Sports Media Expert Named Reagan Chair for UA’s C&IS

Dr. Andrew Billings

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Dr. Andrew Billings has been appointed the Ronald Reagan Endowed Chair in Broadcasting in the College of Communication and Information Sciences at The University of Alabama.

“Our College is extremely pleased to have Dr. Billings join the faculty as the Reagan chair,” said Dr. Loy Singleton, dean of UA’s College of Communication and Information Sciences. “His research in sports communication has been path-breaking, and he is a wonderful teacher and mentor at every level.

“We are most appreciative of the generosity and support of the Thompson family, who established this endowed chair, and we are looking forward to the expertise and national visibility Dr. Billings will bring to the College,” Singleton said.

“The opportunity to become the Reagan Chair of Broadcasting is a dream job for me, and I feel incredibly fortunate to be coming to The University of Alabama,” Billings said. “The College is already quite successful, and I hope to add avenues for success in the future.”

Billings comes to UA from Clemson University, where he was a professor in the department of communication studies and director of the Pearce Center for Professional Communication. He has authored or co-authored six books, including “Olympic Media: Inside the Biggest Show on Television,” in 2008, which offered an inside look at NBC’s Olympic broadcasting mechanism.

“Andy Billings is a prolific researcher, excellent teacher and an exceptional individual,” said Dr. Shuhua Zhou, associate dean for research in the College. “Our doctoral program is blessed to have him on board. As one of the foremost experts in sports media, he will attract a horde of students interested in this budding area of research.

“Andy’s relationship with ESPN, NBC, FOX and LPGA and other media outlets can be a tremendous asset to our students’ research and their careers, too,” said Zhou. “We have confidence that in the very near future, the College can be the place of sports communication research in the country, given Alabama’s sports tradition and the vast capabilities of our Digital Media Center under construction.”

Billings serves as the International Chair of Olympism at the Autonomous University of Barcelona and is a 2002 inductee into the National Forensic Association Hall of Fame.

He has received numerous teaching awards at Clemson University, including the Gentry Award for Teaching Excellence, Dean’s Award for Teaching Excellence, Faculty Award for Excellence and the Communication & Culture Excellence in Teaching Award. His scholarly articles have won 16 top paper awards from professional organizations such as the National Communication Association and the Broadcast Education Association.

In his new position, Billings will teach at the graduate and undergraduate level, conduct programmatic research, obtain extramural support for research and engage in a broad range of service activities.

“I hope to aid students at all levels, but particularly in the doctoral program,” Billings said. “My research program is in sports media, and I hope to help students in this regard, as well as form useful partnerships with other professional entities.”

The Reagan Chair of Broadcasting was established in 1983 with Dr. Don LeDuc becoming the first holder in 1984. The just-retired occupier of the chair, internationally known scholar Dr. Jennings Bryant, is the second person to hold the chair, beginning in 1987.