RESEARCH

I am a sociologist and media scholar whose research examines the relationship between social media, political partisanship, and democratic participation, revealing how Google and Wikipedia are manipulated for political gains.

Currently, I am an Assistant Professor at the School of Information and Library Science and a Principal Investigator at the Center for Information, Technology, and Public Life (CITAP) at UNC-Chapel Hill.

What drives my research?

My research has been covered by National Public Radio, The Washington Post, Business Insider, The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Columbia Journalism Review, Wired, The Chronicle of Higher Education, The Guardian, and The Neiman Journalism Lab.

  • It’s not just technology that creates problems – how society uses the technology is just as important. 
  • Gender inequality is real and my Wikipedia research creates a tangible account of implicit biases.
  • Politicians and pundits understand how search engines work and utilize SEO to spread propaganda. 
  • Our society is becoming algorithmically polarized – our worldviews shape our keywords which, in turn, shape our returns.

Nearly all my work is accessible via open-access agreements. Direct links for you to download my research can be found on the Writing Page.  If you are a researcher interested in accessing my work and you can’t access my research, please contact me before paying for the publication.

Whether you have a question, want to collaborate, or simply want to say hello, I’d love to hear from you!

Connect with me on LinkedIn !