This page is maintained by Michael A. Beam.
I am the Director of the interdisciplinary School of Emerging Media & Technology at Kent State University. I am also an associate professor in the School of Communication Studies at KSU.
Broadly, I am interested in understanding how media systems influence the process of information creation, exposure, and processing. My research has explored personalized social and algorithmic recommender systems for news exposure and health communication, the influence of partisan media sources on political polarization and political information processing, and how new media systems change information distribution patterns. I teach college courses covering communication technologies, media effects, political communication, and research methods.
My interest in communication research stems from my experience working in media and information technology. Before entering graduate school, I spent over a decade working as a computer systems administrator. I also worked in community radio for over 20 years and produced a radio show & podcast, The Beat Oracle.