By: Belinda Nketia
Ghanaian media scholar Alexander Tawiah has earned a rare double honour at the 108th annual conference of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC), held from August 6th to 10th, 2025 at the San Francisco Marriott Marquis, California.
Alexander Tawiah received both the National Kappa Tau Alpha Research Award and the James W. Markham First Place Student Paper Award, two of the most prestigious honours in journalism and mass communication research.
The Kappa Tau Alpha Research Award is presented annually by the U.S. national honour society for journalism and mass communication to the best research paper at the AEJMC conference. It recognizes work that demonstrates exceptional scholarly depth, originality and national significance.
The James W. Markham Award of the International Communication Division, named after a pioneering journalism educator, honours the best student-authored research paper.
Winning both awards in the same year marks Tawiah’s accomplishment as exceptionally rare.
This year’s AEJMC conference held under the theme “Leading in Times of Momentous Change: Individual and Collective Opportunities,” brought together academics, media professionals and students from around the world for sessions, workshops, panels and networking events on the rapid transformation of digital media and journalism.
Sharing a post on LinkedIn, Alexander Tawiah wrote; “These awards reflect not only my research but also the mentorship, encouragement and belief in me from my professors, colleagues and friends.”
“I’m extremely fortunate and grateful for the guidance I’ve received” he added.
Before this recognition, Tawiah had already built a record of achievement. At Texas State University’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication, he became the first international and African student to graduate as top student in the Master’s Mass Communication programme. He also received the Outstanding Graduate Student award, from the College of Fine Arts and Communication. This was for his service as a student government representative.
At Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in History in 2022, Tawiah founded Thriller News GH, a student-run digital media outlet that trains aspiring journalists. His leadership skills won him the Student Entrepreneur of the Year, Best Student Blogger and Writer, and Best Student Media House.
His award-winning paper, “Social Media Campaign Strategies: A Case Study of Political Issue Framing by 2024 Presidential Candidates in Ghana,” used framing theory and digital multimodal discourse analysis to examine how presidential candidates John Dramani Mahama of the National Democratic Congress and Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia of the New Patriotic Party framed the economy and education during their campaigns.
The study found:
1. Contrasting economic narratives — “Resetting Ghana” vs. “It Is Possible.”
2. Competing education frames — reform vs. continuity.
3. Platform-specific engagement strategies that tailored messages to each medium’s strengths.
Celebrating both his academic promise and professional dedication.
“We are proud of you, Alexander! Now, go get that Ph.D.! I can’t wait to see what you’ll do in Iowa,” said Dr. Vanessa de Macedo Higgins Joyce, graduate advisor at Texas State University.
“Congratulations, Alexander. You are already distinguishing yourself as a skilled teacher and scholar, and it’s only the beginning,” said Dr. Cindy Royal, director of the Digital Media Innovation Lab at Texas State University.
“Amazing, especially as a master’s student. Congratulations!” said the program coordinator of the electronic media program at Texas State University.
Reflecting on his experience at the conference, Tawiah shared that engaging with colleagues from around the world “reaffirmed my commitment to research and teaching that connect academic inquiry with the real-world challenges facing media today.”
Following his graduation, Tawiah began a Ph.D. programme in Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Iowa—one of five fully funded offers he received from top U.S. universities this year.
With two national awards and his doctoral studies now underway, Tawiah’s ascent exemplifies the growing impact of African scholars on the global academic stage.
”The Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) was held concurrently with the 7th World Journalism Education Congress (WJEC) under the theme, “Is It Time to Reboot Journalism Education?”
