September 4, 2026
The Institute of Communications Research is excited to announce their newest cohort! Please learn more about the students’ research interests below and join us in welcoming them to the University of Illinois College of Media community this fall. For more information, see full student profiles.
Mark Burbridge’s primary research areas center around film criticism, media studies, and digital media studies, with specific research focus on the evolution of film criticism, histories of film industry and media markets, and how emerging technologies affect popular film discourse.
Boram Cho’s research interests include AI creativity, human-AI interaction and collaboration, persuasion knowledge, emerging technologies and media in children and older adults, and ethical AI use.
Matthew Huh’s research focuses on cultural and audience shifts found in contemporary pop culture, animation, and nostalgia, along with the impact of blockbuster media in film culture.
Jiayi (Joy) Wang’s research focuses on artificial intelligence in advertising and consumer behavior, with particular interest in how AI-generated advertising and persuasion knowledge shape consumer responses across digital platforms.
Chenqi Zhu’s research interests lie in the intersection of media and communication study, history of science, and science technology studies. She is interested in how communicative, scientific, and technological practices condition and transform each other across historical trajectories, and to their constitutive role in structuring human nature and broader social formations.
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