About the Authors
Dr. Kevin A. Stein is a Professor of Communication at Southern Utah University. He is a native Californian, but his education has taken him to Utah, Idaho, and then Missouri where he completed his doctoral work at the University of Missouri-Columbia under the direction of William L. Benoit. Stein’s research focuses primarily on the rhetoric of attack (kategoria), defense (apologia), and persuasive responses to defense (antapologia).
Stein has published peer-reviewed journal articles addressing a variety of apologetic contexts including Mel Gibson’s anti-Semitic tirade, Barack Obama’s “World Apology Tour,” Zinedine Zidane’s head butting incident at the World Cup, U.S. apologia following the 1960 Soviet U-2 incident, student excuses to their professors, and filmmakers’ apologies following terrible movies. Stein has also published books and academic articles on persuasive attack and different types of political campaign messages including debates, advertisements, acceptance addresses, direct mail brochures, and television talk show appearances. He has presented his academic work at regional, national, and international conferences, including presentations at the University of Athens in Greece, the University of Amsterdam in the Netherlands, and UIC Barcelona.
When he’s not working, Stein loves movies, traveling, true crime TV/books, ping pong, knitting, spending time with his wife, Stacie, and their five children, and trying to tame his Pembroke Welsh Corgi, “Clover.”
Wm. Bryan Paul is a Curricular Fellow for the College Debates & Discourse Alliance at the American Council of Trustees and Alumni in Washington, D.C. During and after his undergraduate studies at Brigham Young University (B.A. Political Science, Philosophy Minor), Paul pursued internship opportunities in public relations (California, Utah, and Washington, D.C.) and eventually earned his master’s degree from Southern Utah University (M.A. Professional Communication) and his doctoral degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia (Ph.D., Communication).
Paul currently aspires to become a tenure-track professor of communication, effectively combining his passions for teaching, research, and presenting.
A creative communicator and history lover, Paul enjoys reading, writing, and the performing arts, along with running, golfing, and exploring. He’s also a huge fan of the TV shows The West Wing and Madam Secretary.
Peter Erikson is currently a news contractor for the San Francisco Public Press. He was formerly a copy editor for the San Francisco Chronicle, where he edited news, features, and business copy. Erikson earned his master’s degree in Professional Communication at Southern Utah University.
He helped run the news operation for Pacific Stars & Stripes in Tokyo and also worked as a journalist for the Honolulu Advertiser. He covered an Olympics (1984 Los Angeles Games) and helped translate a Japanese TV news broadcast for airing in Washington, D.C.
Erikson’s life revolves around writing, editing, style and grammar, but other interests include political rhetoric, books on the old Negro Leagues, and apologies in which the person mostly whines and complains.
