A media studies professor at the University of San Francisco died Tuesday morning when a two-alarm fire ripped through his Berkeley apartment building.
USF spokeswoman Anne-Marie Devine described Andrew Goodwin, 62, as a "respected scholar, esteemed colleague and dynamic teacher."
He wrote a book on music television and cultural theory called "Dancing in the Distraction Factory: Music Television and Popular Culture," and published many articles on media and cultural theory. She said he was known for his unique class offerings such as “Special Topics: Led Zeppelin,” a semester-long course using the band to examine cultural trends beyond the music.
Firefighters still don't know what started the blaze, reported in the 2400 block Oregon Street, just after 1:30 a.m.
But Yen Kha told NBC Bay Area that her neighbor was slightly eccentric and liked to burn candles. She was one of the handful of residents displaced from her apartment building.
According to the university, Goodwin received his Ph.D. in cultural studies from the University of Birmingham, England. He served on the editorial board of Popular Music and Society, was a corresponding editor for Media, Culture & Society and wrote for Tricycle and Inquiring Mind.
