Dr. Mohammad Ala-Uddin is an Instructor in the School of Communication Studies at James Madison University. His educational journey includes a Ph.D. in Media and Communication from Bowling Green State University and an M.A. in International Affairs, specializing in Communication and Development Studies from Ohio University. He obtained a B.A. in Islamic History and Culture and an M.A. in Journalism, Media and Communication from the University of Dhaka, Bangladesh. Before moving to the United States, Dr. Ala-Uddin worked as a journalist and held various communication roles such as serving as a community organizer, social media manager, and global outreach coordinator. He also participated in a media studies summer program at the University of Oslo, Norway.

Ala-Uddin’s outstanding doctoral research was honored with the 2022 Top Dissertation Award by the Human Communication and Technology Division of National Communication Association (NCA). His scholarship broadly focuses on the cultural and capabilities implications of digital media and public information and contributes to equity and justice. In his research, Dr. Ala-Uddin blends qualitative methods with computational techniques and investigates the prevailing and marginalized discourses within natural language data. He particularly examines how certain social change discourses emerge, sustain, and get disrupted by various forces of power in transnational contexts, notably within the Global South.

His research, deeply rooted in the field of communication, adopts a multidisciplinary approach. This includes drawing insights from media and cultural studies, political economy, feminist theory, subaltern studies, critical ethnography, postcolonial/decolonial theory, critical algorithm/ data studies, and digital humanities. Through this multidimensional perspective, his work explores the complex interplay between media, power, and societal structures in the contemporary digital landscape.

Ala-Uddin co-authored a white paper at Ohio University, which later evolved into a substantial $19 million proposal. His work has been published in the Asia Pacific Media Educator, The Palgrave Handbook of International Communication and Sustainable Development, and the Handbook of Communication and Media in the Global South. Additionally, he has presented his research at top communication and media conferences including at ICA, IAMCR, and NCA conventions. His involvement extends to various international forums of exchange held in Bangladesh, Finland, Nepal, Norway, South Korea, Sweden, the USA, and the UK.

Dr. Ala-Uddin primarily teaches classes within cultural and health communication concentrations. These include courses like Intercultural Communication, Culture and Health Communication, and New Media and Health. Additionally, he has an extensive teaching background covering general communication classes like Fundamentals of Human Communication, Introduction to Public Speaking, Introduction to Journalism in Democratic Society, and Introduction to Communication Research. In addition to teaching, he is currently serving in the President’s AI Task Force at James Madison University.

Website: https://alauddinc4d.com