by

New Post at Glasgow’s MRC/SPHSU Unit

I recently started work on a new project as part of the University of Glasgow’s MRC/Scottish Public Health and Sciences Unit. As the name suggests, this is a new place and a new and exciting area for me. I will be carrying out qualitative research on the effects of the recession, welfare reform and rising costs of living as part of the 10-year GoWell research project. This links to my PhD research, which focused on online disability rights networks that campaigned against welfare reforms and public expenditure cuts in the UK and the United States. In the meantime, I also continue to be involved in the VoterEcology project, which has now approached the writing-up phase.

by

Article on ethical challenges in online research published – Free downloads for a limited time

The article on ethical challenges in researching sensitive issues online that I wrote together with Paul Reilly (Media & Communications, University of Leicester) is now available for download from Information, Communication, and Society‘s website. Click here to access the abstract, HTML and PDF versions of the article. If you’re interested but don’t have a subscription to Taylor and Francis journals, click here to download a free copy of (for a limited time only).

by

Paper accepted for Disability Studies Quarterly

As good news tend to come in pairs, after finding out a couple of weeks ago about my paper acceptance for Information, Communication and Society, I also heard yesterday that one of my articles was accepted for publication in Disability Studies Quarterly. This is a study of online media and empowerment in Scottish disability organizations and is scheduled for publication in the July 2014 issue of the journal. Watch out for a link to a free copy in the summer!

by

Paper accepted for Information, Communication and Society

A paper I recently wrote with Paul Reilly (University of Leicester) about ethical challenges in social media research on sensitive issues has been accepted for publication in Information, Communication and Society. While this should be available soon on the journal’s website, a previous version presented at the 2012 European Communication Conference in Istanbul can be found here.

by

MeCCSA Conference 2014

After presenting at the 2014 Media, Communication and Cultural Studies Association’s Conference yesterday in Bournemouth it was time to catch a glimpse of the beach. However, if you were unable to be at our panel, you can still read about the role of search in elections in the UK, the U.S., Egypt and Italy on the research blog I curate for the VoterEcology Project.

IMAG1755

by

Talks and Presentations in January 2014

It’s almost time for a Christmas break, but the New Year is already looking busy with two talks to which I am looking forward scheduled for January 2014. Both these presentations will focus on the preliminary results and methodological challenges that have emerged from the Voter Ecology Project and take place at:

  • The Media, Communication and Cultural Studies Association’s (MeCCSA) Annual Conference at Bournemouth University (8th-10th January);
  • The CEELBAS workshop on Citizen Media in Eastern Europe, East Asia and the Arab World at the University of Manchester (27th-28th January, together with the brilliant Dounia Mahlouly).

More details about these talks including room details, times and abstracts to follow soon. Watch this space!

by

Talk at Philip Merrill College of Journalism, University of Maryland – Nov. 20th, 2013

I will be talking about the Voter Ecology Project at the Philip Merrill College of Journalism at the University of Maryland, College Park on Wednesday Nov. 20th, 2pm. My presentation is entitled “No Laughing Matter: Political Gaffes and Online Information Search in Election Campaigns” and will discuss how publicly available search engine data can help journalists, campaigners, and researchers alike to reach beyond appearances in considering patterns of information consumptions in times of elections. I look forward to discussing this work and how online media are transforming political reporting more generally with students and faculty at the cutting edge of journalism scholarship. The event will take place in Room 1109, Knight Hall.

by

New Voter Ecology Blog Update

I was asked some great questions at ECREA Communication and Democracy Annual Conference in Munich earlier this month. This prompted me to write a new blog post for the Voter Ecology Project’s website. If you’re interested in reading on our most recent fatigues and the evolution of political communication scholarship more broadly, click here. A full set of presentation slides is also available here.