For those involved in communications or media here on campus, Dr. Stephen Macek is no stranger. However, for those who are not familiar, Macek is a professor who is passionate about his studies inside and outside the classroom.
From a young age, speech communication and media studies grabbed Macek’s attention.
“Going back to when I was high school, I was always interested in media, especially film. When I was a sophomore, I got into the habit of going to the downtown area where I lived; to the one place in Nebraska where they showed foreign films. So I have kind of been long interested in film,” says the communication professor.
Paired with his passion for film, Macek was also highly interested in journalism and writing. In fact, in high school, Macek created and circulated an underground newspaper for a short period of time. Later in college, he combined both of his interests and started writing about films for magazines and local publications. Additionally, he was an advent contributing writer for his student newspaper at University of Wisconsin.
“My big dream when I was 18 years old, studying philosophy was to get a job someday writing for the New Yorker or Harper Magazine, doing big feature stories and being a star writer,” says Macek.
Although Macek is now a professor of communication and teaches a variety of courses in media studies, urban and suburban studies, and liberal studies, he still has the ability to keep up with his writing and passion for film.
For instance, in 2006 Macek published his first book titled “Urban Nightmares”, a book that takes a look at urban areas and how the mass media vilifies the culture. Interestingly enough, “Urban Nightmares” has earned several awards, including the Urban Communication Foundation Jane Jacobs Publication Award.
Currently, Macek is integrating his love for film and writing, through a new book, Macek writes to tell readers much about the little-known history of film censorship in the city of Chicago. By late summer, he hopes to send out a preview of his work to a variety of publishers. After, he hopes to continue to research and complete the rest of his book.
For more information about Dr. Macek’s work and research, visit shmacek.faculty.noctrl.edu.
