Kathryn McDonald

Dr Kathryn McDonald

  • Principal Academic in Audio Production
  • Weymouth House W207, Talbot Campus, Fern Barrow, Poole, BH12 5BB
UN SDGs:
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Biography

Kathryn is based in the Media Production department and also works as Work Load Lead for the Office of the Vice Chancellor.

Kathryn's research, practice & teaching is centred around participatory media, broadcast talk, audio production and media history. She is co-editor of "The Bloomsbury Handbook of Radio", which was published in 2023. Kathryn is currently researching three areas: prison radio, sustainability and suicide.

Before completing her PhD, Kathryn previously worked as a radio producer in independent production (documentaries, live events, awards, festivals, specialist music shows). She continues to consult on podcasts pitches and audio projects in the industry.

Kathryn lectures across the undergraduate and postgraduate framework. She has been Programme Leader on the BA Radio course and External Examiner at the University of Salford, as well as Level 4 Leader on the Media Production degree. She is Staff Wellbeing Lead for the Faculty of Media & Communications and was Chair of the BBC Centenary Committee Steering Group...

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Research

'The Bloomsbury Handbook of Radio' edited by Kathryn McDonald and Hugh Chignell was published in 2023.

Latest journal paper was published in Feminist Media Studies: Listening to women’s personal stories about suicide: an online thematic analysis of the discourse on UK parenting forum Mumsnet (2024)

Book chapter 'The radio phone-in and the suicidal caller' was published in 2023

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Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals

In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person's work contributes towards the following SDGs:

Good health and well-being

"Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages"

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Reduced inequalities

"Reduce inequality within and among countries"

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Responsible consumption and production

"Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns"

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Peace, justice and strong institutions

"Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels"

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Journal Articles

Books

  • McDonald, K. and Chignell, H., 2023. The Bloomsbury Handbook of Radio.

Chapters

Theses

PhD Students

  • Grace Ogbole, 2026. News Media use by Diasporic Communities in the UK during the Covid19 Pandemic Lockdown., (In progress)
  • Stuart McNally. Sound, trauma and the documentary. Exploring dramatic reconstruction and survivor stories, (In progress)
  • Philip Johnstone, 2022. INDEPENDENT LOCAL RADIO DRAMA: A CULTURAL, HISTORICAL AND REGULATORY EXAMINATION OF BRITISH COMMERCIAL RADIO DRAMA, (Completed)

Profile of Teaching PG

  • Masters Research Project
  • Masters Production Project
  • Professional Practice
  • MA Radio Production & Theory

Profile of Teaching UG

  • Developing Concepts for Radio
  • Dissertation
  • The Graduate Project
  • Audio Production
  • Radio Station
  • Radio Industry Perspectives
  • Media Theory Perspectives
  • Radio Production 1
  • Open Project (BA Television Production)
  • Career Pathways
  • Advanced Radio Production
  • Open Project
  • Career Pathways

Invited Lectures

  • “I love you Brother”: Suicide & the radio phone-in, University of Salford, Manchester, 30 Oct 2019 more
  • Production & Participation: BBC Interviews 1940-65, Lund, 04 Feb 2014 more
  • Presentation of Doctoral Research Project, Hamburg, Germany, 13 Nov 2013 more

Grants

  • Exploring Motherhood through Prison Radio (Bournemouth University IMPACT Fund, 31 Oct 2019). Awarded

External Responsibilities

Internal Responsibilities

Journal Reviewing/Refereeing

  • The Radio Journal: international studies in broadcast and audio media, Anonymous peer review, 09 Feb 2024
  • Journalism: theory, practice and criticism, Anonymous peer review, 25 Apr 2023
  • Journal of Radio and Audio Media, Anonymous peer review, 27 Mar 2023

Public Engagement & Outreach Activities

  • Beyond Radio Specificity Panel - Institute of Communication Studies & Journalism, Charles University Prague (26 Nov 2020)
  • The co-creation of unit assessments based on the principles of ‘backward design (10 Jun 2017)

Conference Presentations

  • Radio and Sound Ecosystems in the Platform Age, Climate, creatives and change: Exploring environmental sustainability within our sonic ecosystem, 06 Sep 2023, Barcelona, Spain
  • Radio and Sound Ecosystems in the Platform Age, Prison Radio Panel, 06 Sep 2023, Barcelona, Spain
  • ECREA Radio Research Conference 2019: Radio as a Social Media: community, participation, public values in the platform society, “Tonight I’m Not Letting You Die”: The Radio Phone-In and the Suicidal Caller, 19 Sep 2019, Siena, Italy
  • MeCCSA 2014, Empowerment and the Interview: A Prison Radio Perspective, 29 Jan 2014, Bournemouth
  • ECREA London: Radio, the Resilient Medium, Broadcasting Behind Bars: Exploring Prison Radio in the UK, 18 Sep 2013, London
  • The Radio Conference: A Transnational Forum, The Return to Liveness in British Speech Radio, 24 Jul 2013, Luton
  • Ethical Dimensions of Media History, Representation and Participation: The Ethics of the Interview, 06 May 2013, Bournemouth

Consultancy Activities

  • English IRL Podcast, Senior Editorial Producer & Podcast Consultant. More Than Words Media

Attended Training

  • Mental Health First Aid England, 24 Oct 2023, Mental Health First Aider
  • Managing COVID-19 Risks on Production, 05 Nov 2020, First Option Safety Certificate
  • ScreenSkills: Coronavirus basic awareness on production training, 19 Oct 2020, Certificate
  • Safety Services and Training for the Broadcast, Television and Film Industry, 05 Nov 2019
  • Supervisory Development Training for Established Supervisors., 10 Jun 2019

Qualifications

  • PGCE in Post Graduate Certificate in Education Practice (Bournemouth University, 2015)
  • PhD in Broadcasting History (Bournemouth University, 2015)
  • MA in Radio Production (Bournemouth University, 2006)
  • BA (Hons) in Journalism, Film, Broadcasting & Sociology (Cardiff University, 2005)

Honours

  • Winner of the first Guy Starkey Prize for the most promising and original paper presentation (ECREA Radio Research, 2019)
  • Fellow (The Higher Education Academy, 2015)
  • Nominated, Community Award (Vice Chancellor's Staff Award 2023)

Memberships

Networks

  • EMHIS Network - International Entangled Media History Clink Women's Network BU Women's Academic Network BU Media History Group Radio Studies Network Aural Diversity network
  • Co-Founder of BU Sound Network
  • Bournemouth University, Women’s Academic Network
  • Entangled Media History Network (EMHIS)

Social Media Links

Broadcast Interview

  • BBC Radio 2 at 50: The Listeners' Stories, 2 part documentary. Listeners tell their stories of Radio 2 over the years - how it has shaped their lives and how its shows, music and personalities have come to be a familiar presence in their daily routines., McDonald, K, 26 Sep 2017. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b095f1ll