Communication is embedded in every aspect of our individual and collective lives, central in defining and mediating our experience of each other and of the world. As transformations in communication practices and technologies accelerate, we are bearing witness to the mass migration of everyday social interactions to the digital realm; social media stepping in to replace established community and political institutions; the life-altering impact of globalization, which makes relationships across great distances and national borders increasingly important and increasingly mediated; the transformation of media and technology companies into multinational political players; the ability of built and digital environments to shape and foster the way we live; and the strategic deployment of AI and other new technologies as political propaganda designed to concentrate and intensify existing power relations. In testimony to the resilience of human creativity and community resilience, we are simultaneously bearing witness to the ever-expanding elaboration of communication arts and practices that seek to redefine existing power relations and redirect the flow of resources and opportunities to those who have been historically (and strategically) excluded from them.

The Department of Communication has brought together scholars from across the arts, humanities, and social sciences — including anthropology, cognitive science, data science, education, film and digital media, geography, linguistics, information studies, journalism, media studies, political science, public health, sociology, theatre & performance studies — to foster a community of scholars and artists. Here in COMM, undergraduate and PhD students from all backgrounds can work together to learn about how these communication impacts our lives, our communities, and our planet. We see communication as a cultural, institutional, technological, geographical, artistic and cognitive phenomenon, inextricably anchored in and shaped by questions of democracy, diversity, social justice, and social change.