Renee offers workshops, keynote addresses and seminars around the nation and around the world. See a list of popular programs and topics. 

International Events

"Combatting Middle East Stereotypes through Media Literacy Education in Elementary School," International Communication Association conference, Singapore, June 25, 2010.

"New Developments: Media Education in Asia," International Communication Association conference, Singapore, June 22, 2010. 

"Current Research on Media Literacy Education," World Summit on Media for Children and Youth, Karlstad, Sweden, June 17, 2010.

"Media, Citizenship and Human Rights," Second European Congress of Media Education, Bellaria, Italy, October 21 - 24, 2009.

"A Research Agenda for Media Literacy," Office of Communications (OFCOM) Conference on Media Literacy, London, England, May 15, 2008.

"Building a Clearinghouse for Media Literacy Education," Alliance of Civilizations conference, United Nations. Madrid, Spain, January 15-16, 2008.

"Media Literacy Institute." Developed a two-day professional development program for educators from Qatar University and area schools, Doha, Qatar. Supported by the Qatar Foundation. December 11-12, 2007.

"Critical Distancing and Participatory Immersion in Online Learning for Media Literacy." Paper presented at the 2007 ICA China Communication Forum, Harmonious Society, Civil Society and the Media, Beijing, China. October 20, 2007.

"Theoretical and Conceptual Frameworks Affecting the Development of Media Literacy Education in the United States," Visual Competencies Symposium, Jacobs University, Bremen Germany, July 6 - 8, 2007.

"Media Literacy as a Dimension of Global Literacy" UNESCO Regional Conference in Support of Global Literacy.  Qatar Foundation Innovations in Education Symposium 3. Literacy Challenges in the Arab  Region: Building Partnerships and Promoting Innovative Approaches, March 13, 2007, Doha, Qatar.

National, Regional and Local Events 

"Copyright and Fair Use: What Every Library Media Specialist Needs to Know," Pennsylvania School Library Association, State College, PA, April 15, 2010.

"Renee Hobbs on Copyright, Fair Use and Digital Learning," Paley Library, Temple University, April 13, 2010.

"Copyright Clarity: How Fair Use Supports Digital Learning," Florida International University conference, Miami, FL. April 9, 2010.

"Communication and Digital Culture: Teaching About/With Fair Use," Popular Culture/American Culture Association conference, St. Louis, MO, April 2, 2010.

"Introduction to Digital Citizenship," Day-long workshop for K-12 educators, State College School District, State College, PA. April 1, 2010.

"In and Out of the Box: Elementary Rural, Urban and Minority Children's Engagement with Digital Media for Learning about the World," Digital Media and Learning Conference, LaJolla, CA, February 19, 2010.

"Fair Use: Perspectives on Copyright and Fair Use for Digital Learning," Digital Media and Learning Conference, LaJolla, CA, February 19, 2010.

"Erasing Copyright Confusion," National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) conference, Philadelphia PA. November 22, 2009.

Panel Member, "The Power of Youth Voice: What Kids Learn When They Create Digital Media," Public forum sponsored by the Woodrow Wilson Foundation, the National Writing Project and the MacArthur Foundation, Philadelphia PA, November 18, 2009.

"Copyright Clarity for Multimedia Composition," presentation at the National Writing Project Annual Meeting, Philadelphia PA, November 18, 2009.

"Media Literacy and Technology Integration," Day-long workshop with faculty of the Montgomery School, Chester Springs, PA, November 3, 2009.

"Conquering Copyright Confusion," half-day workshop presented at the Pennsylvania Communication Association, Latrobe, PA, October 13. 2009.

Keynote Address: "Yes, You Can! Use the Power of Fair Use for Media Literacy Education," Media Literacy Week, St. Louis, MO, October 9, 2009.

Panel member, "Challenges of Successful Entrepreneurship in an Internet Age," Global Creative Economy Convergence Summit, Philadelphia, PA. October 6, 2009

2008-2009

"Access, Analyze, Act: A Blueprint for Civic Engagement," Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, Boston, August 7, 2009.

"Does It Work?  Assessing the Effectiveness of Media Literacy in K-12 Education," with Cyndy Scheibe. National Association for Media Literacy Education, Detroit, MI, August 3, 2009.

"Using VoiceThread.com for Media Literacy," with Kelly Mendoza. National Association for Media Literacy Education, Detroit, MI, August 3, 2009.

"Media Literacy as a Tool to Promote Global Understanding. National Association for Media Literacy Education, Detroit, MI, August 2, 2009.

"Erasing Copyright Confusion," National Association for Media Literacy Education, Detroit, MI, August 1, 2009.

"Best Practices in Fair Use for 21^st Century Educators," National Educational Computing Conference (NECC), Washington, DC, June 28, 2009.

Day-long Workshop: "Media and Democracy." Annenberg Summer Teacher Institute: The Constitution, Today and Tomorrow.  National Constitution Center, Philadelphia, June 27, 2009.

Keynote Address: "Best Practices in Copyright and Fair Use for K-12 Educators" Association for Educational Publishers, Washington, DC, June 11, 2009.

"The Effect of Media Literacy Education on Susceptibility to Media Bias," International Communication Association, Chicago, IL. May 24, 2009.

"Media Literacy Gets Fair Use: The Best Practices Model in Teaching," International Communication Association, Chicago, IL, May 22, 2009.

Panel presentation: "Fair Use and Academic Freedom:  Asserting Fair Use Rights in Communication." International Communication Association, Chicago, IL. May 21, 2009.

Keynote Address: "Conquering Copyright Confusion: Implications for Teaching and Learning with Digital Media," Southeastern Pennsylvania Consortium for Higher Education (SEPCHE), Ethical Uses on Information in an Online World. Layfayette Hill, PA. May 13, 2009

"Anticircumvention Rulemaking: Petition 4C and 4D," Testimony to the U.S. Copyright Office, Washington, D.C., May 6, 2009.

"Ever Changing Texts Provide a World of Possibilities for Literacy Education," International Reading Association, Minneapolis, MN. May 4, 2009.

Workshop: "Composing with Image and Words using Web 2.0 Tools," International Reading Association, Minneapolis, MN. May 3, 2009.

Keynote Address: "Eliminating Copyright Confusion for 21^st Century Learning," Delaware County Intermediate Unit English Education Day, April 20, 2009. Morton, PA.

"Copyright, Media Literacy and Fair Use," Presentation to the Michigan Association for Computer Users in Learning, Detroit, MI, March 18, 2008.

"Best Practices for Fair Use in Multimedia Composition," Conference on College Composition  and Communication, San Francisco, CA, March 13, 2009.

"Watch it, Make it, Analyze it: Building Media Literacy Skills in Young People," Panel member, Celebration of Teaching and Learning, WNET Channel 13, New York, March 7, 2009.

"Putting an End to Copyright Confusion and Developing Media Literacy with your Students," Educon 2.1 conference, Philadelphia, PA, January 24, 2009.

"Yes, You Can! Using Copyrighted Materials: Conquering Copyright Confusion," Presenter, NCTE Webinar, January 14, 2009.

"Copyright: From Nuts and Bolts to Web 2.0" Presenter at the ISTE Webinar with Hall Davidson, December 4, 2008.

"Are We Ready for What's Happening in K-12?" Moderator, Educause Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference, Philadelphia, PA, January 8, 2009.

"The IFC Media Project Town Hall Meeting," Panel moderator exploring the reporting of crime news and its impact with Tucker Carlson, Juan Williams and others. MIT Museum, Cambridge, MA. December 18, 2009.

"The IFC Media Project Town Hall Meeting," Panel moderator exploring the reporting of crime news and its impact with Dan Rather, Lynne Abraham, Bill Marimow and others. Independence Visitor Center, Philadelphia, PA. December 17, 2008.

Panel Member, Screening and discussion of "Helvetica," documentary on the development of the typeface. ITVS Community Cinema, The Rotunda, Philadelphia PA. December 4, 2008.

Panel Member, WNET Celebration of Teaching and Learning, New York, NY. December 3, 2008.

"Using Digital Audio Books to Promote Literacy: Instructional Strategies Make a Difference." Paper presentation, National Council of Teachers of English, San Diego, CA. November 23, 2008.

"The Media Education Lab: Creating University-Community Partnerships in Media Literacy." Presentation, National Communication Association, San Antonio, TX. November 22, 2008.

"Mashups, Remixes, and Video Culture: Engaging the YouTube Generation in the Classroom," Panel member, Educause, Orlando, Florida. October 29, 2008.

"News Literacy: The Education Perspective."  Presentation at Re-booting the News: Reconsidering an Agenda for American Civic Education, National Constitution Center, Philadelphia. October 24, 2008.

"Yes, You Can! A Statement of Best Practices for Fair Use for Media Literacy Educators," Scholarly paper presentation, International Visual Literacy Association, Blacksburg, VA, October 19, 2008.

"Introduction to Media Literacy," Day-long seminar offered to the staff of Shalom, Inc health prevention educators, Temple University, Philadelphia, September 24, 2008.

"Media Literacy and Reading Research," Keynote Address, Oklahoma Teacher Enhancement Program, Oklahoma Higher Education Department. Rose State College, Oklahoma City, OK, September 19, 2008.

"The Relationship between Media Literacy and News Literacy," Panel presentation, News Literacy Conference, Poynter Institute for Media Studies, St. Petersburg FL, August 9, 2008. 

"The Relationship between Media Literacy and News Literacy," News Literacy Conference, Poynter Institute for Media Studies, St. Petersburg FL, August 9, 2008. 

2007-2008

Keynote Address, "What the Research Says," Alliance for a Media Literate America, St. Louis, MO. June 24, 2007.

"Exploring Media Literacy through Online Gaming with Girls," National Educational Computing Conference, Atlanta GA. June 26, 2007.

"Intellectual Property Issues in Multimodal Literacy Education," National Council of Teachers of English, New York, November 16, 2007.

Panel Presentation: "Issues with Academic Publishing in a Digital Age: Corporate Control of Journal Costs/Publishing Versus Open-Source Publication Related to Public Dissemination, Fair Use, and Tenure Review." National Reading Conference, Austin Texas, November 30, 2007.

"Understanding Copyright and Fair Use," Presentation at the Student Television Network conference, Anaheim, CA, January 18, 2008.

Keynote Address: "Media Literacy: Activism, Consumption and Production," Boston Public Schools, Arts Media and Communication Conference, Northeastern University, Boston. February 2, 2008.

"The Cost of Copyright Confusion for Media Literacy," Exploring New Media Worlds: Changing Technologies, Industries, Cultures and Audiences in Global and Historical Context.  Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, March 1, 2008.

"Problematizing the Core Instructional Practices of Media Literacy." Presentation at the Society for Cinema and Media Studies Conference (SCMS), Philadelphia PA, March 9, 2008.

"Reducing  Copyright Confusion: A Webinar." Presentation with Peter Jaszi to the Pennsylvania Technology Teachers, 21^st Century Learning Community. March 13, 2008.

"Developing an Online Current Events Community," Paper presentation with Paul Folkemer.  Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD), New Orleans, March 16, 2008.

Keynote Address: "Technology Tools to Engage All Learners in Literacy." International Reading Association conference, Atlanta, Georgia, May 4, 2008.

"Ever-Expanding Text Types Create a World of New Opportunities and Challenges," Special Session: Inside the Handbook of Research on Teaching Literacy Through the Communicative and Visual Arts. International Reading Association, Atlanta, Georgia, May 5, 2008.

"Sisters, Cousins, Competitors, Friends: Visual Competence and Media Literacy," Paper presented to the International Communication Association, Montreal Canada, May 25, 2008.

"Media Literacy and the Arab Region" Panel presentation at Overseas Conversations V.  Fordham University, New York NY, June 9, 2008.

Paper co-authored with Erica L. Rosenthal. "Celebrity Identification and Media Literacy Among ‘Tween' Girls." Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues (SPSSI), 2008 Biennial Convention, Chicago, IL, June 28, 2008.

"Media Literacy, Artistic Expression and Copyright," American Library Association Conference, Anaheim, CA, June 30, 2008.

2006-2007

Panel member, "The World According to Sesame Street," ITVF screening and discussion, WHYY, Philadelphia. September 28, 2006

"What's Fair about Fair Use? Copyright and Fair Use Issues for Media Education," Action Coalition for Media Education (ACME) conference, Burlington, VT, October 6, 2006.

Keynote address, "Literacy for the Information Age," 54^th Annual Alfred Korzybski Memorial Lecture,  Institute of General Semantics National Conference, Fort Worth, Texas, October 28, 2006.

"Searching, hyper-linking, and multi-tasking: Findings from the front lines of media literacy education." Panel presentation, National Communication Association, San Antonio, Texas.  November 18, 2006.

"Research on Media Literacy." Day-long workshop presentation. National Council of Teachers of English National Conference, Nashville, TN.  November 20, 2006.

"Reading the Media," Concord High School, January 14, 2007.

"Evaluating an Online Gaming Intervention for Girls," BRASS (Behavioral Research Network Brownbag), February 8, 2007.

Keynote Address:  "Gender, Gaming and Media Literacy,"  Popular Culture in the Classroom: Teach, Think, Play. Columbia University, March 25, 2007

"What's Fair about Fair Use for Media Literacy Educators?" Northeast Media Literacy Conference, Storrs, Connecticut, March 30, 200

Panel Presentation: "How Immersive Play Spaces Can Build Critical Thinking Skills about Media and Popular Culture," Media in Transition Conference, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, April 27 - 29, 2007.

"Theoretical and Historical Foundations of Media Literacy, " International Reading Association, Toronto, Canada, May 15, 2007

"Using Audio Books to Promote Critical Listening Skills," International Reading Association, Toronto, Canada, Ma7 17, 2007.

"All the Grey Areas: How Media Educators' Beliefs about Copyright and Fair Use Affect Instruction," International Communication Association, San Francisco, CA, May 25, 2007.

Panel Presentation: "Youth Media in the United States," Media Literacy Overseas Conversations III Conference, Fordham University, New York, NY. June 2, 2007.

2005-2006

"Media Literacy in K-12 Education: Introduction to Issues in Theory, Research and Implementation," North Carolina State Teleconference, East Carolina University, September 26, 2005. 

"Media Literacy 101: A Primer for Getting Started," National Council of Teachers of English, Pittsburgh, November 19, 2005.

"What's Up with Media Literacy?" Overseas Conversations (II) Conference, Chelsea Art Museum, New York, NY, June 10, 2005.

"The Media Straight Up!" Presentation at the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC), San Antonio, TX.  2^nd Place Award, Creative Projects Competition, Visual Communication Division. August 11, 2005.

Keynote Address:  "Who are Our Students?  Understanding the Role of Media and Technology in the Lives of College Students." Day-long faculty development workshop, Knox College, August 25, 2005, Galesburg IL.

Keynote Address, "Media Literacy in K-12 Education: Introduction to Issues in Theory, Research and Implementation," North Carolina State Teleconference, East Carolina University, September 26, 2005. 

"21^st Century Mass Media and Technology in the Lives of Children and Youth," Presentation at the Maryland Association of Nonpublic Special Education Facilities.  Baltimore, Maryland, November 4, 2005.

"Media Literacy 101: A Primer for Getting Started," Presentation to the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), Pittsburgh, November 19, 2005.

"Integrating Media Literacy into the Middle-School Curriculum."  A day-long workshop for teachers at Mechanicsburg Middle School, Mechanicsburg, PA. December 3, 2005.

"Media Literacy in the Middle School." Presentation to the Pennsylvania Middle School Association, Penn State University, State College, PA.  March 20, 2006.

Keynote address, "21^st Century Communicators."  New Jersey Communication Association, Association, Montclair State University, March 26, 2006.

"Media Smart Girls: Connecting Media Literacy and Health in a Website for Girls" with Sherri Hope Culver, Jiwon Woon, and Kelly Mendoza. New Jersey Communication Association, Montclair State University, March 25, 2006.

"Reading the Media: Teacher attitudes about analyzing media in the high-school English classroom."  Paper presentation at the American Educational Research Association (AERA), San Francisco, April 10, 2006.

"Transforming Community: A Conversation about Building Community across Media Studies, Media Education and Media Ecology."  Invited panel presentation, Eastern Communication Association, April 26, 2006.

"Media Smart Girls," Games, Learning and Society conference, Madison, WI. June 15, 2006. 

"My Pop Studio," Turn Beauty Inside Out: Girls National Leadership Conference, St. John's University, New York, June 25, 2006.

2004-2005

"Media Arts Education Policy for Pennsylvania," Pennsylvania Arts Education Policy Colloquium, October 8, 2004.  University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA

"Literacy for the Information Age" presentation to the faculty, Ferguson High School, Miami FL, October 27, 2004.

"Building Print Literacy Skills with Media Literacy," Michigan Language Arts Retreat, Frankenmuth, MI, October 30 2004.

Keynote address, "Critical Thinking and New Educational Technologies," Buffalo Public Schools staff development program, November 17, 2004.

"Multiple Visions of Multimedia Literacy: The Dynamics of an Emerging Field," National Reading Conference, San Antonio, TX, December 2, 2004.

"The Potential of Technology in Principal Dimensions of Literacy Instruction," National Reading Conference, San Antonio, TX, December 3, 2004.

Keynote address and faculty development workshop, "A Seminar on Information Literacy," Alvernia College, Reading PA, January 19, 2005.

"Media Matters: Mass Media, New Technologies and Child Development," presentation at Waldron-Mercy Academy, Merion, PA, March 15, 2005.

"Building Literacy Skills with Television News," Media Smart Seminar, Philadelphia, PA.  March 30, 2005.

"The Media Straight Up!" Paper presentation at the National Media Education Conference, San Francisco, CA, June 27, 2005.

2003-2004

"Integrating Media Literacy into Secondary English Language Arts," workshop presentation, Midland Independent School District, Midland, TX. August 14, 2003.

"Using Media Literacy to Support Health Prevention," workshop presentation, St. Augustine/St. Johns School District, St. Augustine, FL. October 6, 2003

"Examining the Uses of Non-Fiction in Secondary English Language Arts Education," workshop presentation, Dayton Public Schools, Dayton, OH. October 17, 2003.

Speaker and participant for an international teleconference linking five cities at the International Media Literacy Forum, Hunter College, New York, NY. November 7, 2003. 

"What's Reel and What's Real: A Focus on Non-Fiction," presentation at the National Council of Teachers of English, San Francisco, CA. November 20, 2003.

"What Do Kids Learn in New Literacy Classrooms?" coordinator for research roundtable, National Council of Teachers of English, San Francisco, CA. November 22, 2003.

"Children and Press Coverage of War," television guest appearance on Philly Live, WBYE-Philadelphia, December 3, 2003.

"Teaching and learning in the 21st century university." Presentation at the Teaching and Learning Symposium plenary session, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, January 15, 2004.

Keynote address: "Arts Education in a New Millennium: Learning and Teaching with Media and Technology" Pennsylvania Arts Education Partnership, Philadelphia, PA. January 10, 2004.

"The Media Straight Up! Media Literacy and Substance Abuse Prevention" Drug Free PA professional development seminar, January 29, 2004, Harrisburg PA.

Day-long seminar: "The Media Straight Up! Media Literacy and Prevention." Drug Free Pennsylvania Conference.  Harrisburg, PA, February 6, 2004.

"Learning to Critically Analyze Advertising: Measuring Media Literacy Skill Development in Adolescents." STARSS presentation, School of Communications and Theater, Temple University, February 25, 2004.

Keynote address, "Media in Contemporary Childhood: What's a Parent to Do?" Farmington River Elementary School, Mass Media and Child Development Conference. Otis, MA, May 21, 2004.

"Learning to Analyze Advertising," International Communication Association Conference. New Orleans, LA, May 30, 2004.

"What's Up with Media Literacy?" Overseas Conversations (I) Conference, Chelsea Art Museum, New York, NY, June 14, 2004

"Integrating Media Literacy into Youth Media Programs," 2004 CTCNet Conference. June 12, 2004, Seattle, WA.

"Blake School Summer Academy in Media Literacy." Developed and led a week-long seminar with 20 K-12 faculty members of The Blake School, Minneapolis, MN.  August 8 - 13, 2004.