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• FIMS pleased to welcome two new faculty members

FIMS pleased to welcome two new faculty members

FIMS is excited to announce the addition of two new faculty members at the rank of Assistant Professor. Joanna Redden and Luke Stark will bring their expertise to Western in the coming months and we eagerly look forward to drawing on their distinguished experience in media studies, media policy, artificial intelligence, and data governance. For more information about Professors Redden and Stark, please read their bios below.

Professor Joanna Redden

Joanna Redden is currently co-director of the Data Justice Lab at Cardiff University in Wales, where she is also a Senior Lecturer in the School of Journalism, Media and Culture. Joanna holds a PhD in Media and Communications from Goldsmiths University of London, and a MA in Communication and Culture from Ryerson University in Toronto, Canada. Joanna's research focuses on algorithmic governance, particularly how government bodies are making use of changing data systems, and the social justice implications of these changes. This work has involved mapping and assessing government uses of data systems as well as documenting data harms and learning from those trying to redress these harms in policy, community and activist contexts. Joanna’s work has been published in such journals as the Canadian Journal of Communication; Policy Studies; Information, Communication and Society; and Scientific American. She has previously held fellowships at the Infoscape Centre for the Study of Social Media at Ryerson University, and the Goldsmiths Leverhulme Media Research Centre.

"I am looking forward to meeting more people within the FIMS community and finding creative ways to be part of such a collaborative and inspiring environment." – Joanna Redden

Professor Luke Stark

Luke Stark is currently a Postdoctoral Researcher in the Fairness, Accountability, Transparency and Ethics (FATE) Group at Microsoft Research Montréal. Luke holds a PhD from the Department of Media, Culture, and Communication at New York University, and an Honours BA and MA in History from the University of Toronto. Trained as a media historian, his scholarship centers on the interconnected histories of artificial intelligence (AI) and behavioural science, and on the ways the social and ethical contexts of AI systems—particularly those mediating social and emotional expression—are changing how we work, communicate, and participate in civic life. Luke’s work has been published in such journals as Social Studies of Science, Media Culture and Society, History of the Human Sciences, and The International Journal of Communication; he has also contributed to a number of edited volumes. Before joining Microsoft Research, Luke was a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Sociology at Dartmouth College, a Fellow and Affiliate of the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University, and an inaugural Fellow with the University of California Berkeley’s Center for Technology, Society, and Policy.

"FIMS is such a richly collegial and intellectual environment, and such a wonderful place to experiment with dynamic, interdisciplinary work—so I couldn't be more pleased and privileged to be joining the faculty." – Luke Stark