Carlina DiRusso

Carlina DiRusso is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Communication at Clemson University's College of Behavioral, Social and Health Sciences, and a Faculty Associate at the Social Media Listening Center. She holds a Ph.D. in Mass Communications from Pennsylvania State University (2021), an M.A. in Communication Theory & Methodology from Cleveland State University (2017), and a B.A. in Strategic Communication from The Ohio State University (2014). She teaches undergraduate courses including Principles of Public Relations (COMM 3550) and Communication in Health Organizations (COMM 3840).

Her research centers on persuasive message design with emphases on emotional/cognitive processing in health and science contexts. Key interests include:

• Emotional framing in sustainability and health campaigns
• Misinformation dynamics (e.g., anti-vaccination movements)
• Social media's role in shaping public attitudes
• Corporate advocacy strategy
• Behavioral interventions through digital platforms

Her publications reveal interdisciplinary focus areas: 40% examine health/science topics (e.g., vaccines, skin cancer, COVID-19 narratives), 33% analyze environmental/sustainability communication (e.g., greenwashing, electric vehicles), and 27% explore digital persuasion mechanics (e.g., fake news, CSR messaging). Recent work increasingly addresses crisis contexts and social media analytics.

Prior to academia, she spent five years at a global communications consultancy developing strategies for clients including Clorox, Philips, and AstraZeneca, specializing in audience profiling and digital analytics.

She contributes to Clemson's Social Media Listening Center, which focuses on data-driven analysis of online discourse. No grants, awards, or student advisement details are documented.