This website supports a research project of Genelle Belmas, associate professor of media law and ethics and news and information track chair in the William Allen White School of Journalism and Mass Communications at the University of Kansas, and Brian Larson, assistant professor of rhetoric and technical communication in the School of Literature, Media, and Communication at Georgia Institute of Technology.
Together, our goal is to explore the meaning of the American flag (and related symbols, such as the Confederate battle flag), the ways Americans use it as a rhetorical resource and identity-building tool, and the intersection of American free-speech law with citizens’ uses of the flag.
This site contains data from our empirical research projects, posts from us about newsworthy events related to the flag, and other materials related to our projects.
About our logo: Our logo is an Adobe Illustrator rendition of the flag that flew over Fort McHenry on a fateful battle in 1814, which became the inspiration for Frances Scott Key to write the song that is now the American national anthem, The Star-Spangled Banner. The actual flag is now in the possession of the Smithsonian Institution, which provides a more detailed tale of its origins.
