Research in sport communication examines the impact of media production and the media environment on sport, kinesiology, games and play. Focus is given to a critical analysis of media platforms, messaging, and content. The goal is to better understand the role the sports media and sports media platforms play in shaping the landscape of sport and the conversations which surround it.
Primary Associated Faculty
Associated Doctoral Students
Associated Master's Students
- Austin Coats
- Jalyn Johnson
Research Emphases
- Sport Communication
- Social Media in Sport
- Sport Media
- Information Management in Sport
- Messaging and Propaganda in Sport
- Gaming in Sport
- Activism in Sport
Recent Publications
Graduate Student Publications & Theses
- Garner, R.C. (2019). It just means more: An examination of hashtag use in NCAA Division I college football rivalries. Dissertations & Theses @ Mississippi State University.
- Molay, M.K. (2019). Media Framing in Southeastern Conference Football. Available from Dissertations & Theses @ Mississippi State University; Retrieved from https://ir.library.msstate.edu/handle/11668/20774
- Slater, K. (2018). Just do it: Sport apparel branding on Twitter. Available from Dissertations & Theses @ Mississippi State University; Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/11668/17552
Selected Faculty Publications
- Zimmerman, M. H., Johnson, J. E., & Ridley, M. (2016). Twitter use by college football coaches: An examination of the Football Bowl Subdivision. Journal of Contemporary Athletics, 10(1).
- Billings, A. C., Burch, L. M., & Zimmerman, M. H. (2014). Fragments of us, fragments of them: social media, nationality and U.S. perceptions of the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Soccer & Society, DOI: 10.1080/14660970.2014.963307
- Walsh, P., Zimmerman, M., Clavio, G., & Williams, A. (2013). Comparing brand awareness levels of in-game advertising in sport video games featuring visual and verbal cues. Communication & Sport, Published Online May 8, 2013 DOI:10.1177/2167479513489120