6 Communication
Communication (CMN)
Advanced Public Speaking∗
Lynn Meade (University of Arkansas)
2021
Licence: CC BY 4.0
This advanced public speaking textbook is designed to encourage you as a speaker and to help you sharpen your skills. It is written to feel like you are sitting with a trusted mentor over coffee as you receive practical advice on speaking. Grow in confidence, unleash your personal power and find your unique style as you learn to take your speaking to the next level–polished and professional.
Formats: Pressbooks webbook, EPUB, PDF, and MOBI
Includes: Examples and audiovisuals
Reviews: Open Textbook Library
Suggested for:
CMN 2135 Public Speaking
Communication in the Real World: An Introduction to Communication Studies∗
University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing
2016
Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
This book overviews the time-tested conceptual foundations of the field while incorporating the latest research and cutting-edge applications of these basics. Each chapter includes timely, concrete, and real-life examples of communication concepts in action.
Formats: Pressbooks webbook, EPUB, PDF, MOBI, and more
Includes: Takeaways and discussion questions
Reviews: Open Textbook Library
Suggested for:
CMN 1148 Introduction to Organizational Communication [chapters 3-15]
Communication Theory∗
Wikibooks
Last updated: May 2019
Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0
This communication studies text covers introductory concepts in communication theory, from reduction to the network society.
Formats: Online (wiki) and PDF
Suggested for:
CMN 1160 Introduction to Media Studies
eGirls, eCitizens∗ 
Edited by Jane Bailey and Valerie Steeves (University of Ottawa)
2015
Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0
eGirls, eCitizens is a landmark work that explores the many forces that shape girls’ and young women’s experiences of privacy, identity, and equality in our digitally networked society. Drawing on the multi-disciplinary expertise of a remarkable team of leading Canadian and international scholars, as well as Canada’s foremost digital literacy organization, MediaSmarts, this collection presents the complex realities of digitized communications for girls and young women as revealed through the findings of The eGirls Project (www.egirlsproject.ca) and other important research initiatives. Aimed at moving dialogues on scholarship and policy around girls and technology away from established binaries of good vs bad, or risk vs opportunity, these seminal contributions explore the interplay of factors that shape online environments characterized by a gendered gaze and too often punctuated by sexualized violence. Perhaps most importantly, this collection offers first-hand perspectives collected from girls and young women themselves, providing a unique window on what it is to be a girl in today’s digitized society. (Description from UO Press)
Format: PDF
Suggested for:
CMN 3104 Women and Media
Garbage in, garbage out! Getting better translations by writing translation friendly texts
Lynne Bowker (University of Ottawa)
2024
Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Garbage in, garbage out! explains how the quality of the texts you write affects the quality of the translations of those texts, especially when the translations come from tools like Google Translate. Learn how to write in a translation friendly way to ensure that readers can get the most out of your texts, no matter which language they speak.
Format: Pressbooks webbook
Includes: H5P activities
Suggested for:
CMN 2148 Organizational Communication
Graphic Design and Print Production Fundamentals
Wayne Collins (BCIT), Alex Haas (Emily Carr University), Ken Jeffery (BCIT), Alan Martin, (BCIT), Roberto Medeiros (Ricoh Canada), and Steven Tomljanovic (BCIT)
2015
Licence: CC BY 4.0
This textbook — written by a group of select experts with a focus on different aspects of the design process, from creation to production — addresses the many steps of creating and then producing physical, printed, or other imaged products that people interact with on a daily basis. It covers the concept that, while most modern graphic design is created on computers using design software, the ideas and concepts don’t stay on the computer. The ideas need to be completed in the computer software, then progress to an imaging (traditionally referred to as printing) process. Keywords are highlighted throughout and summarized in a Glossary at the end of the book, and each chapter includes exercises and suggested readings.
Formats: Pressbooks webbook, EPUB, PDF, MOBI, and more
Reviews: Open Textbook Library
Suggested for:
CMN 2158 Multimedia I
Intercultural Communication∗
Shannon Ahrndt (University of Missouri-St. Louis)
2020
Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Intercultural Communication examines culture as a variable in interpersonal and collective communication. It explores the opportunities and problems arising from similarities and differences in communication patterns, processes, and codes among various cultural groups. It explores cultural universals, social categorization, stereotyping and discrimination, with a focus on topics including race, ethnicity, social class, religion, gender and sexuality as they relate to communication.
Format: PDF
Includes: Key takeaways, key concepts, and questions for reflection
Reviews: Open Textbook Library
Suggested for:
CMN 2181 Intercultural Communication
Interpersonal Communication: A Mindful Approach to Relationships∗
Jason S. Wrench (SUNY New Paltz), Narissra M. Punyanunt-Carter (Texas Tech University), and Katherine S. Thweatt (SUNY Oswego)
2020
Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Interpersonal Communication: A Mindful Approach to Relationships helps readers examine their own one-on-one communicative interactions using a mindfulness lens. The writing team of Jason S. Wrench, Narissra M. Punyanunt-Carter, and Katherine Thweatt incorporates the latest communication theory and research to help students navigate everyday interpersonal interactions. The 14 chapters in this book cover topics typically taught in an undergraduate interpersonal communication course: family interactions, interpersonal dynamics, language, listening, nonverbal communication, and romantic relationships, as well as exploring emerging areas such as self-compassion, body positivity, friendships, and “the dark side”. The writing takes on a purposefully informal tone to engage readers. Each chapter is broken into different sections that have unique instructional outcomes, key takeaways, and exercises, and concludes with real-world case studies and sample quiz questions. Also included is an extensive glossary with over 350 definitions.
Formats: Pressbooks webbook and PDF
Includes: Key takeaways, exercises, quizzes, student workbook, and lecture slides
Reviews: Open Textbook Library
Suggested for:
CMN 2130 Interpersonal Communication
Language and Culture in Context – A Primer on Intercultural Communication∗
Robert Godwin-Jones (Virginia Commonwealth University)
2020
Licence: CC BY-NC 4.0
The text introduces some of the key concepts in intercultural communication as traditionally presented in (North American) courses and textbooks, namely the study of differences between cultures, as represented in the works and theories of Edward Hall and Geert Hofstede. Common to these approaches is the prominence of context, leading to a view of human interactions as dynamic and changeable, given the complexity of language and culture, as human agents interact with their environments.
Formats: PDF, Word, EPUB, and online (via LibreTexts)
Includes: Online tutorials, list of definitions, and questions for reflection
Reviews: Open Textbook Library
Suggested for:
CMN 2132 Non-Verbal Communication
CMN 2181 Intercultural Communication
Media, Society, Culture and You: An Introduction to Mass Communication Text∗
Mark A. Poepsel (Southern Illinois University Edwardsville)
2018
Licence: CC BY 4.0
Media, Society, Culture and You is an approachable introductory mass communication text that covers major mass communication terms and concepts including “digital culture.” It discusses various media platforms and how they are evolving as information and communication technologies change.
Formats: Pressbooks webbook, EPUB, PDF, MOBI, and more
Includes: Glossary
Reviews: Open Textbook Library – BCcampus
Suggested for:
CMN 1160 Introduction to Media Studies [as supplementary text; U.S-centric content would require adaptation]
Problem Solving in Teams and Groups∗
Cameron W. Piercy (University of Kansas)
2019
Licence: CC BY 4.0
This textbook covers content relevant to COMS342 Problem Solving in Teams and Groups at the University of Kansas.
Formats: Pressbooks webbook and PDF
Includes: Activities, questions, key terms, and videos
Reviews: Open Textbook Library
Suggested for:
CMN 1148 Introduction to Organizational Communication [sections II and III]
Understanding Media and Culture∗
Jack Lule (Lehigh University and Saylor Foundation)
Last updated: May 2019
Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
This media studies text covers introductory concepts in media and culture, from modernization to violence in media.
Formats: PDF and Word
Includes: Learning objectives, key takeaways, exercises, end-of-chapter assessments, critical thinking questions, and question bank
Reviews: BCcampus – Open Textbook Library – eCampusOntario Open Library
Suggested for:
CMN 1160 Introduction to Media Studies [as supplementary text; U.S-centric content would require adaptation]
Journalism (JOU)
No suggested OER at this time.
