Research themes

Loughborough has a proud history of pioneering work in the critical political economy of communication and in media and cultural policy. Our work in this area highlights the role of media and cultural industries, as well as policy, in reproducing existing inequalities, and seeks to understand their potential for encouraging greater cultural participation.

Lead: Dr Jessica Robles

We work on the foundational structure of human discourse, and how it plays out in face-to-face and technology-mediated interactions. That gives us a handle on a range of interpersonal and social phenomena, from intimate conversations in the family home, to interactions in institutions as varied as the commercial marketplace, the police and the healthcare professions.

Lead: Dr Sam Edwards & Dr Jilly Kay

Media, Memory and History is a fast-growing area of expertise at Loughborough which provides a shared focus of research for scholars across the social sciences and humanities. Our researchers work on various aspects of media and communication history, mediated memory, and the relationship between media and time.

Lead: Dr Michael Skey

Loughborough has a long tradition of research on nations and nationalism, with a particular focus on issues of everyday nationalism, nationalism and the media, and nation and sport.

Lead: Dr Vaclav Stetka

Loughborough University has been at the forefront of political communication research in the UK for over 25 years, examining campaigns, protest movements, radical politics, democratic deliberation, journalism, populism, media theory, and social media.