Maria Luengo Cruz

María Luengo Cruz is an Associate Professor in the Department of Communication Studies at Carlos III University of Madrid (UC3M), where she also serves as Vice Dean of the Double Degree in Journalism and Humanities. Her office is located at 17.2.04 - Ortega y Gasset building in Getafe. She leads the research group 'Journalism and Social Analysis: Evolution, Effects and Trends (PASEET)' and co-leads 'UC3M EURESEARCH', focusing on globalization's impact on European society.

Her research examines journalism ethics, digital communication, and cultural sociology through multiple dimensions:

• Media representation of social issues including gender violence and civil rights
• Impact of digitalization on journalistic practices and ethics
• Cross-cultural analysis of media systems in Spain, Argentina, and Lebanon
• Fact-checking mechanisms and misinformation during crises
• Theoretical frameworks of civil sphere and democratic communication

Her publications since 2014 demonstrate consistent focus on journalism's evolving role in democratic societies, with recent work examining digital deliberation (2024), institutional trust in broadcasting (2024), and COVID-19 misinformation (2020). Earlier research established foundations in media ethics evaluation (2017) and cultural analysis of journalism's digital transition (2014).

She has supervised graduate research on data journalism in Spain/US/Argentina (2024), news transcendence (2023), and domestic violence portrayal in Lebanese media (2021). Her funded projects include BBVA Foundation's 'Moral Disagreements in the Digital Sphere' (2022-2024) and Ministry-funded studies on big data journalism (2014-2017).