Matthew Weber, a communication scholar and consultant whose research examines media, organizational change, and communication dynamics, has rejoined the SC&I faculty as an associate professor of communication with tenure effective January 1, 2021.

Weber said, “I'm honored to have this chance to return, and looking forward to continuing to build a strong program of research examining organizations, and changing technology, as well as the resulting impact on media and policy.”

Weber returns to Rutgers University-New Brunswick from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, where he served for several years as an associate professor and the Cowles Endowed Fellow of Media Management at the Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

Weber is a computational social scientist and an expert on organizational change in news media. He has conducted a number of large-scale longitudinal studies examining change strategies employed by media organizations.

He has also examines how news media organizations evolve through changes in media production as well as changes in hiring patterns. His recent work focuses on local news organizations and changes in pattern of local news dissemination. Weber is also leading an initiative to provide researchers with improved access to social media datasets, including development of new tools for research.

His work has been funded by the National Science Foundation, William T. Grant Foundation, Institute of Museum and Library Services, Democracy Fund and others, and his work has been widely published in leading academic journals, as well as in the popular press.

Weber received his Ph.D. in 2010 from the Annenberg School of Journalism and Communication at the University of Southern California.