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Praise Poetry
The Ohio State University
About the Television Program
The Praise Poetry television program was produced through a collaborative effort between WOSU-TV34 and The Ohio State University College of Humanities. Featured on the program are Ohio State University faculty Francis Abiola Irele, Professor of African American and African Studies, and Lupenga Mphande, Associate Professor of African American and African Studies.The program is hosted by veteran journalist and media personality Mary Major.
The program presents a comprehensive overview of the multi-faceted tradition of African Praise Poetry, defining it with never-before-seen footage of poets in the Republic of South Africa and the Kingdom of Lesotho. The program uses vivid and descriptive footage of praise poetry performances recorded in the field to illustrate the intriguing discussion between host Mary Major and the researchers.
The production teams that made this collaboration possible were made up of a number of talented and passionate professionals from WOSU-TV34 and The Ohio State University, College of Humanities. To learn more about the people that worked together to bring you this television program and the companion Web site see the information below.
WOSU TV34 Team
Mary Major
| Host
With a career that spans more than 17 years, Mary Major has proven her versatility and ability to flow in the most demanding of media settings. She has successfully written, produced, and directed several nationally syndicated television specials for Lifetime Television, BET, and SI Communications. To her acclaim, the documentary, The Promised
Comforter, which she created, wrote, produced and directed, won Honorable Mention from the 1998 Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame. Her role as a reporter for Lifestyles with Robin Leach includes interviews with notable personalities such as Lena Horne, Halle Berry, Michael Jordan, Angela Bassett, Johnnie Cochran, Samuel L. Jackson, and Jean Claude Van Damme. Similarly, she was a reporter, anchor, and producer for Screen Scene, a BET celebrity news magazine show, she reported for shows such as Ebony Jet Show Case, and the World Bodybuilding Championships on the ESPN Network. Other positions include serving as an anchor for Live in LA, KCAL TV; host for Up Front,(ACE award-winning women's issues talk show); and a field reporter for the Final Four and WCMH-TV in Columbus, Ohio. Major is also a weekly columnist for the CAll and Post, and has written a syndicated national column, Life Lessons with Mary Major. Recently, she hosted an afternoon talk show for WSMZ radio in Columbus,Ohio. A native of Central Ohio, Major is a graduate of The Ohio State University with a Bachelors degree in public relations/communications.
Cindy Gaillard
| WOSU-TV34 Senior Producer
"There are compelling, universal ties throughout the scope of humanity and one of the most exciting is how, within each culture, there are those uniquely talented people who use words to transcend our boundaries, make us look at ourselves, and bring us closer to each other. I see the Praise Poetry tradition in South Africa as a pure art, a genesis from which so many of the African American traditions of oral communication has come. It's exhilarating to see this core nugget of cultural heritage uncovered ithe work done by Dr. Irele and Dr. Mphande and it's thrilling for me as a producer to bring this tradition to a wider audience to, in effect, allow future generations of the world to claim this heritage as their own."
Marcelita Haskins
| WOSU-TV34 Instructional Services and Outreach Coordinator
Marcelita Haskins is the the Coordinator for Instructional Services and Outreach at WOSU. Her work involves services to organizations that provide instructional programming on WOSU-TV; the management of the station's teleconferencing services, including all aspects of downlinking and origination of video conferences; the development and production of instructional programs; and the management of outreach projects that match station programs and resources to community needs. Marcelita is from the Philippines. She holds a Ph.D. in communication from The Ohio State University.
College of Humanities Team
Diane Dagefoerde
| Director for Academic Technology Humanities Information Systems
Diane Dagefoerde directs instructional media development for the college of Humanities. Her responsibilities encompass a range of activities including design and development of Web accessible video databases, and design and oversight of DVD, Web and other instructional media products.
Allen S. Coleman
| Humanities Information Systems Project Lead and Producer
Allen S. Coleman is the Project Lead and Producer for the College of Humanities African Praise Poetry project. Allen has been involved in many levels of the project, from the field research and filming in Africa to the development and production of the television program with WOSU-TV34 and the companion Web site with Humanities Information Systems. He continues to be involved in the ongoing development of instructional media projects at Ohio State University, helping to make exciting research and intriguing scholarship accessible to a broader public. Allen is currently pursuing a Masters in Media and Technology of Instruction at The Ohio State University; he has a Masters in African American and African Studies from Ohio State and a Bachelors in Journalism and Communication from Central Connecticut State University.
Scott Sprague
| Electronic Media
Producer Scott Sprague is the Electronic Media Producer for Ohio State University's College of Humanities. In this role he manages the day-to-day operations of Studio A, a pilot facility for the soon-to-be completed World Media and Culture Center. In addition to his management duties, Scott produces original content for Humanities Faculty and staff. This includes audio and video programming, CD-ROM and DVD projects, and streaming media. Scott is a native of central Ohio. He has a Masters Degree in Media Arts from the University of South Carolina.
Benjamin David Diehl
| Multimedia Designer and Consultant
Benjamin David Diehl is the Multimedia Designer and Consultant for the Ohio State University, College of Humanities. He has worked on several very successful multimedia projects in Studio A, for the Humanities faculty and staff. Benjamin is in the process of completing his Bachelors in the Fine Arts (BFA), and will be going on to pursue a Masters in the fine arts (MFA) at The Ohio State University.
World Media and Culture Center | African American & African Studies
Ohio State University, all rights reserved 2002
