About Me

I am an assistant professor of public relations in the School of Communication and Journalism at Auburn University. In May 2024, I graduated with my Ph.D. in Mass Communication from the College of Journalism and Communications at the University of Florida, where I also earned my Master’s in Mass Communication in 2020. Prior to graduate school, I graduated from Florida State University with a Bachelor’s in English (Editing, Writing, and Media track) and a minor in religious studies.

Research Interests

My research falls broadly under the umbrella of political communication. Specifically, I have built my program of research around two core questions. First, what are the factors associated with political information seeking? Second, how do people’s media diets affect their political beliefs, behavior, and attitudes? To answer these questions, I have employed largely quantitative methods to focus specifically on the role of partisanship as a social identity in selective exposure and related media effects. I am also interested in media trust, particularly how media diets contribute to varied perceptions of trust, how to rebuild public confidence in the media, and negative implications of diminished trust. My work largely examines these processes in an American context.

You can find some of my recent publications in Media Psychology, Journal of Media Psychology, Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, Communication Quarterly, International Journal of Communication, and Mass Communication and Society.