The James H. and Mary B. Quello Center is focused on research that stimulates and informs public debate on media, communication and information policy. Our research often challenges assumptions about the role of technology, policy and regulation for citizens, communities, and society in pursuit of optimizing the full benefits of advanced communications in the digital age. Quello Center researchers collaborate across Michigan State University, with other centers of excellence, and with stakeholders to advance the political, social and economic potential of the Internet and related technologies and services. Current research addresses next-generation networks (5G, Internet of Things), network neutrality, digital inclusion, the opportunities of next-generation media, and data ethics.
Recent Research

For updates on new research please sign up for our SSRN electronic journal.

Reisdorf, B.C., Blank, G., Bauer, J. M., Cotten, S., Robertson, C.T., & Knittel, M. (2021). Information Seeking Patterns and COVID-19 in the United States. Journal of Quantitative Description. DOI.

Prado, T. S., Kill Zones? Measuring the Impact of Big Tech Start-up Acquisitions on Venture Capital Activity (February 17, 2021). Available at: SSRN or DOI

Bauer, J.M.; Hampton, K.N.; Fernandez, L.; Robertson, C., Overcoming Michigan’s Homework Gap: The Role of Broadband Internet Connectivity for Student Success and Career Outlooks (October 19, 2020). Quello Center Working Paper No. 06-20. Available at: SSRN or DOI

Bauer, J.M. and Prado, T.S., Digital Platforms and Innovation: Lessons for Innovation Policy and Regulation (December 15, 2020). Available at: SSRN or DOI

Hampton, K.; Fernandez, L.; Robertson, C.; Bauer, J.M., Repercussions of Poor Broadband Connectivity for Students in Rural and Small Town Michigan (December 15, 2020). Available at: SSRN or DOI

Hampton, K.N.; Fernandez, L.; Robertson, C.; Bauer, J.M., Broadband and Student Performance Gaps (March 3, 2020). Available at: SSRN or DOI

Prado, T.S., Assessing the Market Power of Digital Platforms (December 12, 2020). Available at: SSRN or DOI

Quello Center Policy Brief

Overcoming COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy: A United States-United Kingdom Comparison

Policy brief coverAchieving a high overall vaccination rate is crucial for overcoming the COVID-19 pandemic. To prevent widening inequalities, it is also important to increase vaccination rates among the diverse populations that are most gravely affected by the pandemic. Governmental, healthcare, and policy groups need data to guide their strategic vaccination campaigns. This policy brief presents insights from data collected shortly before vaccines were formally approved. Our analysis helps to understand the factors that influence the willingness to be vaccinated and informs strategies to reach vaccine hesitant populations.
Download Quello Center Policy Brief

Broadband and Student Performance Gaps: A Checklist for K12 Schools Considering Online Teaching in Response to COVID-19

Policy brief coverSchool districts face difficult choices. Large scale shifts in public education to an online curriculum must consider inequalities in broadband access, devices and skills, as well as parental and caretaker involvement. However, these inequalities cannot be overcome immediately. Unless schools decide against online teaching altogether because of these concerns (a strategy that has disadvantages for connected students), they need to find responses that minimize potential disadvantages for vulnerable populations. Key considerations are (1) offering of measures to improve the capacity of teachers, parents and learners to adapt to online learning, (2) appropriate design and use of distance learning, and (3) short-term measures to improve access to broadband. Quello Center Policy Brief 01-20 lays out options for short-term and long-term responses to the crisis.

Four Things A School District Needs to Know Before Moving Education Online
Download Quello Center Policy Brief 01-20 | Download Broadband and Performance Gap Report

Community: Stories, Commentaries, Videos, Podcasts
16.3.2021
New study: U.S. faces uphill struggle compared to U.K. in COVID-19 vaccination rates

Just 51% of Americans expressed a clear willingness to take the COVID-19 vaccine compared to 71% of residents in the United Kingdom, according to a

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11.2.2021
Quello Center Researchers @ TPRC 48

TPRC 48 will take place virtually from February 17-19, 2021. The conference, to be hosted by American University in September 2020, was rescheduled

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Upcoming Events
Past Events
30 Apr '21
Free
Challenges of Smart Cities/Public-Private Partnerships in the Digital Economy. A Conversation with Alyssa Harvey Dawson, Gusto’s Chief Legal Officer

Join us as we discuss issues related to smart cities/public-private partnerships and the challenges associated with driving innovative projects that require coordinating with diverse stakeholders, especially when topics of data, privacy and AI are involved.

  • Friday @ 11:00 am Friday @ 12:00 pm
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16 Apr '21
Free
IMPhD & Quello Center present: Sonic Privacy with Jasmine McNealy, University of Florida’s College of Journalism and Communications

Sonic Privacy with Jasmine McNealy, University of Florida’s College of Journalism and Communications Via Zoom | RSVP Here | or email quello@msu.edu This presentation is based on a study that considers the collection of sonic – sound related – data and proposes a theory of sonic privacy for data collection. At its foundation, this theory of sonic privacy examines the right of individuals related to their sonic emissions and distinguishes between sounds heard by other individuals and those collected through technological machinations. The talk examines the prior literature and background providing the foundational thinking on privacy related to sound. Following this, it turns to the wealth […]

  • Friday @ 11:00 am Friday @ 12:00 pm
  • , Via Zoom, , .
12 Mar '21
Free
Regulating ‘Fairness’ on Social Media: Lessons from the Fairness Doctrine with Philip M. Napoli (Duke University)

DIGITAL FUTURES WORKSHOP: Philip M. Napoli, Duke University Via Zoom | Register here | or email quello@msu.edu Debates about political bias in the content curation and moderation practices of social media platforms have spilled over into the policy realm, rekindling conversations about the Fairness Doctrine and its potential utility in possible regulatory approaches to social media.  This presentation revisits the history of the Fairness Doctrine, including its frequent recurrence as a point of reference in subsequent media policy debates, and uses this history as a lens for critically examining current proposals for integrating Fairness Doctrine-like principles into a regulatory framework for […]

  • Friday @ 11:00 am Friday @ 12:00 pm
  • , Online Event, , .