Brian Johnston is an Assistant Professor of Communication in the Department of Language and Literature at Glenville State University. He earned his PhD from the University of South Florida and his Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts in Communication from The University of Arkansas. He specializes in rhetorical and (auto)ethnographic approaches to the study of media and media audiences, organizational culture, public memory, and civic discourse. His research appears in the Journal of Communications Media Studies, "Haunted Spaces,” which theorizes a new appreciation for memory-making as ephemeral embodiment, and the Journal of Autoethnography, “Breathe,” a reflexive dive into grief, loss, and redemption. His book chapter proposing documentary production as qualitative inquiry and critical community engagement appears in The Routledge International Handbook of Organizational Autoethnography (Routledge), and his forthcoming chapter, Executive Leadership and Governing by Twitter, appears in The Trump Years (State University of New York Press). He is coauthor, with Susan Mackey-Kallis (Villanova University), of Myth, Fan Culture, and the Popular Appeal of Liminality in the Music of U2 (Lexington Books), a meditation on the complexity of love and social justice across multiple epochs that intertwines autoethnographic turns highlighting the personal experience most of us have with popular culture. Brian and Susan's new co-authored book, Wounded Masculinity and the Search for Father (Self) in American Film (Lexington Books) is a psychoanalytic-mythic analysis of cinematic projections featuring father-quest stories as sites for both wounding and healing of masculinity. 

In addition to his teaching and service at Glenville State University, “Dr. J” directs and coaches GSU’s Pioneer Debate, serves as reviewer for the Journal of Autoethnography, and is on the editorial board for Profs Do Pop. He is also passionately committed to open education resources as an act of social justice that improves access to higher education learning, strengthens academic freedom, and facilitates collaborative teaching-learning practices. His OER textbook, Introduction to Public Communication has saved millions in student costs. 

Brian enjoys carpentry, hiking, photography, and celebratory gourmet hot dogs with fair trade coffee at Un Mundo Café in Springfield, Ohio. When he is not on campus, he can be found at GSU’s King Library, exercising at GSU’s Sue Morris Stadium, or downtown at Glenville, West Virginia’s world-famous Cornerstone Café. He has three children, Oliver, Simon, and Juniper, and he cherishes every moment with them.

 

 

Recent Publications

Books
Johnston, B. & Mackey-Kallis, S. (In Press). Wounded masculinity and the search for father (self) in American film. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books. 

Johnston, B., & Mackey-Kallis, S. (2019). Myth, fan culture, and the popular appeal of liminality in the music of U2: A love story. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books.

Department of Communication. (2016). Introduction to public communication. Open Resource Textbook for Communication 101. Johnston, B.: Project manager, editor, and contributing author. Terre Haute, IN: Indiana State University.

Articles in Refereed Journals

Johnston, B. (2021). Breathe: Pathways to healing where “peace is every step.” Journal of Autoethnography, 2(2).

Johnston, B. (2015). Haunted spaces: An examination of alternative memorialization practices via live performances of U2’s, “Sunday, Bloody Sunday.” Journal of Communications Media Studies, Vol. 7, 29 – 46.

Articles in development

Johnston, B. Taking the open education resource (OER) turn in basic course design.

Book Chapters

Holt, D.H. & Johnston, B. (In Press). Executive leadership and governing by Twitter. In The Trump years.  Eds. Watson, R., Brattebo, D., and Lansford, T. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.  

Johnston, B. (2020). Framing stories from the academic margins: Documentary as qualitative inquiry and critical community engagement. In The Routledge international handbook of organizational autoethnography. Ed. Andrew Herrmann. New York, NY: Routledge.

Documentary Productions & In-progress Productions

Johnston, B. (2012). The Real Johnnie Gray. Screened: Iola, KS.

Johnston, B. (In Development). Cruising the Christian Rock Aesthetic at Cornerstone Festival.

Recent Presentations

Conference Presentations

Johnston, B., & Mackey-Kallis, S. (2023). Moonlight: “Who is you man?” National Communication Association Convention, National Harbor, MD.

Johnston, B. (2022, November). Cash in chaos: An intergenerational family communication autoethnography. For: National Communication Association Convention, New Orleans.

Johnston, B. (2022, February). ACA-hack: Framing identity, carving a niche from the margins of academic employment. International Symposium on Autoethnography and Narrative Inquiry.

Johnston, B. (2020, October). From “Cave” to classroom. Heartland: U2’s Looking for American Soul. (Virtual Conference).

Johnston, B. (2020, May). Documentary as qualitative research and critical community engagement. 16th International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry, Champaign, IL. (Event cancelled, March 2020)

Johnston, B., & Mackey-Kallis, S. (2019, October). Wounding and healing: Toxic masculinity, masculine fragility and the search for father (Self) in contemporary culture. Organization for the Study of Communication, Language, and Gender (OSCLG) 42nd Annual Conference, Cincinnati, OH.

Johnston, B. (2016, April). Linking soft skills training to the Communication Basic Course: Information literacy and communication fluency in the “Job Application Portfolio” assignment. Central States Communication Association (CSCA) Convention, Grand Rapids, MI.

Johnston, B. (2015, May). Convergences of faith and identity at Jesus People USA’s Cornerstone Festival. Eleventh Annual International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry (ICQI), Urbana-Champaign, IL.

 

Invited Presentations

Invited Presenter, “The Writing Process,” Communication 5977: Personal Narrative, East Tennessee State University, 2022.

Invited Presenter, “Blood and Oil,” Communication 3390:  Search for Self in American Film, Villanova University, 2021. 

Invited Presenter, LEAP Program (For Conditionally Admitted Students), Indiana State University, 2016.

Invited Presenter, Faculty Development Series: Incorporating Career Content into Academic Courses, University Engagement, Indiana State University, 2016.

Invited Presenter, “How to Evaluate Student Learning,” Epiphanies: Learning by Teaching, University College Pedagogical Development Program and the Faculty Center for Teaching Excellence, Indiana State University, 2015.

Invited Presenter, Student Success Conference, “To Test, Or Not To Test” Session, Indiana State University, 2015.

Invited Presenter, Soft Skills Integration for COMM 101, Career Services Center, Indiana State University, 2015.