Dr. Sharon Smith
Details
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College: School of Media & Communication
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Department: School - Media & Communication
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Campus: City Campus Australia
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sharon.smith@rmit.edu.au
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ORCID: 0000-0002-4101-4287
Open to
- Collaborative projects
- Industry Projects
- Join a web conference as a panellist or speaker
- Masters Research or PhD student supervision
- Mentoring (long-term)
- Mentoring (short-term)
- Media enquiries
About
An award-winning journalist and scholar, Sharon was awarded Highly Commended Best TV News Category by the Walkley Foundation in 2003 for breaking the story of a three-State paedophile ring in the Anglican Church and contributed to the formation of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sex Abuse and other significant changes to society.
Sharon's research in the area of journalism trauma considers the phenomena of journalists being simultaneously newsbearers and victim survivors of the same events, the intersections of trauma, burnout and stress and the practice of emotional labour in journalism. The use of news values in these areas is also of interest.
Sharon has also won two state-based awards for media excellence issued by SA Institute of Justice Studies and the Alumni Association Certificate for outstanding academic achievement in Bachelor of Arts (Journalism) in 1999.
Research fields
- 470105 Journalism studies
- 360203 Professional writing and journalism practice
Academic positions
- Associate Lecturer
- University of Sydney
- Media & Communciations
- Sydney, Australia
- 14 Jan 2020 – 20 Dec 2021
Non-academic positions
- Reporter
- Today Tonight
- , Australia
- 2008 – 2009
- Reporter
- Seven News Adelaide
- , Australia
- 2004 – 2013
- Reporter/Presenter
- ABC News & Current Affairs
- , Australia
- 2002 – 2004
Teaching interests
Sharon has taught all aspects of journalism theory and practice, including radio, television and multimedia newsgathering. In recent years she has focussed on teaching journalism theory in newswriting in particular.
Research interests
Sharon's research interests centre on journalism trauma, with a particular focus on emotional labour and the intersection of other factors such as personal involvement in a story, burnout and occupational stressors. The application of news values as a means to evaluate potential trauma risk is also of interest.
