Michelle Cadwell Blackston

Graduate Teaching Assistant

Climate change communication, clean and renewable energy, environmental policy, environmental justice, journalism and the changing mainstream news media landscape.

Michelle Cadwell Blackston is a Ph.D. student and Graduate Teaching Assistant in the Department of Communication at George Mason University. She holds an MA in Strategic Communication and Leadership from Seton Hall University and a BA in Journalism and Sociology from Creighton University.

Prior to her time at George Mason, Blackston built a career in journalism, communications and public affairs, working with nonprofit organizations, member associations, and think tanks. Her focus areas included environmental policy, federalism, and public health. She also has experience as a newspaper journalist, covering beats such as health care, tourism, and education.

Blackston’s expertise spans writing news articles, speeches, and testimony for Congressional hearings, as well as organizing press conferences and crafting pitches, social media content, podcast and video scripts, and web content. Additionally, she developed a series of training workshops on speaking to the media, outreach strategies, and assessing media impact.

In her free time, Blackston enjoys running, yoga, and cycling as well as spending time with her family.

Education

M.A., Strategic Communication and Leadership, Seton Hall University, South Orange, NJ, 2007

B.A., Journalism and Communication, Creighton University, Omaha, NE, 1996