CV – Ben Birkinbine

Professional Experience

Assistant Professor, University of Wisconsin Oshkosh (2023 – Present)

Associate Professor & Director of Graduate Studies, University of Nevada, Reno (2021 – 2023)

Assistant Professor, University of Nevada, Reno (2015 – 2021)

Visiting Assistant Professor, University of Nevada, Reno (2014-2015)

Instructor of Record, University of Oregon (2011, 2013, 2014)

Adjunct Instructor of Communication, University of Wisconsin-Green Bay (2006 – 2008)

Education

Ph.D. Media Studies, University of Oregon (September, 2014)

Dissertation Title: Incorporating the commons: A political economic analysis of corporate involvement in free software. Available via open access.

Chair: Janet Wasko, Ph.D.

M.A. Media Theory & Research, Southern Illinois University Carbondale (August, 2010)

Thesis Title: Continuity in technological change: A political economic analysis of digital film exhibition. Available via open access.

Chair: Eileen Meehan, Ph.D.

B.A. Communications, University of Wisconsin-Green Bay (December, 2005)

Publications

Books

Birkinbine, B. (2020). Incorporating the Digital Commons: Corporate Use of Free and Open Source Software. London: The University of Westminster Press. Available via open access from https://www.uwestminsterpress.co.uk/site/books/10.16997/book39/

Birkinbine, B., Gómez, R., & Wasko, J. (eds.). (2017). Global Media Giants. New York, NY: Routledge. ISBN-13: 978-1138927711

[This edited volume provides an overview of some of the largest media companies in the world and the diverse ways that they exercise power at global, regional, and/or local levels.]

Peer Reviewed Articles

Birkinbine, B. & Gómez, R. (2020). New methods for mapping media concentration: network analysis of joint ventures among firms. Media, Culture & Society, 42(7-8), pp.1078-1094. https://doi.org/10.1177/0163443720902907

Birkinbine, B. (2018). Commons praxis: Toward a critical political economy of the digital commons. tripleC: Communication, Capitalism& Critique, 16(1), pp. 290-305. Available via open access at https://www.triple-c.at/index.php/tripleC/article/view/929

Birkinbine, B. (2017). From the commons to capital: Red Hat, Inc. and the business of free software. Journal of Peer Production, 10. [Research Article with Editorial Review Only] Available via open access: http://peerproduction.net/issues/issue-10-peer-production-and-work/from-the-commons-to-capital/

Birkinbine, B. (2016). Free software as public service in Brazil: An assessment of activism, policy, and technology. International Journal of Communication, 10, pp. 3893-3908. Available via open access at ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/view/4974/1745

Birkinbine, B. (2015). Conflict in the commons: Towards a political economy of corporate involvement in free and open source software. The Political Economy of Communication, 2(2), pp. 3-19. Available via open access at http://polecom.org/index.php/polecom/article/view/35/226

Book Chapters

Birkinbine, B. and Gomez, R. (2024). Political Economy of Communication and Network Analysis. In Joan Pedro-Cardaña, Rodrigo Gómez, Thomas F. Corrigan and Francisco Sierra Caballero (Eds.), Political Economy of Media and Communication: Methodological Approaches. New York, NY: Routledge, pp. 102-122.

Gomez, R. and Birkinbine, B. (2024). Global media: From cultural imperialism to global media giants. In Lee Artz (Ed.), Global Media Dialogues. Routledge, pp. 92-110

Birkinbine, B. (2021). Political economy of peer production. In O’Neil, M., Pentzold, C., and Toupin, S. (eds.), Handbook of Peer Production. West Sussex, UK: Wiley Blackwell, pp. 33-43.

Birkinbine, B. (2019). Movie theaters and money: Integration and consolidation in film exhibition. In Nichols, R., Martinez, G. (eds.), Political Economy of Media Industries: Global Transformations and Challenges. New York, NY: Routledge, pp. 22-40.

Gómez, R. and Birkinbine, B. (2018). Cultural Imperialism Theories. Oxford Bibliographies in Communication. Ed. Patricia Moy. New York: Oxford University Press. Available at http://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/abstract/document/obo-9780199756841/obo-9780199756841-0209.xml

Birkinbine, B. (2017). Microsoft Corporation. In Birkinbine, B., Gómez, R., and Wasko, J. (eds), Global Media Giants. New York, NY: Routledge, pp. 383-397.

Book Series (edited)

Benjamin Birkinbine, Rodrigo Gomez Garcia, and Janet Wasko (eds.), Global Media Giants (book series). New York, NY: Routledge

Titles Published:

Nichols, Randy. (2023). Nintendo: Playing with Power.
Yeo, Shinjoung. (2022). Baidu: Geopolitical Dynamics of the Internet in China.
Tröger, Mandy, and Jörg Becker. (2022). Bertelsmann: A Transnational Media Service Giant.
Albornoz, Luis A., Ana Segovia, and Núria Almiron. (2022). Grupo Prisa: Media Power in Contemporary Spain.
Shen, Hong. (2021). Alibaba: Infrastructuring Global China
Mastrini, Guillermo, Martin Becerra and Ana Bizberge. (2021). Grupo Clarin: From Argentine Newspaper to Convergent Media Conglomerate
Bouquillion, Philippe. (2021). Vivendi: A Key Player in Global Entertainment and Media
Brevini, Benedetta and Lukasz Swiatek. (2020). Amazon: Understanding a Global Communication Giant
Tang, Min. (2019). Tencent: The Political Economy of China’s Surging Internet Giant
Lee, Micky. (2019). Alphabet: The Becoming of Google

Other Publications

Birkinbine, B. and Bilic, Paško. (2021). Commentary on the Amazon-MGM merger. The Political Economy of Communication, 9(2), pp. 85-89. Available via open access: https://www.polecom.org/index.php/polecom/article/view/148/381

Birkinbine, B. and Kidd, Dorothy (eds). (2020). Re-Visiting the Communication Commons. Special Issue of Popular Communication: The International Journal of Media and Culture, 18(3).

Birkinbine, B. and Kidd, Dorothy. (2020). Introduction. Special Issue of Popular Communication: The International Journal of Media and Culture, 18(3).

Birkinbine, B. (2017). Commons praxis: Toward a critical political economy of the digital commons. Westminster Advanced Studies, No.6.

Birkinbine, B. (2017, July 26). The value(s) of sharing: Networking the commons. Blog post for the Westminster Institute for Advanced Studies. Available from http://wias.ac.uk/the-values-of-sharing-networking-the-commons/

Birkinbine, B. (2017). Special Commentary on the AT&T-Time Warner Merger. The Political Economy of Communication. Available at http://polecom.org/index.php/polecom/article/view/73/267

Reprinted Articles (Edited Collections and Foreign Language Translations)

Bilić, Paško i Birkinbine, Benjamin. (2022). Revizija Amazonove kupnje Metro-Goldwyn Myera – početak obračuna s tehnološkim divovima? IRMO Aktualno.

Birkinbine, B. (2022).Commons praxis: Toward a critical political economy of the digital commons. In Cao Jin and Vincent Mosco (eds.), Critical Perspectives on New Media: Challenging the Neo-Liberal World Order. Shanghai, China: Shanghai Translation Publishing House, pp.198-213.

Gómez García R. and Birkinbine, B. (2021). Nuevos métodos para cartografiar la concentración de medios: un análisis de redes de “joint ventures” de las compañías globales de medios. In Francisco Sierra Caballero (ed.), Economía Politica de la Comunicacíon: Teoría y Metodología. Spain: Comunicación Social Ediciones y Publicaciones, pp. 273-292.

Book Reviews

Birkinbine, B. (2023). Review of Sarah Anne Ganter & Hanan Badr (eds.), Media Governance: A Cosmopolitan Critique (Springer International Publishing, 2022). Journal of Digital Media & Policy 14 (June), pp. 274-275.

Birkinbine, B. (2019). Review of De Angelis, M., Omnia Sunt Communia (Zed Books, 2017). Democratic Communiqué, 28(1), pp. 66-69. Available via open access at: https://journals.flvc.org/demcom/article/view/109042

Birkinbine, B. (2017). Review of Fenton, N., Digital, Political, Radical (Polity Press, 2016). Global Media and Communication, 13(2), pp. 204-206.

Birkinbine, B. (2013). Review of Wilkie, R., The Digital Condition: Class and Culture in the Information Network (Fordham University Press, 2011). Media, Culture & Society, 35(2).

Selected Fellowships, Grants, Awards, and Honors

U.S. Fulbright Scholar (Fall 2022)

Conduct a research project on the status of free and open-source software policies and initiatives in Brazil. Of particular interest are those collaborative initiatives between the free software community, academic institutions, and the federal government, which are aimed at social inclusion, digital inclusion, and participatory democracy. I also explored the possibility of collaborations and student exchanges between Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCar) and the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR).

Nominee for the F. Donald Tibbitts Distinguished Teacher Award (2020-2021 academic year)

Two recipients are selected annually for the F. Donald Tibbitts Distinguished Teacher Award across the entirety of the University of Nevada, Reno campus. Faculty are nominated by the deans each fall. Recipients receive a plaque and recognition at the annual Honor the Best Ceremony, and each winner’s name is inscribed on an engraved pillar with prior years’ winners in the University’s Honor Court.

Center for Advanced Media Studies Faculty Research Grant (2021). University of Nevada, Reno.

Publishing Subvention Grant (March, 2019). University of Nevada, Reno.

The Vice President for Research and Innovation’s office at the University of Nevada, Reno provides a competitive grant opportunity for all academic and administrative faculty with a research expectation and who have a contract to produce scholarly or creative work, such as a book, monograph or multimedia work, and need assistance with production costs.

Center for Advanced Media Studies Faculty Research Grant (2019). University of Nevada, Reno.

Nevada Semenza Christian Teaching Award (awarded May 3, 2018). University of Nevada, Reno.

Each year, the students of the Reynolds School nominate a professor who went above and beyond for them during the school year. This award is named after Nevada Semenza Christian, one of the first and only female graduates of the journalism school’s class in 1924.

Westminster Institute for Advanced Studies (WIAS) International Research Fellowship in Critical Digital and Social Media Studies (awarded November, 2016). Fellowship from May 1, 2017 – July 31, 2017.

Summer Faculty Spotlight (2017). 365 Learning, University of Nevada, Reno. Selection as a candidate for a brief “faculty spotlight” feature on the Summer Session website to recognize excellence as an instructor and help boost enrollments in Summer Session 2017 classes.

The Dallas Smythe Award (awarded July, 2014)

The Smythe Award is granted to students and young scholars for outstanding papers submitted to the International Association for Media and Communication Researchers (IAMCR) conference. The award is given to a paper which combines scholarly excellence with a commitment to developing and extending the critical, innovative and engaged spirit that characterized Smythe’s contribution to media/communications analysis.

Graduate Affiliate of the Digital Scholarship Center (awarded March, 2014)

The Digital Scholarship Center (DSC) at the University of Oregon selects a small group of graduate students to the Graduate Affiliate Program once per year. Graduate Affiliates gain access to the resources of the DSC, while pursuing an individual research project related to digital scholarship. Affiliates participate in colloquia with fellow Affiliates, and have the chance to share their research with other faculty, graduate students, and undergraduate students.

Rapid Response Grant (awarded January, 2014)

Co-sponsored by the Open Society Foundation (OSF) and the International Association of Media and Communication Research (IAMCR) to young and emerging scholars whose work addresses issues related to media and communication policy, particularly in emerging areas or areas where gaps exist in the literature. In particular, the grant is related to the IAMCR’s “Mapping Global Media Policy” project and the OSF’s “Mapping Digital Media” research initiative.

The Columbia Scholarship (awarded 2013)

The Columbia Scholarship Endowment Fund was established to provide support for both undergraduate and graduate student scholarship to the most talented and academically strongest students in the School of Journalism and Communication.

Outstanding Teaching by a Doctoral Student (awarded June 2013)

Awarded to a Graduate Teaching Fellow who exhibits excellence in teaching. Graduate Teaching Fellows are nominated by students. This award was granted for my upper-level special topics course on the Political Economy of Media.

Glenn Starlin Fellowship (awarded June 2013)

The Glenn Starlin Endowed Graduate Fellowship rotates annually between the Department of Theatre Arts and the School of Journalism and Communication. The fellowship is presented to the student with a demonstrated commitment to scholarship and career potential.

The Columbia Scholarship (awarded 2011)

Lucien P. Arant Scholarship (awarded 2010)

The Lucien P. Arant Endowment Fund was established in 1979 by the Estate of Mamie C. Arant in memory of Lucien P. Arant. Lucien Arant was a longtime publisher of Oregon and Idaho newspapers and served as the Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association President is 1952. Awards are given to students in the School of Journalism and Communication.

Peer Reviewed Conference Presentations

Birkinbine, B. (2022). The commons as post-capitalism?: Toward a progressive politics of the common. Panel presentation as part of the “All Our World(s): Reimagining the Media Commons for Emancipatory Politics” panel at the International Communication Association conference, held May 26-30 in Paris, France. [Served as co-organizer of the panel with Natalie Fenton]

Birkinbine, B. and Gomez, R. (2021). Interlocking directorates in the media, information, and technology industries. Paper presented online at the International Association for Media and Communication Research conference, held July 11-15 at United States International University – Africa (USIU-Africa) in Nairobi, Kenya.

Birkinbine, B. (2019, July 10). The political economy of peer production. Paper presented at the International Association for Media and Communication Research conference, held July 7-11 at Universidad Complutense de Madrid in Madrid, Spain.

Birkinbine, B. and Gómez, R. (2019, May 26). New methods for mapping media concentration: A network analysis of joint ventures in the media industries. Paper accepted for the International Communication Association Conference, held May 24-28 in Washington, DC.

Gomez, R. and Birkinbine, B. (2018, June 24). Mapping Big Five alliances through network analysis: Exploring new methods for analyzing concentration in the global audiovisual landscape. Paper submitted for the International Association for Media and Communication Research conference, held June 20-24 at the University of Oregon in Eugene, Oregon

Birkinbine, B. (2017, July 17). Toward a critical political economy of the digital commons. Paper presented at the International Association for Media and Communication Research conference, held July 16-20 in Cartagena, Colombia.

Birkinbine, B. (2016, July 28). The Microsoft Corporation. Paper presented at the International Association for Media and Communication Research conference, held July 27-31 at University of Leicester in Leicester, United Kingdom.

Birkinbine, B. (2015, July 16). Free software and the corporate commons: Red Hat, Inc. and the ambiguous power of the digital commons. Paper presented at the International Association for Media and Communication Research conference, held July 12-16 at the University of Quebec at Montreal (UQAM) in Montreal, Quebec. Organizer of the panel, “The Ambiguous Power of the Commons Under Capitalism.”

Birkinbine, B. (2015, July 13). Global media giants. Served as chair for the panel presented at the International Association for Media and Communication Research conference, held July 12-16 at the University of Quebec at Montreal (UQAM) in Montreal, Quebec. The panel was designed as a preview for a forthcoming book project, Global Media Giants.

Birkinbine, B. (2015, May 1). From the commons to capital: Free Software, Peer Production, and Red Hat, Inc. Paper presented at the Union for Democratic Communications Conference, held May 1-3 at the University of Toronto. Served as Chair of the panel, “Digital Enclosures: Manufacturing Scarcity in Networked Environments.”

Birkinbine, B. (2014, July 18). Incorporating the commons: Toward a political economy of corporate involvement in free and open source software. Paper presented at the International Association for Media and Communication Research conference, held July 15-19 in Hyderabad, India. **Selected as winner of the 2014 IAMCR Prize in Memory of Dallas W. Smythe.**

Birkinbine, B. & Wasko, J. (2014, July 17). Firm inquiries: Methods for critically researching media corporations. Paper presented at the International Association for Media and Communication Research conference, held July 15-19 in Hyderabad, India.

Birkinbine, B. (2014, July 16). Open source Brazil: The role of information and communication policies in granting communication rights. Paper presented at the International Association for Media and Communication Research conference, held July 15-19 in Hyderabad, India.

Birkinbine, B. (2013, November). Digital technology, labor, and monopoly capital: Towards a new critical history of technology.” Paper presented at the Union for Democratic Communication/Project Censored conference, held November 1-3 at the University of San Francisco, San Francisco, CA.

Birkinbine, B. & Wolf-Monteiro, B. (2013, November). Hacking as praxis: Surveillance, media activism, and tools for resistance. Paper presented at the Union for Democratic Communication/Project Censored conference, held November 1-3 at the University of San Francisco, San Francisco, CA.

Birkinbine, B. (2013, October). Emerging markets, open source: A critical analysis of open source software adoption policies in Brazil. Paper presented at the Global Fusion Conference, held October 4-6, 2013 at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, Carbondale, Illinois. **Selected as winner of the graduate student competition for best research paper.**

Birkinbine, B. (2013, June 8). Socio-technical communities of practice: Open source software and resistance to audience commodification. Paper presented at the Communication and Global Power Shifts Conference, An International Conference in Celebration of the 40th Anniversary of the School of Communication, held June 7-9, 2013 at Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, British Columbia.

Bratslavsky, L. & Birkinbine, B. (2012, May 24). (Re)Discovering the analog: Investigating archives in the age of digitization. Paper presented as part of the Historiography as Intervention Preconference for the International Communication Association’s Communication History Group. Phoenix, AZ. Available online at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWCSDBAyb3o

Birkinbine, B. (2011, July 15). Cinema, cities, capital: The global diffusion and control of digital cinema. Paper presented at International Association for Media and Communications Research (IAMCR) conference, held in Istanbul, Turkey, July 13-17, 2011.

Birkinbine, B. (2010, October). Continuity in technological change: Toward a political economy of digital film exhibition. Paper presented at Union for Democratic Communications Conference, held at Pennsylvania State University, October 14-16, 2010

Birkinbine, B. (2009, October 17). The other digital transition: Toward a political economy of digital film exhibition. Paper presented as part of the Alternative Art, Alternative Solutions panel at the Global Fusion Conference, held at the University of Texas-Austin, October 16-18, 2009 [Served as Chair for the panel].

Bartell, D.S., Fitzpatrick, C., Birkinbine, B., Heim, R., & Magnuson, J. (2006, July). Wading through the creek of young love: Media representations of adolescent romantic relationships. Poster presented at the Biennial Conference of the International Association for Relationship Research, Rethymnon, Crete.

Invited Lectures

Birkinbine, B. (2023, September 12). Incorporating the Digital Commons. Invited as featured speaker and Co-Director of the “Political Economies of Media” advanced Ph.D. summer course, held September 11-15 at the Inter University Center (IUC) in Dubrovnik, Croatia.

Birkinbine, B. (2021, October 20). Incorporating the Digital Commons (book talk). Invited as a featured speaker at the Annual Conference of the Centre Internet et Société of Le Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) in Paris, France.

Birkinbine, B. (2021, February 25). Introduction to the Political Economy of Communications. Lecture presented to Ph.D. student seminar on communication theory at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale.

Birkinbine, B. (2017, July 25). On the Digital Commons. Invited speaker for the New Economics Foundation (http://neweconomics.org/), a “people-powered think tank” based in London, United Kingdom.

Birkinbine, B. (November 4, 2016). An Introduction to the Political Economy of Communication. Lecture presented to Rhetoric@Reno Graduate Student Club, University of Nevada, Reno.

Birkinbine, B. (August 25, 2016). Citing Sources and Compiling a Reference Page. Lecture given to Nevada Wolf Pack Men’s Basketball team, University of Nevada, Reno.

Birkinbine, B. (August 25, 2016). Citing Sources and Compiling a Reference Page. Lecture given to Nevada Wolf Pack Football team, University of Nevada, Reno.

Birkinbine, B. (2016, August 16). Introduction to Media Literacy and Media Research. Lecture presented to the Journalism Freshmen Intensive Training (JFIT) program, University of Nevada, Reno.

Birkinbine, B. (2014, April 4). Software livre e Participação Social. Lecture given to Curso Superior Tecnológico em Análise e Desenvolvimento de Sistemas (TADS) [Technical Degree Course in Systems Development and Analysis]. Instructor: Ronald Emerson Scherolt da Costa. Location: Faculdade da JK, Taguatinga, Brasília, Distrito Federal, Brasil.

Birkinbine, B. (2014, April 3). Incorporating the commons: A political economic analysis of corporate involvement in free and open source software projects. Presented to the Uso Estrategico e Competitivo de Dados (abertos) e Software (livre) Research Group [Strategic and Competitive Use of Open Data and Free Software] at the Universidade de Brasília in Brasília, Distrito Federal, Brasil.

Birkinbine, B. (May, 2010). Brazilian Cinema and Tropa de Elite (Brazil, 2007). Film and lecture presented to a Special Topics Course on Controversial Cinema. Instructor: Bryan Brown. Southern Illinois University Carbondale.

Courses Taught

Graduate Courses

The Future of Journalism (Fall, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2021), University of Nevada, Reno

Upper Division

Special Topics: How to Use Public Records Law (Spring, 2021), University of Nevada, Reno (in partnership with the Electronic Frontier Foundation)

Special Topics: Media Economics (Spring, 2017-Present), University of Nevada, Reno

First Amendment & Society (2014-Present), University of Nevada, Reno

Communication Law (Summer 2013, 2014), University of Oregon

Political Economy of Media (Spring 2013), University of Oregon

Elements of Electronic Media (Fall 2007 – Spring 2008), University of Wisconsin-Green Bay

Lower Division

Introduction to Mass Media & Society (Fall 2019 – Present), University of Nevada, Reno

All Things Media: Fundamentals (Fall 2016 – 2019), University of Nevada, Reno

Media in Modern Life, Honors Section (Spring 2016), University of Nevada, Reno

Media in Modern Life (Fall, 2014), University of Nevada, Reno

Understanding Media (Summer 2011), University of Oregon

Media & Society (Spring 2011), University of Oregon

Independent Studies

Media Theory (Spring, 2022), University of Nevada, Reno

Media Populism & Fake News (Fall, 2018), University of Nevada, Reno

Research Methods (Fall, 2018), University of Nevada, Reno

Data Collection and Analysis (Spring, 2018), University of Nevada, Reno

The Political Economy of Media (Fall, 2016), University of Nevada, Reno

Graduate Student Supervision

Master’s Students

Alexandra Couraud (Project Chair), Journalism, UNR, Graduated December, 2023

Project Title: Angels of Trauma (A Podcast About Spirituality and Trauma)

Sonya Hernandez (Project committee member), Journalism, UNR, Graduated May, 2023

Project Title: Proposal for Building KRBU Radio Station

Kingkini Sengupta (Project committee member), Journalism, UNR, Graduated May, 2023

Project Title: Rethinking Reporting on Homelessness

Brittney (“Birdy”) McCray (MFA committee member), Art, UNR, Graduated May, 2023

Hailey Rodis (Thesis committee member), Journalism, UNR, Graduated May 2022

Thesis Title: An Examination of Media Literacy Within Undergraduate Journalism Students

Warren Bottino (Exams committee member), English, UNR, Graduated May, 2022

Griffin Peralta (Exams committee member), English, UNR, Graduated December, 2020

Mushfique Wadud (Thesis Chair), Journalism, UNR, Graduated August, 2020

Project Title: Good Rohingyas, Bad Rohingyas: How Narratives of Rohingya Refugees Shifted in Bangladesh Media, 2017-2019

Aras Diler (Project Chair) ,Journalism, UNR, Graduated May, 2020

Project Title: Udictio: An Interactive Dictionary

Tony DeFilippo (Exams committee member), English, UNR, Graduated May, 2020

Sudhiti Naskar (Thesis Chair), Journalism, UNR, Graduated December, 2019

Project Title: Viral or Virus?: A Content Analysis of Fake News Themes in the World’s Largest Democracy from Jan 2017-May 2019

Robert Apiyo (Thesis committee member), Journalism, UNR, Graduated May, 2019

Project Title: Podcasting and the African Diaspora in the United States

Sarah Krutz (Thesis Chair), Journalism, UNR, Graduated May, 2019

Thesis Title: Black Artists and White Space: Race and Economics in Louis Armstrong’s Career

Nisha Sridharan (Thesis Chair), Journalism, UNR, Graduated May, 2018

Thesis Title: Newsrooms Connect: An Assessment of Engaged Journalism Principles in Local Newsrooms

Mauricio Rojas Durand (Thesis Chair), Journalism, UNR, Graduated December, 2017

Thesis Title: Transcommercials: Content Analysis of Advertisements Featuring Transgender Characters on YouTube

Ellyn Morrill (Exams committee member), English, UNR, Graduated May, 2017

Jennifer Pizzi (Project Chair), Journalism, UNR, Graduated May, 2016)

Project Title: The Cowboy In Between: An Integrated Marketing Plan

Media Appearances

Interviewed by local television broadcast news station, KTVN, for a segment called, “Local Professor Discusses Russia’s War on Information.” Story aired March 29, 2022, and is available at https://www.2news.com/news/local-professor-discusses-russias-war-on-information/video_9d2ae5a7-e055-5b0f-bdb7-01e3e4289374.html

Interviewed for “Russia’s War on Information” online story, produced by KTVN 2 News (Reno, NV). Story published March 29, 2022, and available at https://www.2news.com/townnews/politics/russias-war-on-information/article_cb3c2028-af58-11ec-ba41-c3ae684c800e.html

Interviewed about the “Media Commons” for a podcast produced by BBC & Beyond. Link to the episode will be posted after publication. Interviewed on October 26, 2021.

Interviewed for “Nevada Interrupted: For UNR Professor and Some of His Students, Transition to Online Learning Has Been a Rough Road,” The Nevada Independent, published April 28, 2020. Available at https://thenevadaindependent.com/article/nevada-interrupted-for-unr-professor-and-some-of-his-students-transition-to-online-learning-has-been-a-rough-road

Interviewed for “Students Protest Peter Cvjetanovic After Senior Thesis,” KTVN, aired on May 11, 2018. Available at http://www.ktvn.com/story/38173370/students-protest-peter-cvjetanovic-after-senior-thesis-presentation

Guest on the PaHaHaHadcast (a podcast about comedy and popular culture) episode “Simpsons, Stranger Things, and Nostalgia,” based on my experience researching media industries. Published December 8, 2017. Available at https://soundcloud.com/wolfpackcomedy/simpsons-stranger-things-and-nostalgia

Featured in “Pack Profile: Assistant Professor Ben Birkinbine” article in Insight magazine (a student publication at the University of Nevada, Reno). Subhead reads “Young journalism professor inspires students in a law course typically found mundane.” Published in the April, 2017 edition (Volume 10, Issue 3).

Interviewed for “Voice of Politics in Nevada Media Starts a News Website,” The New York Times, published January 16, 2017. Available at https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/16/business/media/frustrated-nevada-journalist-starts-his-own-news-website.html

Interviewed for “Judge Bans Media and Public from Hearings for Accused Killer,” local news story published January 28, 2017 by KOLO8 news in Reno, NV. Available at http://www.kolotv.com/content/news/Judge-Bans-Press–Public-From-Hearing–366936101.html

Community & Professional Service

Co-Chair of the Political Economy Section of the International Association for Media and Communication Research (elected 2022)

Vice Chair of the Political Economy Section of the International Association for Media and Communication Research (2018-2022)

Invited Presenter and Discussion Moderator for “The Internet’s Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz.” Part of Ignite Integrity week at the University of Nevada, Reno. (March 28, 2018)

Reno Linux Users Group (RLUG), Reno, NV (2014-2016)

Eugene Linux Users Group (EUGLUG), Eugene, OR (2013-2014).

Executive Board Member of Liberty Theater, Murphysboro, IL (Summer 2009 – Summer 2010)

Selection Committee for Big Muddy Film Festival, Carbondale, IL (Spring, 2009)

Guest presenter for “A Man Without a Past” (Finland, 2003). Green Bay Film Society. Neville Public Museum, Green Bay, WI. December 2007.

Guest presenter for “Buddy” (Norway, 2004). Green Bay Film Society. Neville Public Museum. Green Bay, WI. April 2006.

Guest presenter for “Bright Future” (Japan, 2003). Green Bay Film Society. Neville Public Museum, Green Bay, WI. October 2005.

Other Professional Experience

Co-Producer of Residual Culture Podcast, a conversational podcast about media and culture