Research
Research Areas
I am best described as a communication scientist drawing from approaches in political science, sociology, and media studies.
My empirical and conceptual research broadly looks at implications of a changing news and information environment for democratic discourse and the functioning of democracy.
My first major area of interest within this (with various co-authors) is how artificial intelligence reshapes the mechanisms of news production and distribution, and with what effects for publishers, audiences, and the structure of the public arena.
A second major area is what I term the developing political economy of AI and news: the role major technology companies play in the development, deployment, and provision of AI on communication infrastructures.
As of late, and tying the above together, I have become increasingly interested in the role AI – and AI in communication and news – plays for democracy.
Collaborators
One of the joys of academic work is collaborating with others. I have had the great luck of working with a number of wonderful scholars, journalists, and other practitioners listed here alphabetically (if I missed you, please reach out. Ongoing collaborations are not yet included):
Alessio Cornia (Dublin City University), Alexandra Borchardt (Independent), Alfred Hermida (University of British Columbia), Amy A. Ross Arguedas (Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, University of Oxford), Annika Sehl (Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt), Antonis Kalogeropoulos (Vrije Universiteit Brussels), Benjamin Toff (Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communication, University of Minnesota), Chico Q. Camargo (University of Exeter), Christopher Crum (Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford) Hugo Mercier (CNRS Institut Jean Nicod), Jan Rau (Leibniz-Institute for Media Research, Hans-Bredow-Institut (HBI)), Jason R.C. Nurse (University of Kent), J. Scott Brennen (Center on Technology Policy, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill), Julia Lück (Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz), Julie Posetti (ICFJ), Keegan McBride (Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford), Kim Björn Becker (FAZ), Lucas Graves (UW–Madison), Nabeelah Shabbir (ICFJ), Phil Howard (Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford), Ralph Schroeder (Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford), Rasmus Kleis Nielsen (Reuters Institute, University of Oxford), Richard Fletcher (Reuters Institute, University of Oxford), Sacha Altay (University of Zurich), Seth C. Lewis (University of Oregon), Sílvia Majó-Vázquez (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam), Sophie G. Einwächter (Philipps-University Marburg), Tanjev Schultz (Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz), Vinzenz Hediger (Goethe-Universität Frankfurt).
Integrity Statement
My research and doctoral work has been supported by the Leverhulme Trust, the OII-Dieter Schwarz Foundation award, Columbia University’s Tow Center for Digital Journalism, the Minderoo-Oxford AI Governance Challenge Fund, and the Balliol Interdisciplinary Institute. In the past I have also worked as a research assistant or researcher on projects supported by the Deutsche Telekom Foundation, European Broadcasting Union, European Journalism Observatory, Google News Initiative, Facebook Journalism Innovation Project, IPPI/Heinrich Böll Foundation, and the Nuffield Foundation.
I have engaged in unpaid consultations with several organisations including the Konrad-Adenauer-Foundation, the UK House of Lords and House of Commons, IMPRESS, the United Nations, TUM School of Management, Goethe-University Frankfurt, the Tow Center at Columbia University, the BBC, the Daily Telegraph, Meta, The Guardian, and the Associated Press. I have recently engaged in paid consultations and/or given paid talks at the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the International Press Institute, the IFM Cologne, dfv media and the Online News Association.
I sat on the AI and Local News Steering Committee of Partnership on AI, which is funded from philanthropy and corporate entities and for which I received an honorarium. In 2023, I participated in an expert survey run by YouTube for which I received an honorarium. I sit on the Advisory Committee of the Center for News, Technology & Innovation. My current work at the Reuters Institute is funded by the Thomson Reuters Foundation and Reuters News Agency. I conduct my research in line with the University of Oxford's academic integrity code of practice.