Professor Rene Weber and graduate students Jacob Fisher and Frederic Hopp presented their paper that received the Top 5 Paper Award at the 105th annual meeting of the National Communication Association.

“In practical terms, this is no different from how all of us as individuals deal with a deficit in our personal budget,” Cohen said. “Every time we use a credit card we are building up debt. If over the course of time our income fails to match the accumulation of debt, we are in deficit. Same for families; same for business enterprises; same for every level of government (cities, counties, states).”

“Everything feels connected with masculinity right now, from mass shootings to the #metoo movement to the resurgence of a white supremacist movement in the U.S.,” said Tristan Bridges, an assistant professor of sociology and organizer of the series. “So it’s an important moment to have conversations about this. Some of them are going to be uncomfortable. But these moments are productive.”