About me

Hi! I’m Matthew, a scholar, teacher, and communicator working at the intersection(s) of digital media, social change, and rhetoric and communication theory.

As a researcher, I examine new media technologies, user practices, and cultural trends that threaten to limit possibilities for diverse engagement. My scholarship has appeared in journals like The Quarterly Journal of Speech, Critical Studies in Media Communication, and Women’s Studies in Communication. I’m currently working on a book project tentatively titled Just Participating: Formatting Critical Sensibilities When There’s Just Too Much, about the challenges of participation in digital and political environments that demand our engagement.

I’m a faculty member at Stony Brook University, where I currently serve as an IDEA Fellow in Ethical AI, Information Systems, and Data Science and Literacy. I’m jointly appointed in the School of Communication and Journalism/Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science® and the Program in Writing and Rhetoric; I’m also associated faculty with the Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Department.

At SBU, I teach courses about digital media, social justice, and rhetorical criticism. In Spring 2024, I’ll be teaching WRT302: AI and Advocacy (Critical Writing Seminar).

I received my Ph.D. in Communication (Rhetoric and Political Culture) from the University of Maryland, where I also received a graduate certificate in Digital Studies in the Arts and Humanities. I’m originally from Spokane, WA, and I’m a proud graduate of Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, WA.

Besides academic research and teaching, I have also worked as a freelance copy editor, Twitter bot-creator, video producer, and journalist.

Please feel free to explore my posts to see my work, or view my CV.

You can reach me for expert interviews and commentary via my SBU Experts page, on Twitter/X @matthew_paul, on Bluesky @mattsalzano.bsky.social, Mastodon @salzano@aoir.social, or via email at mattsalzano (AT) gmail (DOT) com.