Ashley Muddimam

Ashley Muddiman (Ph.D., University of Texas at Austin) is an associate professor in the Department of Communication Studies at the University of Kansas. Her work focuses broadly on democracy and political communication, specifically investigating political incivility and democratic norms, political media content and its effects on the public, and mis- and disinformation in democratic contexts. She has earned fellowships with the Social Science Research Council, studying whether political incivility on women candidates’ social media spaces may serve as a barrier to entry into politics, and The New Institute (Germany), investigating how solutions-focused news coverage can decrease polarization in online discussion. Her current research projects explore the circulation of (anti-)democracy narratives in legislative and mediated contexts, understanding how news coverage can exacerbate and attenuate democratic divides, and developing media literacy curriculum designed to empower teens.