My scholarship sits at the intersection of research on mass media effects and political communication. My specific areas of interest and expertise include public opinion, hybrid media, political entertainment, civic and political engagement, research methods, computational social science, election studies, celebrity politics, science communication, and political tolerance.
I am particularly interested in understanding how various forms of hybrid media like political entertainment and comedy are redefining our shared mass media experience. At the same time, I also closely study what factors influence public opinion toward and engagement with controversial or “wedge” political issues, particularly those with scientific and/or moral dimensions like the same-sex marriage debate or climate change. I was recently named as the 2023 Distinguished Scholar of the Year at Loyola.
Manuscripts in Progress
Becker, A.B."But I don't watch television!" Keeping late-night comedy and political satire relevant for young audiences. (Manuscript in progress).
Cacciatore, M. A., Yeo, S. K., Becker, A. B., Anderson, A. A., & Patel, K. Cultivating interest in science through humor: Mirth as a leveler of gaps in science engagement. (Manuscript in progress).
Conference Presentations by Year
2024
Becker, A.B. & Waisanen, D.J. (2024, September). Renewing democracy through dialogue: Insights from research with Living Room Conversations for Public Agenda. Research presented at the annual Political Communication preconference of the American Political Science Association (APSA), Philadelphia, PA.
Yeo, S.K., Becker, A.B., Patel, K., Parlett-Pelleriti, C., McDermott, J., Anderson, A.A., & Cacciatore, M.A. (2024, February). Learn how to communicate science through humor: Comedy, cartoons & social posts. Workshop presented at the annual conference of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), Denver, CO.
2023
Cacciatore, M.A., Yeo, S.K., Becker, A.B., Anderson, A.A., & Patel, K. (2023, May). Cultivating interest in science through humor: Mirth as a leveler of gaps in science engagement. Paper presented at the annual conference of the International Communication Association (ICA), Toronto, Canada.
2022
Becker, A.B. (2022, September). John Oliver as the (un)likely pandemic fundraiser: Championing worthy causes and participation through satire. Paper presented at the annual Political Communication preconference of the American Political Science Association (APSA), Montreal, Canada.
Becker, A.B. (2022, May). Does gender matter? Comic hosts, audience reception, and the processing of political satire content Paper presented at the annual conference of the International Communication Association (ICA), Paris, France.
Anderson, A.A., Becker, A.B., Cacciatore, M.A., Patel, K., & Yeo, S. (2022, March). It doesn't matter who you are, make 'em laugh: Experienced humor predicts communicator effectiveness. Paper presented at the Science Talk '22 conference, Portland, OR.
2021
Becker, A.B. (2021, May). Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Or is it? The effects of exposure to SNL parody on perceptions of The View. Paper presented at the annual conference of the International Communication Association (ICA), virtual.
Becker, A.B. (2021, May)."We like the boyfriend!" Political comedy, COVID-19, and conversations with Governor Andrew Cuomo. Paper presented at the annual conference of the International Communication Association (ICA), virtual.
2020
Becker, A.B. & Jones, P.E. (2020, October). Experience with discrimination, perceptions of difference, and the importance of gender conformity on support for transgender rights. Paper accepted for the annual conference of the World Association for Public Opinion Research (WAPOR), Salamanca, Spain. (Participation cancelled due to COVID-19)
Cacciatore, M.A., Becker, A.B., Anderson, A.A., Yeo, S.K. (2020, May). Laughing with science: The influence of audience approval on engagement. Paper presented at the annual conference of the International Communication Association (ICA), virtual.
Yeo, S.K., Anderson, A.A., Becker, A.B., & Cacciatore, M.A. (2020, February). The effect of science comedy on perceptions of scientists and scientific messages. Paper presented at the annual conference of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), Seattle, WA.
2019
Becker, A.B. & Waisanen, D.J. (2019, November). John Oliver and Stephen Colbert's crossover children's books as metanoic vetoes. Paper presented at the annual conference of the National Communication Association, Baltimore, MD.
Becker, A.B. (2019, August). When comedy goes to extremes: The influence of ideology on source liking, credibility, and counterarguing. Paper presented at the 2019 Political Communication preconference of the American Political Science Association (APSA), Washington, DC.
Becker, A.B., & Anderson, A.A. (2019, February). Can comedy stimulate climate change advocacy and engagement? Paper presented at the University of Michigan Symposium on Media and Politics: Environmental Advocacy in a Polarized World, Ann Arbor, MI.
2018
Scacco, J.M., Copeland, L., & Becker, A.B. (2018, April). Of tirades and Tweets: Public opinion on President Trump’s use of Twitter. Paper presented at the annual conference of the Midwest Political Science Association (MPSA), Chicago, IL.
2017
Becker, A.B. (2017, August).Teaching controversy in the classroom: Best practices for engaging students about politically contentious science, environmental, health, and risk issues. Invited panelist at the annual conference of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC), Chicago, IL.
Becker, A.B., & Todd, M.E. (2017, May). Two steps forward, one step back? Amazon’s Transparent, ecological systems theory, and the changing dynamics of family. Paper presented at the annual conference of the International Communication Association (ICA), San Diego, CA.
2016
Bode, L., & Becker, A.B. (2016, August) Fly my pretties: John Oliver, net neutrality, and comedy as an agent of political activation. Paper presented at the Political Communication preconference of the American Political Science Association (APSA), Philadelphia, PA.
Becker, A.B. (2016, February). Using comedy to increase public interest and understanding of political and science issues. Invited panelist at the annual meeting of the Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), Washington, DC.
2015
Becker, A.B., Copeland, L. (2015, August). Connective social
media: A catalyst for LGBT political consumerism among members of a
networked public. Paper presented at the annual conference of the Association for Education in Journalism & Mass Communication, San Francisco, CA.
Becker, A.B., & Goldberg, A.B. (2015, May). Connecting the comedy dots: Interview content, elaborative processing, and political satire programming. Paper presented at the annual conference of the International Communication Association, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Becker, A.B., & Todd, M.E. (2015, May). Changing perspectives? Public opinion, perceptions of discrimination, and feelings toward the family. Paper presented at the annual conference of the International Communication Association, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Waisanen, D.J., & Becker, A.B. (2015, May). The problem with being Joe Biden: Political comedy and circulating personae. Paper presented at the annual conference of the International Communication Association, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Becker, A.B. & Copeland, L. (2015, April). Networked publics: How connective social media use facilitates political consumerism among LGBT Americans. Invited paper presented at the Boston University Center for Mobile Communication studies expert workshop: Social media and the prospects for expanded democratic participation in national policy-setting, Boston, MA.
2014
Hackl, A., Becker, A.B., & Todd, M.E. (2014, November). "I am Chelsea Manning." Comparison of gendered representation of Private Manning in US and international newspapers. Paper presented at the annual conference of the National Communication Association, Chicago, IL.
2013
Waisanen, D.J.,* Becker, A.B.* (2013, November). From funny features to entertaining effects: Connecting approaches to communication research on political comedy. Paper accepted by the Political Communication Division for presentation at the annual conference of the National Communication Association, Washington, DC. * denotes equal contribution
Becker, A.B., Kaza, S., & Goldberg, A.B. (2013, August). Big data, big issues: Applying public opinion theory, machine learning, and large-scale text analysis to explore issue opinions and information flow across traditional and social media. Paper presented at the "Sentiment, Politics, and Citizenship," Political Communication preconference of the American Political Science Association, Chicago, IL.
Becker, A.B. (2013, August). Discussant, Are celebrities persuasive in politics? Theme panel accepted for presentation at the annual conference of the American Political Science Association, Chicago, IL.
Becker, A.B. (2013, August). Panelist, Exploring the use of emerging technology in the classroom during the 2012 election cycle and beyond. Teaching panel sponsored by the Communication Technology Division and Political Communication Interest Group for presentation at the annual conference of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, Washington, DC.
Becker, A.B. (2013, June). Are the kids all right? Family status, challenges, public opinion, and gay civil rights. Paper presented at the annual conference of the International Communication Association, London, UK.
2012
Becker, A.B. (2012, November). Invited panelist, Empirical assessments of the impact of parody and satire. P6: Professors and Practitioners Pontificate on Political Parody and Persuasion, sponsored by the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA.
Becker, A.B., & Haller, B.A. (2012, August). When political comedy turns personal: Humor types, audience evaluations, and attitudes. Paper presented to the Political Communication Interest Group of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, Chicago, IL.
2011
Becker, A.B. (2011, May). Pop politics? Celebrity issue advocacy campaigns and their influence on situational involvement, complacency, and apathy. Paper presented to the Political Communication Division of the International Communication Association, Boston, MA.
Xenos, M.A., Becker, A.B., Anderson, A.A., Brossard, D., & Scheufele, D.A. (2011, May). Stimulating upstream engagement: An experimental study of nanotechnology information-seeking. Paper presented to the Political Communication Division of the International Communication Association, Boston, MA.
Haller, B.A., & Becker, A.B. (2011, April). Stepping backwards with disability humor: The case of Governor David Paterson's representation on Saturday Night Live. Paper presented at the Pacific Rim International Conference on Disabilities, Honolulu, HI.
2010
Becker, A.B., Anderson, A.A., Xenos, M.A., Brossard, D., Scheufele, D.A., & Kim, E. (2010, November). Cognitive complexity of scientific issues: How anticipated discussion impacts complexity of thought. Paper presented at the second international conference on Science in Society, Madrid, Spain.
2009
Becker, A.B. (2009, November). Comedy in all its many forms: The differential influence of satire, self-ridicule, and parody on political attitudes. Paper presented at the annual conference of the Midwest Association for Public Opinion Research, Chicago, IL.
Becker, A.B. (2009, August). New voters, new outlook? Same-sex marriage, social networks, and generational politics. Paper presented at the annual conference of the Association for Education in Journalism & Mass Communication, Boston, MA.
(Awarded Top 3 Student Paper from Mass Communication & Society Division).
Dalrymple, K.E., Becker, A.B., Brossard, D., Scheufele, D.A., & Gunther, A.C. (2009, August). Getting Citizens Involved: How controversial science policy debates stimulate issue participation during a political campaign. Paper presented at the annual conference of the Association for Education in Journalism & Mass Communication, Boston, MA.
(Awarded Top Paper from Science Communication Interest Group).
Becker, A.B. (2009, May). Riding the wave of the New Jew Revolution: Watching The Daily Show with Jews for Jon Stewart. Paper presented at the annual conference of the International Communication Association, Chicago, IL.
Xenos, M.A., Moy, P., & Becker, A.B. (2009, May). Making Sense of The Daily Show: Understanding the Role of Partisan Heuristics in Political Comedy Effects. Paper presented at the 2009 conference of the International Communication Association, Chicago, IL.
Xenos, M.A., & Becker, A.B. (2009, January). The Daily Show and political learning: Experimental tests of the gateway hypothesis. Paper presented at the annual conference of the Southern Political Science Association, New Orleans, LA.
2008
Becker, A.B., & Scheufele, D.A. (2008, November). Public perceptions of the use of steroid in sport: Contextualizing communication efforts. Paper presented at the annual conference of the Midwest Association for Public Opinion Research, Chicago, IL.
Becker, A.B., & Scheufele, D.A. (2008, August). Television, perceptual filters, and personal politics: Examining public opinion toward gay marriage. Paper presented at the annual conference of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, Chicago, IL.
Xenos, M.A., & Becker, A.B. (2008, May). Moments of Zen: The Daily Show, information seeking, and partisan heuristics. Paper presented at the annual conference of the International Communication Association, Montreal, Canada (Awarded Top Paper from the Political Communication Division).
Ho, S.S., Becker, A.B., Binder, A.R., Scheufele, D.A., Brossard, D., & Gunther, A.C. (2008, May). Do perceptions of media bias undermine citizenship? An examination across elections and issues. Paper presented at the annual conference of the International Communication Association, Montreal, Canada.
2007
Becker, A.B., & Xenos, M.A. (2007, November). Understanding the power of Jon Stewart: The third person effect and the comedy of The Daily Show. Paper presented at the annual conference of the Midwest Association for Public Opinion Research, Chicago, IL.
Becker, A.B., Dalrymple, K.E., Brossard, D., & Scheufele, D.A. (2007, May). Stem cell publics: Issue involvement in the 2006 elections. Paper presented at the annual conference of the American Association for Public Opinion Research, Anaheim, CA.
Becker, A.B. (2007, May). Support for gay marriage and the role of religious/value predispositions: Explaining positions on a moral issue through the examination of personal beliefs. Paper presented at the annual conference of the American Association for Public Opinion Research, Anaheim, CA.
2006
Becker, A.B. (2006, November). Making decisions based on bioethical principles: The rhetoric of end-of-life decision making. Paper presented at the annual conference of the National Communication Association, San Antonio, TX.
Becker, A.B. (2006, November). Transforming conflict in the Middle East: Establishing a productive dialogue. Paper presented at the annual conference of the National Communication Association, San Antonio, TX.