The new journalism chair at Iowa State plans to show students the importance of having mass communication skills in today’s society.

Dr. John Eighmey took over as the journalism department head on Monday. Originally from Mason City, Eighmey received both his undergraduate and graduate degrees in marketing from the University of Iowa, where he also took communications courses, including reporting and broadcast writing classes.

Eighmey said that because Iowans value education and its importance in their every-day lives, the future of education at ISU is looking good.

He said ISU “has a really outstanding university of science and technology.” Because the journalism department is in this environment, technological improvements such as computers “have profound impacts on how we communicate in mass communication and interpersonal communication.”

Eighmey said students in the journalism department are surrounded by fine faculty, supportive alumni and excellent opportunities to build on their skills. He calls this a “magic moment” because students have the opportunity to regularly exercise expression through publications such as the the Daily and The Drummer and through the cable television station STV 9.

“They give students many opportunities to express and rehearse and to build portfolios,” he said. “The more they write, the better.”

Eighmey’s career bounced among the fields of government, business and marketing many times. He began teaching at the University of Notre Dame as an associate professor of advertising.

It was not until his next job, however, that he achieved distinction. He worked for the Federal Trade Commission in Washington, D.C., as the deputy assistant director for national advertising. He was the first person trained in advertising and communication to hold a managerial position in the department.

At the FTC, Eighmey’s duties consisted of looking at made and implied claims in national advertising and establishing whether company claims were true.

Eighmey left Washington D.C. to become an educator, but this time at the Medill School of Advertising at Northwestern University. He proceeded to do studies for the Response Analysis Corporation in Princeton, where he researched the effects of alcohol marketing on alcohol consumption.

Eighmey continued to gain experience in advertising as head of the research department and manager of creative services at Young & Rubicam, one of the world’s largest advertising firms. He made a return to education at the University of Alabama, where he stayed until he returned to his roots in the state of Iowa at ISU.

Eighmey said it is a great time to be in mass communication because of new thinking in the field.

“I can’t think of anything more intellectually challenging than to be in communication,” he said.