Polarization, Propaganda, and Communication That's Good For Democracy

Dr. Jennifer Mercieca is an historian of American political rhetoric. She is Professor in the Department of Communication and Journalism at Texas A&M University. 

Dr. Mercieca’s research focuses on the relationship between democracy and our nation’s communication practices. She has published research on how America’s Founders imagined citizens would act in a government based upon the will of the people, the way that we turn presidents into heroes, the ways that demagogues are dangerous for democratic stability, and she is currently writing a book about propaganda and how to fix our broken public sphere. Historical and theoretically informed, her research aims to make our communication practices more democratic.

She is a 2016 recipient of the Texas A&M Association of Former Students Distinguished Achievement Award in Teaching, the highest student award given to faculty for teaching at Texas A&M University.