Translating Game Studies, VR and the Metaverse for Journalists and the Public (feat. Dr. Maxwell Foxman)
SPARTIE-Cast with Dr. Robby Ratan
English - July 30, 2021 11:00 - 42 minutes - 39.4 MBEducation Science Social Sciences media psychology communication technology game studies virtual reality Homepage Download Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
In this episode, Dr. Maxwell Foxman discusses the connections between his interest in history, journalism and game studies. We dive into his early research, Foursquare (OMG he still uses it!) and his approach to helping journalists understand how to present stories on media (e.g., virtual world use during the pandemic).
He explains why virtual reality didn’t take off during the pandemic (e.g., cost, supply chain) and why there is a rift between public perception and scholarly understanding of technologies like virtual reality and avatars.
About this week's guest:
Maxwell Foxman is an assistant professor of media and game studies at the University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication. His research focuses on play in non-game situations like on social media, in politics and in journalism.
Foxman is also a consultant for organizations like SuperData, Data & Society, Thunder 11 and the Tow Center for Digital Journalism.
About the SPARTIE Lab:
The Social and Psychological Approaches to Research on Technology-Interaction Effects (SPARTIE) Lab performs research on the effects of human-technology interaction, examining how the use of media technologies (e.g., avatars, agents, automobiles) influences meaningful outcomes (e.g., education, health/safety, persuasion).
The SPARTIE Lab is part of the greater academic community at the College of Communication Arts & Sciences at Michigan State University. More information on the lab's research projects, staff, and work can be found on the SPARTIE Lab website.
About the host:
Dr. Rabindra (Robby) Ratan, Ph. D., is an associate professor and AT&T Scholar at Michigan State University’s Department of Media and Information and is the director of the SPARTIE Lab.
He is also an affiliated faculty member of the MSU Department of Psychology, the MSU College of Education’s program in Educational Psychology and Educational Technology, and the MSU Center for Gender in a Global Context. Ratan received his Ph.D. from USC’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, his M.A. in Communication from Stanford University, and his B.A. in Science, Technology and Society, also from Stanford University.
Dr. Ratan conducts research on the effects of human-technology interaction, examining how media technologies (e.g., avatars, agents, automobiles) influence meaningful outcomes (e.g., persuasion, education, health/safety). He is particularly interested in the Proteus effect, media-rich transportation contexts, perceptions of media as self-representations and/or social others, avatarification for health and education, and gender stereotypes in gaming contexts.
Dr. Ratan lives near Lansing with his family. More information on his work can be found on his website.