Featured Research

During the Ebola epidemic, experts initially saw misinformation as the sole influencer of public perception, but new research shows a more complex relationship. The networked public sphere actively shapes health communication, affecting policy responses and resource allocation, which this study explores for modern health communication.

The 2016 presidential election witnessed a transformative shift in American politics, partly attributed to a right-wing media network, primarily Breitbart, which used social media to propagate a hyper-partisan perspective, significantly impacting both conservative media and broader coverage, notably regarding Hillary Clinton.

This article examines the public debate over net neutrality in the United States in 2014. We compiled, mapped, and analyzed more than 15,600 stories published on net neutrality, augmented by data from Twitter, Bitly, and Google Trends.

Applying a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods, we investigate whether Russian blogs represent an alternative public sphere distinct from web-based Russian government information sources and the mainstream media.

Identifying topics in news, tracking their temporal dynamics, and understanding how different media sources cover them have important theoretical and practical implications for journalism researchers, producers, and consumers.

One of the biggest news stories of 2012, the killing of Trayvon Martin, nearly disappeared from public view, initially receiving only cursory local news coverage. But the story gained attention and controversy over Martin’s death dominated headlines, airwaves, and Twitter for months, thanks to a savvy publicist working on behalf of the victim’s parents and a series of campaigns off–line and online.

This paper uses a new set of online research tools to develop a detailed study of the public debate over proposed legislation in the United States designed to give prosecutors and copyright holders new tools to pursue suspected online copyright violations.