Lei Guo: The “Big Data” Challenge in Communication Research, Nov 4, 2015

3:00 PM – 4:00 PM on Wednesday, November 4, 2015 @ Room 180
Hariri Institute for Computing
Refreshments to follow

The “Big Data” Challenge in Communication Research

Lei Guo
Assistant Professor, Division of Emerging Media Studies
Boston University

Abstract: The talk will present an empirical study that investigates and compares two “big data” text analysis methods: dictionary-based analysis and unsupervised topic modeling. By applying two “big data” methods to make sense of the same dataset—77 million tweets about the 2012 U.S. presidential election— the study provides a starting point for scholars to evaluate the efficacy and validity of different computer-assisted methods for conducting journalism and mass communication research.

Bio: Lei Guo is an assistant professor at the Division of Emerging Media Studies in Boston University. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin in 2014. Her research focuses on the development of media effects theories, emerging media technologies and democracy, and international communication.