Research Topics

Research in the Department of Communication bridges social science and humanities scholarship with media practice and community engagement to understand and transform the world we live in

Our Approach to Research

Known for our theoretically grounded, interdisciplinary approach to the study of communication, the department is home to faculty and graduate students trained in sociology, psychology, education, communications research, anthropology, history, media and cultural studies, film studies, performance studies, disability studies, science and technology studies, information studies, urban studies, human-computer interaction, feminist theory, and critical legal and policy studies. We draw on these fields to illuminate processes of mediation and how they manifest socially, materially, and politically in scholarship that is historical, transnational, and anchored in a commitment to social justice.

This rich mix of intellectual traditions, scholarly orientations, and often hybrid methodological approaches is reflected in the nationally and internationally recognized research of faculty and graduate students, a sampling of which falls within the following areas:

Community-Based Pedagogy, Media Production, and Organizing
Critical Geography, Ecologies, and Urbanization
Critical Justice, Law, and Communication
Critical Media Production and Community-Based Practices
Cultural Studies of Media and Popular Culture
Culture and Politics of Digital Labor
Culture and Politics of Design, Material Culture, and the Built Environment
Disability, Access, and Health
Globalization, Migration, and Labor
Journalism, Political Communication, and Comparative Media Systems
Media and Biomedical Knowledge Production
Mediational Theories of Mind and of Learning
Political Economy of Media and the Culture Industries
Race, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
Science and Technology Studies
Social, Cultural, and Political Aspects of Data Science, Automation, and AI

For a more complete picture of the interdisciplinary interests, scholarship and expertise of department members, we invite you to visit the webpages of our individual faculty listed in the navigation as well as the webpages of department affiliated research groups and programs.