Media Guide to WCU Faculty Experts
West Chester University media relations managers are happy to assist journalists with interview requests for this expert. Call 610-436-3383 or email HSchwarz@wcupa.edu
Dr. Michael P. Boyle
Professor, Department Chairperson
College of Arts & Humanities - Communication and Media
Bio
Dr. Michael Boyle's research focuses on how news media present issues to the public, how and why people use media, and the implications of news coverage and media use patterns on subsequent outcomes such as information seeking, public opinion, and perceptions of media effects, falling into two major areas. The first area of his research specifically addresses news treatment of protest groups and how it affects participation in the political process. The second area of his research explores the processes underlying the third-person perception - a common pattern where people typically perceive others to be more affected by media than they are - and the resulting third-person effect, often characterized by support for censorship and other regulatory responses.
He is the co-author of the research methods textbook Applied Communication Research Methods: Getting Started as a Researcher. His work has been published in book chapters, invited volumes, on blogs, and scholarly journals including Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, Mass Communication & Society, Journal of Broadcast & Electronic Media, Atlantic Journal of Communication, American Behavioral Scientist, International Journal of Press/Politics, and Journal of Communication, among others.
Boyle helped found WCU-TV (Channel 33 Verizon), which represents a community partnership between the borough and WCU.
Media
National journal, 2014
Philadelphia Inquirer, 2016