Rob McMahon

University of Alberta, Political Science, Faculty Member

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Dr. Rob McMahon is an Associate Professor in the Media & Technology Studies Unit and the Department of Political Science in the Faculty of Arts at the University of Alberta. He teaches in the Master of Arts in Communication and Technology (MACT) program. Dr. McMahon’s research focuses on the development, adoption, and use of broadband and internet technologies by rural, Northern, and Indigenous communities. His approach involves working with communities to ensure that their voices are heard in all stages of research. He and his partners are involved in efforts to contribute to digital policy and regulation.

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The First Mile of Broadband Connectivity in Communities: Introduction to the Special Issue

The Journal of Community Informatics

In this special issue , “First Mile” refers to broadband infrastructure development that puts the... more In this special issue , “First Mile” refers to broadband infrastructure development that puts the needs of local communities first and ahead of the needs of private sector telecommunication corporations. This approach is one that prioritizes community-led solutions that seek to create local economic and social opportunities and to minimize the digital divide between rural and urban users (see: McMahon, O’Donnell, Smith, Walmark, Beaton, & Simmons, 2011). Around the world, broadband infrastructure and networks are rapidly being developed in communities marginalized in the network society. The relationships, structures and agreements put into place at this early development stage will shape how broadband systems are created and managed in the future. First Mile strategies include developing locally owned and managed telecommunication structures and networks. This special issue profiles First Mile projects and efforts that are as innovative, unique and vibrant as the communities from w...

Journalism in Crisis: Bridging Theory and Practice for Democratic Media Strategies in Canada

Canadian Journal of Communication

We live in exciting and challenging times for democratic media reform. Converging technological, ... more We live in exciting and challenging times for democratic media reform. Converging technological, institutional, socio-political, and economic developments threaten the field of journalism-but also provide opportunities for engaged actors to look to theory, policy, and practice for historic lessons as well as emerging solutions. Such is the premise of this excellent collection of essays, Journalism in Crisis: Bridging Theory and Practice for Democratic Media Strategies in Canada, on the present "critical juncture" (McChesney, 2007) faced by democratic media in Canada and beyond. Activist and reform-oriented approaches to media policy and practice are enjoying renewed focus in communication scholarship, as illustrated in recent issues of International Journal of Communication (IJOC) and Journal of Information Policy (JIP). JIP published a series of articles reexamining the debate between "administrative" and "critical" approaches to communication policy research, with the aim of exploring how these traditions might be integrated in contemporary work (Katz & Katz, 2016; Napoli & Friedland, 2016). In a related discussion in IJOC, Carragee and Frey (2016) outlined the need for engaged communication scholarship: "[This approach] involves communication researchers (and, in the case of teaching, communication educators and students) using their theories, methods, and applied practices to work with and for oppressed, marginalized, and under-resourced groups and communities … as well as with activist groups and organizations … to intervene into unjust discourses and material conditions to make them more just, and documenting and reporting their practices, processes, and effects to multiple publics" (p. 3975). In his response to this piece, McChesney (2016) agrees with their assessment and stresses its importance at the current historical moment, emphasizing both policy struggles and efforts to establish independent media organizations and systems. Journalism in Crisis contributes a Canadian perspective on these issues. Covering different facets of journalism practice and policy in a theoretically grounded and accessible manner, the authors take a tone of cautious optimism that highlights contemporary challenges while encouraging action. As

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