Sharon Meraz

Sharon Meraz is an Associate Professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), specializing in political communication and networked journalism. Her work bridges mass media theory with digital technologies, examining how social media shapes political engagement and activism. She holds a PhD in Journalism from the University of Texas at Austin.

Education

• PhD in Journalism, University of Texas at Austin

Research Interests
Meraz explores the intersection of social media and political discourse through methodologies like social network analysis, natural language processing, and big data visualization. Her work investigates phenomena such as network agenda setting, viral content dynamics, and the role of digital platforms in political mobilization during elections and social movements.

Recent Research Trends
Her publications analyze partisan exposure in political blogs, rumor propagation in digital spaces, and the role of Twitter in shaping political discourse during events like the Arab Spring and U.S. elections. She emphasizes theoretical innovations like networked framing and memetics in media studies.

Teaching
Courses include social network theories, media effects, and seminars on social media and political communication.