| William Benoit | |
| Birth Name: | William Lyon Benoit |
| Birth Date: | 17 March 1953 |
| Birth Place: | New Castle, Indiana |
| Nationality: | American |
| Fields: | Communication studies Political science |
| Workplaces: | University of Missouri Ohio University University of Alabama at Birmingham |
| Education: | Ball State University Central Michigan University Wayne State University |
| Thesis Title: | An analytical study of the development of major concepts of causality in philosophy |
| Thesis Url: | http://elibrary.wayne.edu/search~S47?/hB446+P27/hb446+p27/-15%2C-1%2C0%2CE/frameset&FF=hb44&1%2C1%2C |
| Thesis Year: | 1979 |
| Doctoral Advisors: | )--> |
| Known For: | Image repair theory |
| Partners: | )--> |
| Children: | Jennifer M. |
William Lyon Benoit (born March 17, 1953)[1] is an American scholar in the field of political communication.[2] He graduated from Ball State University in 1975 and obtained his Master of Arts degree from Central Michigan University in 1976. He also holds a PhD from Wayne State University.[3]
He is a distinguished professor of Communication Studies at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He previously taught at Miami University, Bowling Green State University, the University of Missouri, and Ohio University. He was a faculty member at the University of Missouri for twenty-four years.[4] He is known for developing image repair theory (originally called "Image Restoration") and for applying it to anecdotes in various real-world contexts.[5] He was the editor of the Journal of Communication from 2003 to 2005, and of Communication Studies from 2007 to 2009.[6]