Yan Jin named International Communication Association Fellow

Yan Jin, the C. Richard Yarbrough Professor in Crisis Communication Leadership and director of the Crisis Communication Think Tank (CCTT), was named a Fellow by the International Communication Association (ICA) during its annual conference in June. 

ICA Fellowship status is a recognition of distinguished scholarly contributions to the broad field of communication.

“Being named an ICA Fellow is an exceptional honor, one that recognizes the very few who reach the heights of scholarly achievement in communication,” said Charles N. Davis, dean of Grady College. “Dr. Jin’s remarkable record of achievement is even more noteworthy for its contributions to the field of crisis communication, which she has helped advance and leads today through the college’s Crisis Communication Think Tank.”

Jin’s work serves as a framework for crisis and risk communication in a rapidly evolving media landscape and amidst emotionally charged conflict situations, ranging from organizational crises to disasters and public health emergencies. Jin’s prolific research in crisis communication, conflict management and health risk communication contributes to the advancement of strategic communication theory and provides insights for public relations practice.

Jin is a co-founder of the Crisis Communication Think Tank, connecting public relations scholars and practitioners of crisis communications in the U.S. and internationally. CCTT’s mission is to advance crisis communication effectiveness through dialogue and collaboration on emerging and complex crisis. The CCTT has 40 members across 10 countries, including its CCTT Europe Hub and the recently launched CCTT Asia Hub.

“I’m deeply honored to be named an ICA Fellow,” said Jin, who also serves as the associate director of the Center for Health & Risk Communication at Grady College. “I thank my mentors and co-authors for their inspiration, support and research partnerships throughout the years. I look forward to our journey ahead, advancing communication theory and elevating the role of communication management in building readiness for crises, risks and conflicts at individual, organizational and societal levels.”

Jin has authored more than 125 peer-reviewed journal articles and more than 40 book chapters. Most recently, she served as the lead-editor of the Routledge books Advancing Crisis Communication Effectiveness: Integrating Public Relations Scholarship with Practice (2021) and Social Media and Crisis Communication (2nd edition) (2022). She was also named a Top 27 “Most Cited Public Relations Author” according to a 2019 refereed article in Journal of Public Relations Research, as well as a Top 6 “Most Published Author” and Top 16 “Most Cited Author” in Public Relations Review articles according to a 2021 refereed article in Public Relations Review. She received the 2014 Krieghbaum Under-40 Award from the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC).

Jin also directs the Crisis, Risk, and Disaster Communication (CRDC) Graduate Certificate Program at UGA.

Author: Sarah Freeman, freemans@uga.edu