College of Information and Communications

Communication Faculty

As a communication major, you will take classes with many faculty in the School of Information Science and School of Journalism and Mass Communications. But here are some of the extraordinary faculty in your area of study. Click on the links to learn more about each of them.

Jabari Miles Evans, Ph.D.

Jabari Evans' teaching and research explore how media, especially hip hop, social media and digital culture, shape the ways young people understand themselves, build communities and pursue opportunities. Drawing on more than two decades spent in and around the music industry, he connects classroom conversations to lived experience in ways that resonate with students who see themselves as future creators, storytellers or innovators. His research and commentary have also been featured in a wide range of national outlets, including ABC News, The Guardian, ESPN and MLB Network.

Darin Johnson, Ph.D.

Darin Johnson is interested in creating spaces where people can be themselves. His research investigates the ways that individuals adapt their communication (i.e., code switch) in the face of social stigma and the psychological consequences thereof. The primary goal of his work is to shift the social forces that constrain self-expression (e.g., in educational, organizational, and healthcare contexts). Inspired by renowned scholar bell hooks, he sees education "as the practice of freedom". Guided by this philosophy, he seeks to cultivate classroom settings where we learn not only with, but also from and about one another.

Jacob Long, Ph.D.

Jacob Long is a self-described "news junkie," who studies political communication and quantitative research methodology with a special interest in partisanship and social identity. He teaches courses in mass communication and research methods.

Brett W. Robertson, Ph.D.

Brett Robertson's research projects explore how individuals use social media and mobile devices in the workplace and disaster-related contexts. Much of his recent focus has been on disaster preparedness and prevention communication — and the barriers that vulnerable and marginalized populations face during natural disasters. His work explores how emerging technologies can mediate these barriers. After working in public affairs and healthcare, Robertson believes finding the relevancy of a topic to students’ lives is one key to engagement.

Wesley Elizabeth Stevens, Ph.D.

Wesley Stevens' research focuses on the regulation of Black identity and its commodification through neoliberal discourses and consumer subjectivities. Her recent work examines the practice of blackfishing on Instagram and how social media influencers appropriate Black culture and aesthetics to build their brand and increase their following, rendering Black identity a lucrative commodity. She is interested in how these consumer logics become accessible to individuals through digital platforms and are exacerbated by discriminatory algorithms.

Damion Waymer, Ph.D.

Damion Waymer, director of the School of Journalism and Mass Communications, is a communication researcher and practitioner who examines organizational culture. He has books and other published works on public relations, organizational communication and culture. His teaching specialties are in the areas of corporate communication, strategic communication, public relations and organizational issues management.

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