Origins

     The association traces its lineage back to 1948, when the University Association for Professional Radio Education (UAPRE) was established with members representing ten colleges and universities. The organization was dissolved in 1955, and a new organization, the Association for Professional Broadcast­ ing Education (APBE), was created. At the APBE's first annual meeting in Chicago in 1956, the organization established the Journal of Broadcasting, the first scholarly research periodical about radio and television, which produced its first quarterly issue the following winter. The APBE was established with close ties to the professional broadcasting community through the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB). Membership consisted of academic institutions and NAB member broadcasting stations. The Association's connection to NAB remained very close in the following years. NAB provided an executive secretary, office space, and a substantial yearly cash grant to maintain APBE's operation. The APBE became the Broadcast Education Association in 1973. In 198 5 the Journal of Broadcasting was renamed the Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media. The BEA has grown over the years and today includes members from all around the world; it publishes two scholarly journals (it added the Journal of Radio Studies in 1998), a quarterly membership magazine, Feedback, and issues a variety of student scholarships and holds a vibrant annual national convention.

     In its initial years, UAPRE and APBE focused substantially on radio issues and training, just as college and university academic departments did. Published research was largely descriptive and historical, with little focus on the audience and less on research methodology. The emphasis was on educating students for professional careers. The growing focus on television in the 1950s left radio concerns behind. Early annual conventions-well into the 1960s-attracted about 100 faculty and student participants for a day of educational sessions.

     As the field matured, so did its research output. NAB and APBE cooperated in a series of annual research grants beginning in 1966. In 1968 the annual convention expanded to two days, and research paper sessions made their appearance, attracting more attendees. By the mid-1970s, articles in the Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media increasingly reflected more social science research into audience patterns and uses of both radio and television.

The Broadcast Education Association Today

     The BEA publishes two respected journals. The Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media is a quarterly research journal considered to be one of the leading publications in the communication field, with articles about new developments, trends, and research in electronic media. The Journal of Radio Studies, officially adopted by BEA in 1998, is published biannually and is the first and only publication exclusively dedicated to industry and academic radio research. Additionally, Feedback, a membership publication, appears quarterly with articles on pedagogy and industry analysis and reviews of books and instructional materials.

     The Association has a paid staff of two (its first part-time executive secretary, Dr. Harold Niven, began work in 1963; he became a full-time paid president in 1984): an executive director and an assistant to the executive director. BEA is governed by a board of directors comprising mainly electronic media faculty and industry professionals. The BEA holds an annual convention in Las Vegas each spring that spans three days and is attended by more than 1,000 people. The convention is held in the days immediately preceding the NAB convention, and on the last day there are sessions cosponsored by both BEA and NAB.

     The Association is made up of divisions representing various areas of interest to members. The BEA administers scholarships, a new faculty research grant, and a dissertation award. The Distinguished Education Service Award recognizes someone who has made a significant and lasting contribution to the American system of electronic media education by virtue of a singular achievement or through continuing service on behalf of electronic media education.

     The Association serves as a repository for information about teaching and research through its website. Among the resources available is the "BEA Syllabus Project," in which professors can access sample syllabi, course outlines, and textbook choices for a variety of classes in radio, television, and new media. Another popular feature is the website's listing of academic job openings.