Chris Lamb

He may be a teacher now, but he didn’t give much thought to the profession when he was younger. "Most people enter the teaching field because they had good teachers as role models," Lamb says. "I didn't have that until my junior year of college at the University of Tennessee when a few teachers made teaching look so fun and rewarding." There he received a bachelor of science degree in Broadcasting in 1980, a masters of science degree in Communications and was named Outstanding Graduate Student, Class of 1984. While in college, Lamb found an outlet for expression writing a weekly column for the school newspaper. After college, with a job as a reporter for a Knoxville, Tenn. radio station, he also found time to write several journal articles which were published in Target: The Political Cartoon Quarterly.

Lamb served time for several newspapers, working as a reporter, columnist and copy editor. When his final newspaper job had expired, he decided it was time to get a job with tenure. While working for the Dayton Daily News, Lamb taught at the University of Dayton.

Lamb accepted his first teaching position in 1990 at the University of Dayton teaching Basic News Writing. After a brief stint at Dayton University, he moved to Daytona Beach where he taught at the community college as well as writing for the Daytona Newspaper. He then landed at Bowling Green University in 1994 where he taught Feature Writing while working on his Ph.D.

While teaching, he received his Ph.D. in Mass Communication at the University of Tennessee in 1995. His dissertation was called, "Drawing the Limits of Political Cartoons in America: The Courtroom and the Newsroom." His dissertation became the foundation for his book published in 2004, "Drawn to Extremes: The Use and Abuse of Editorial Cartoons in the United States." (Columbia University Press).

The book emphasizes the importance of political cartoons in daily and weekend newspapers. Many newspapers around the country attempt to cut their budget every year, seeing no reason to pay an employee a salary for illustrated jokes. "Too many newspapers- including Charleston's Post and Courier- would rather pay a few dollars to pick up syndicated cartoons off the wire than to invest the money to hire and develop a cartoonist," wrote Will Moredock in the Charleston City Paper, Views (March 9, 2005).

In 2004 Lamb published a second book, "Blackout the Story of Jackie Robinson's First Spring Training" (University of Nebraska Press). "Blackout," chronicles Robinson's struggle during his first year in baseball in 1946. It details Robinson's struggles on and off the field. It illustrates the racial discrimination he endured while traveling from city to city, the graphic details of the horror stories told by Robinson's teammates and Robinson himself. It is a book that depicts Robinson as a heroic figure during a time when African American's struggled for their civil rights.

Lamb's research of Robinson stretches far beyond the baseball spectrum. His intent of the book is to chronicle the life of a hero and the significance of one man's journey. "All that matters is our impact on others," Lamb says. "We remember the Jackie Robinsons, who put their lives at risk and died for our sins."

"It makes us recognize society's evils and wrongs and illustrates that we ALL need to address them. There are a lot of things wrong and a majority of people choose to ignore them," Lamb says. "I think we can learn a lot from Jackie Robinson, it is a great moral lesson that symbolizes the true definition of a hero.”

Lamb became an Associate Professor, Communications Department, at the College of Charleston in 1997. He teaches a variety of writing classes at the college. Along with teaching he has been an advisor for the student-run weekly newspaper, The George Street Observer and a Faculty Senate Representative.

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FOCUS ON THE FACULTY
PROFESSOR HITS HOME RUNS WITH TWO BOOKS IN ONE YEAR
*By Joshua Perry*
Chris Lamb Communication	Baseball has been a part of American Society for 150 years. Many consider baseball the national pastime. For some, it is not only a game; it mirrors America. Chris Lamb, a communication professor at the College of Charleston, boasts such a belief. He has written many articles on the subject and had a book published this year by the University of Nebraska Press called, "Blackout: The Untold Story of Jackie Robinson's First Spring Training. "Lamb's detailed and annotated research provides an in depth examination of an important step in the integration of baseball, a step that up until now, has not received the coverage it deserves. Of interest both to baseball fans and social historians," wrote Dermot McEvoy, Publishers Weekly. Lamb was born on May 15, 1958, in Dayton, Ohio. Son of Robert and Jeanne Lamb, he grew up in a middle-class suburb outside of Dayton. His life revolved around baseball season. He remembers begging his father to take him to games in Cincinnati to catch a Reds double-header. He listened to most of the Reds’ games on a transistor radio. "School was my prison." Lamb says. "I spent from the age of 5 until I was 22 just waiting to get out, baseball was my escape." He would even listen to the games in school and on numerous occasions his teachers would remove his radio and reiterate that school is more important than a baseball game.
He may be a teacher now, but he didn’t give much thought to the profession when he was younger. "Most people enter the teaching field because they had good teachers as role models," Lamb says. "I didn't have that until my junior year of college at the University of Tennessee when a few teachers made teaching look so fun and rewarding." There he received a bachelor of science degree in Broadcasting in 1980, a masters of science degree in Communications and was named Outstanding Graduate Student, Class of 1984. While in college, Lamb found an outlet for expression writing a weekly column for the school newspaper. After college, with a job as a reporter for a Knoxville, Tenn. radio station, he also found time to write several journal articles which were published in Target: The Political Cartoon Quarterly. Lamb served time for several newspapers, working as a reporter, columnist and copy editor. When his final newspaper job had expired, he decided it was time to get a job with tenure. While working for the Dayton Daily News, Lamb taught at the University of Dayton. Lamb accepted his first teaching position in 1990 at the University of Dayton teaching Basic News Writing. After a brief stint at Dayton University, he moved to Daytona Beach where he taught at the community college as well as writing for the Daytona Newspaper. He then landed at Bowling Green University in 1994 where he taught Feature Writing while working on his Ph.D. While teaching, he received his Ph.D. in Mass Communication at the University of Tennessee in 1995. His dissertation was called, "Drawing the Limits of Political Cartoons in America: The Courtroom and the Newsroom." His dissertation became the foundation for his book published in 2004, "Drawn to Extremes: The Use and Abuse of Editorial Cartoons in the United States." (Columbia University Press). The book emphasizes the importance of political cartoons in daily and weekend newspapers. Many newspapers around the country attempt to cut their budget every year, seeing no reason to pay an employee a salary for illustrated jokes. "Too many newspapers- including Charleston's Post and Courier- would rather pay a few dollars to pick up syndicated cartoons off the wire than to invest the money to hire and develop a cartoonist," wrote Will Moredock in the Charleston City Paper, Views (March 9, 2005). In 2004 Lamb published a second book, "Blackout the Story of Jackie Robinson's First Spring Training" (University of Nebraska Press). "Blackout," chronicles Robinson's struggle during his first year in baseball in 1946. It details Robinson's struggles on and off the field. It illustrates the racial discrimination he endured while traveling from city to city, the graphic details of the horror stories told by Robinson's teammates and Robinson himself. It is a book that depicts Robinson as a heroic figure during a time when African American's struggled for their civil rights. Lamb's research of Robinson stretches far beyond the baseball spectrum. His intent of the book is to chronicle the life of a hero and the significance of one man's journey. "All that matters is our impact on others," Lamb says. "We remember the Jackie Robinsons, who put their lives at risk and died for our sins." "It makes us recognize society's evils and wrongs and illustrates that we ALL need to address them. There are a lot of things wrong and a majority of people choose to ignore them," Lamb says. "I think we can learn a lot from Jackie Robinson, it is a great moral lesson that symbolizes the true definition of a hero.” Lamb became an Associate Professor, Communications Department, at the College of Charleston in 1997. He teaches a variety of writing classes at the college. Along with teaching he has been an advisor for the student-run weekly newspaper, The George Street Observer and a Faculty Senate Representative. ###
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