The U2 Conference and the U2 Studies Network were created by Dr. Scott Calhoun.
Scott Calhoun is a staff writer for @U2, the leading and critically-respected news and opinion site covering U2. He is a professor of English at Cedarville University and was named the 2015 Faculty Scholar of the Year.
The U2 Conference has met three times so far: in 2018 at Queen’s University Belfast, Fitzroy Presbyterian Church, and the Ulster National Museum, Belfast, UK; at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, Cleveland, Ohio, in 2013; and at North Carolina Central University, Durham, in 2009.
He edited U2 and the Religious Impulse: Take Me Higher (Bloomsbury, 2018), a collection of new, contributed essays on the religious call-and-response dynamic between U2 and its fans.
He also edited and contributed to two other books of essays, collected from previous U2 Conference meetings:
- Exploring U2: Is This Rock ‘n Roll? (Roman & Littlefield, 2011, 2014)
- U2 Above, Across, and Beyond: Interdisciplinary Assessments. Co-edited with Christopher Endrinal. (Roman & Littlefield, 2014, 2015)
He welcomes the opportunity to connect with you about U2 and discuss the band’s music, work, and influence, or talk about other mutual interests.
Scott Calhoun is a curator for U2: Made in Dublin at The Little Museum of Dublin.
His writings for @U2 include:
Reporting, Reviews and Opinion:
• U2 Goes Across the Threshold with Bespoke Pop Art, analysis
• U2 and the Limits of Fundamentalism, Part One & Part Two, commentary
• The Shadow Man Cometh: Flannery O’Connor’s Influence on U2’s The Joshua Tree, analysis essay
• Bono Brings a Bit Of Finglas to Flathead Lake in New Film about the Psalms, reporting
• Behind the Scenes: More From Bono & Friends On The Psalms, reporting and opinion
• Rare Recording Featuring Three-Fourths of U2 For Sale, reporting
• U2 Says They Prefer Vision CD from 1981 Not Be Sold, reporting
• U2: Revolution, book review
• U2: The Definitive Biography, book review
• The Spirituality of Bono, book review
• Andrea Morandi’s Lavoro D’Amore, reporting and review
Interviews:
• David Bentley Hart, philosopher, scholar of religion and cultural critic, for “Stealing David Bentley Hart’s Wisdom for U2’s Travelling Show”
• Steve Lillywhite, Grammy-winning producer
• Flood, Grammy-winning producer
• Anthony DeCurtis, Grammy-winning writer, contributor to Rolling Stone
• Bill Flanagan, EVP/Editorial Director of MTV Networks, contributor to Rolling Stone, author of U2 at the End of the World and other books, and contributor to CBS’ “Sunday Morning”
• Jim Henke, former VP of Exhibitions and Curatorial Affairs for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, and former Music Editor for Rolling Stone
• Eugene Peterson, author of The Message and many other books
• He is the series editor for Rowman & Littlefield’s Tempo books on rock, pop, and culture.
• He maintains the U2 Studies bibliography.
• His academic vita is available here.
• His Ph.D. is in English, with a specialization in Rhetoric and Composition, from Bowling Green State University (OH).
• His research and teaching interests include:
- U2’s music, work, and influence
- The imagination, the numinous, mythmaking and enchantment
- The products of culture, cultural engagement and fandom
- Rhetorical, literary and narrative theories
- The literature and thought of C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien
• He lives in Xenia, Ohio, USA, with his wife and children.
• Please contact him through the contact form.