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Rob Baron

Robert Baron

Professor

Communication

PhD, Rhetoric, Scientific and Technical Communication, University of Minnesota, 2012

MA, Communication Studies, University of Minnesota, 2007

BA, Political Science and Communication, University of Minnesota, 2002

Dr. Baron is an Associate Professor of Communication and the Graduate Program Coordinator for the department of Communication. He received his MA in Communication Studies and his PhD in Rhetoric, Scientific and Technical Communication from the University of Minnesota.

I am a digital rhetorician. Generally, my research looks at the ways in which technology extends and modifies the processes of human communication. My research is grounded in classical and modern rhetorical theory and investigates how people use digital media and the rhetorical power of these media. I am interested in how these technologies become integrated into, and ultimately shape, their users daily. My research interests include: understanding the rhetorical dynamics of different kinds of social media platforms, the development and use of social media as a communication tool, the ways in which social media (as a medium) force changes onto other communication media, exploring video and computer games as cultural texts, examining the video and computer gaming industry as a new media institution, and the development of indie gaming as both a new computer gaming culture, and new sub-culture within the larger computer gaming culture.

Baron, R. (2018). "Total losers, highly overrated: Donald Trump and internet trolling in real life."

In R. Luttrell (Ed.) Trump Tweets: The World Reacts. Washington DC: Lexington Books. Baron. R. (2015).

Spreading the news: Spreadable media, social networking, and the future of news production.

In W. Gibbs J. McKendrick (Eds.) Contemporary Research Methods and Data Analytics in the News Industry. Hershey, PA: IGI Global.