JOB SUMMARY:

The School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Wisconsin-Madison seeks a full-time Assistant Professor beginning August 18, 2025, with a research agenda focused on Artificial Intelligence and the quality, integrity, and credibility of news and public-interest communication. Candidates should have a demonstrated commitment to excellence in research and teaching and a PhD in communication or related fields such as media studies, information studies, sociology, psychology, computer science, data science, political science, public health, and science and technology studies. We are a methodologically diverse department and seek candidates with strengths in qualitative, quantitative, and/or computational approaches to media and communication research. Regardless of focus, our ideal candidate will have a substantial research agenda that sheds critical light on how AI and related technologies change the work of journalism and other knowledge-producing institutions in the democratic public sphere, in a moment of diminishing institutional trust and rising concern about “information disorder” in countries around the world.

Areas of emphasis may include, but are in no way limited to, the following:

• Use of AI by, and influence on, news organizations, political parties, libraries, public health agencies, schools, universities, and other public-facing institutions;

• The role of AI in creating, disseminating and combating mis- and disinformation, monitoring information quality, and intervening to improve the information ecology;

• The relationship between AI, media manipulation, and trust in news, environment and health communication, and other forms of public information;

• Impact of AI on strategic communication campaigns and industry;
• Racial, gender, class, and other biases in the development and deployment of AI and algorithmic systems;
• Investigating AI and algorithmic infrastructures through code audits, reverse engineering, technography/ethnography, and other methods;
• AI governance regimes and information quality, in the US and internationally;
• AI, digital labor, and the public sphere;
• AI, geopolitics, and international/global communication;
• The history of AI and related technologies in public life;
• The impact of AI on digital and news literacy practices;
• AI, digital platforms, and platformization/enclosure of public information;
• Implications of AI systems for democratic participation and social, political, and economic inequality, including racial and gender inequality.

The successful candidate will advance the educational mission of the College of Letters & Science that values, prioritizes, and actualizes evidence-based and student-centered teaching and (undergraduate student) mentoring. They will contribute to an inclusive, fair, and equitable environment that fosters engagement and a sense of belonging for faculty, staff, students and members of the broader community.

EDUCATION:

Required
PhD
A PhD in communication or related fields is required by the start of the appointment.

QUALIFICATIONS:

Successful candidate must engage in high-quality research and teaching commensurate with experience. The successful candidate will demonstrate experience with fostering or the ability to foster an inclusive and equity-centered teaching, learning, mentoring, departmental, and research environment where all can thrive.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

The successful candidate, as a member of the College of L&S, will proactively contribute to, support, and advance the college’s commitment to equity among all aspects of their teaching, mentoring, research, and service. In addition to developing and maintaining a robust research portfolio in the area of AI and communication, the successful applicant will participate in interdisciplinary and collaborative efforts with other departments, schools and colleges, and will mentor highly motivated master’s and doctoral students in this area of high demand and societal impact. The standard teaching load is four courses per academic year, typically including one graduate seminar per year. University and professional service is required appropriate to career stage.

- The role of AI in creating, disseminating and combating mis- and disinformation, monitoring information quality, and intervening to improve the information ecology;

• The relationship between AI, media manipulation, and trust in news, environment and health communication, and other forms of public information;
• Impact of AI on strategic communication campaigns and industry;
• Racial, gender, class, and other biases in the development and deployment of AI and algorithmic systems;
• Investigating AI and algorithmic infrastructures through code audits, reverse engineering, technography/ethnography, and other methods;
• AI governance regimes and information quality, in the US and internationally;
• AI, digital labor, and the public sphere;
• AI, geopolitics, and international/global communication;
• The history of AI and related technologies in public life;
• The impact of AI on digital and news literacy practices;
• AI, digital platforms, and platformization/enclosure of public information;
• Implications of AI systems for democratic participation and social, political, and economic inequality, including racial and gender inequality