The Chaffee Career Achievement Award recognizes a scholar, or small group of collaborating scholars, for sustained work on a communication problem over a long period of time, with preference given to original work that is conceptually rich and makes an advance in communication knowledge. The 2013 recipient was Joseph B. Walther, a Professor of Communication at Michigan State U.
“Joseph Walther has made a remarkable original contribution to which he has focused his empirical tools over a sustained period of time. Walther's research has consistently asked how computer-mediated communication impacts interpersonal relations and communication patterns.”

The Applied Research Award, which recognizes a scholar or group of scholars who has or have produced a systematic and outstanding body of research that addresses a significant communication problem of relevance to a public representing one or more groups of stakeholders relevant to a division(s) or interest group(s) of ICA, went to Charles Atkin, Sandi Smith, and Kami Silk Professors of Communication at Michigan State U.
“The research program carried out by Charles Atkin, Sandi Smith and Kami Silk stands out for several reasons. The research focuses on the applied communication problem of translating emerging science to reduce breast cancer risk. The team has pursued a systematic longitudinal research program that is theoretically informed and socially important targeting particularly young women at all levels of society. Their research is also highly productive in several important senses, with an integrative character that embraces multiple scientific disciplines, associated practitioners and relevant political leaders. Furthermore, the public visibility of the project correlates with its capacity to get public funding and re-funding.”

The 2013 Outstanding Book Award went to Sarah Banet-Weiser, for her publication Authentic: The Politics of Ambivalence in a Brand Culture (New York: NYU Press). The award recognizes a book published in the past two years that is distinguished by its importance to the disciplines represented in ICA, for the problem it addresses, for its quality of writing and argument, and for its quality of evidence.
“This is an engaging analysis of the role of branding in our everyday lives. The way in which Banet-Weiser wove the narrative together, starting with the construction of self and moving across creativity, politics (green movement) and finally religion was both subtle and coherent. This book is a well-written and nuanced analysis with great examples and interesting implications.”

The Young Scholar Award is given to a scholar for a body of work following receipt of the PhD that contributes to the field of communication and shows promise for continued development, based on the work's conceptual foundations, argumentative clarity, rigor, and the recipient's productivity.  The Awards Committee selected Jake Jensen, Assistant Professor of Communication at U of Utah.
“Jake is an exceptionally accomplished scholar who shows outstanding research productivity. Jake's work moves beyond more traditional message/reception research and considers the complicated ways in which we respond to and consume communication and information. It’s methodologically rigorous and theoretically complex, leading to sophisticated and interesting findings.”

Lance Bennett, Professor of Communication at U of Washington, and Alexandra Segerberg, Professor of Political Science at Stockholm U, were selected to receive the 2013 Outstanding Article Award for their paper “The Logic of Connective Action: Digital Media and the Personalization of Contentious Politics,” (Information, Communication & Society, 15, 739-768, 2012). The award recognizes an article published within the past 2 years in a refereed journal that is distinguished by its coherence of argument, quality of conceptual development, and effective use of evidence, especially one that promises to be influential over time.
“This article proposes a theoretical framework for understanding the role of communication processes in different kinds of collective action, ranging from traditional social movements and institution-centered processes to the increasingly frequent crowd and technology enabled public mobilizations that have occurred around the world in recent years. In addition to showing how these organizational differences require different theoretical and analytical approaches, the article establishes an argument for thinking about communication as an organizational process.”

The James Carey Urban Communication Award, which recognizes communication research that enhances urban social interaction and civic engagement in an age of global communication, this year was awarded to Leyla Nasibova, Research Assistant at Aalto U.
“Leyla’s proposal “Collaborative Design & Action Framework for Social & Urban Transformation in Cape Town,” proposes the use of communication in connecting citizens across economic and racial divides in Cape Town. Ms. Nasibova proposes a collaborative project, with the participation of an NGO, an element of strength as we feel that this collaboration could support the application of research results. This is an innovative project that takes an established area of planning research (participatory design) into a direction foregrounding communication in the process. It is also a creative approach, especially in its focus on reconciling gaps between tradition and modernity.”