Degree Name
Master of Science
Graduate Program
Mass Communication and Media Arts
Advisor
Thompson, Jan
Abstract
AN ABSTRACT OF THE RESEARCH PAPER OF
Kevin E. Boucher, for the Master of Science degree in Professional Media & Media Management Studies , presented on March 9, 2011, at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.
TITLE: SOUNDS AND STORIES OF THE SHAWNEE FOREST
MAJOR PROFESSOR: Jan Thompson, Radio-TV Department
My central thesis is that in today’s highly technological civilization with its constant bombardment of stimuli - especially sounds - people need to regularly get away to natural areas and surround themselves with the peaceful and soothing sounds of nature. Through my research I have found that humans have had this need to get away to nature for literally, as long as people have been around and there are proven emotional benefits to do doing this.
I intend to show, through a series of radio documentaries, that the many peaceful natural areas and natural sounds found in the woods and fields of southern Illinois have a positive emotional effect on many people. To do this, my radio documentaries will include many natural sounds and interviews with different people describing their beneficial experiences in the woods of southern Illinois. Possible venues for my documentaries include: WSIU public radio on the campus of SIU/Carbondale, other public radio stations in Illinois, WDBX and other community licensed low-power radio stations in Illinois, visitor centers at the various federal and state natural areas, and the University Museum at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale Illinois.
Audio Documentary