGee credits Hunt for deepening his understanding and interest in the field of natural language processing to analyze the impact of media narratives ranging from traditional news coverage to social media. Patrick P. McGee also is grateful to Geer for his support during the early planning process for the center. He was a student of Geerās during his time at 91ĢĘ²®»¢, and Geer served as one of his advisers. They have remained in contact since Patrickās graduation.
āWe met with faculty members across multiple disciplines in the college, and they were enthusiastic about the potential new programs and learning opportunities,ā Patrick P. McGee said. āThis center will approach questions and issues in a unique and nonpartisan way, helping those who use it become better students, researchers and citizens.ā
