Milestone One: Communication Theory and Concepts
In today’s media environment, organizations need communication specialists who understand theory and apply it across platforms with clarity, strategy, and cultural awareness. As someone with over two decades of experience in business, digital media, visual design, marketing, and teaching, I bring a strong foundation in communication theory paired with real-world expertise in digital media, visual design, branding, and content development. My professional background has many facets. My flagship business since 1998, Theon Media, helps small businesses start and thrive on every digital and print level. My other profession as an educator at a technical high school, I teach the Adobe Creative Suite, Website Design and WordPress and in the process of launching a high school print production program. This all shapes how I apply communication models to solve modern challenges.
To explain a little further in detail. I want to highlight two communication models that are especially relevant to ABC Athletics: The Interaction Model and the Convergence Model.
The Interaction Model focuses on two-way messaging. It emphasizes feedback between sender and receiver, allowing adjustments to be made based on audience response (Baran, 2023). I apply this model constantly in my work. Whether I’m building a client’s website through Theon Media or designing an interactive social campaign for a client or with my students, I always account for user feedback, real-time engagement, and message evolution. For example, if ABC Athletics launched a fitness campaign targeting teenage athletes, I would build-in social media polls, comment-based feedback, and visual storytelling that encourages the audience to respond, share, and co-create the brand’s message. This creates a loop, not a broadcast.
The Convergence Model, developed by Kincaid, goes even further by viewing communication as an ongoing process that builds mutual understanding through cycles of exchange (Rogers & Kincaid, 1981). I use this approach when coaching students on how to develop brand identities, or when working with diverse small business clients who need their message tailored for different audiences. For ABC Athletics, this model is critical when communicating across cultural or linguistic boundaries—say, working with an international ambassador program or expanding into bilingual media markets. The Convergence Model helps ensure that both parties grow toward shared meaning, which builds long-term trust.
Traditional communication efforts—print, TV, radio—were mostly one-way. Feedback was delayed or nonexistent. Now, feedback is immediate and often made public. This shift changes how we approach every campaign. In my teaching and agency work, I emphasize that feedback isn’t just a metric; it’s part of the message. For instance, even with a print campaign like a seasonal flyer or magazine ad, QR codes or short URLs now invite feedback and interaction. That changes how we write, design, and measure success. ABC Athletics can modernize even its traditional channels by viewing them through a feedback-first lens.
My planned development process focuses on three areas: (1) advanced cross-cultural communication, especially relevant to global brand growth; (2) audience analytics and AI-powered messaging tools, to sharpen precision and personalization; and (3) ethical communication leadership, which I believe is essential as brands take stronger public positions.
I am currently earning my Master’s in Communication with a concentration in New Media and Marketing. Every course, from cultural messaging to media ethics to digital storytelling, supports this process. The student-run print shop at my school mimics a professional communication environment, allowing the students an experience that directly translates to the fast-paced, team-driven culture like we would see at ABC Athletics.
In short, I don’t just know the models. I live with them every day. And I’m ready to keep growing, strategically, ethically, and with results that speak for themselves.
References
Baran, S. J. (2023). Introduction to mass communication: Media literacy and culture. (12th ed.). McGraw-Hill Education.
Rogers, E. M., & Kincaid, D. L. (1981). Communication networks: Toward a new paradigm for research. Free Press.
Narula, U. (2006). Communication models. Atlantic Publishers.