Pace University News

Melvin L. Williams, PhD, associate professor of communication and media studies, was featured on CBS News: The Daily Report in an in-studio interview, where he discussed celebrity culture, politics, and the 2024 Democratic and Republican National Convention.

Melvin L. Williams, PhD, associate professor of communication and media studies, was featured on CBC: Your Morning, Canada's national morning show. Williams discussed the impacts and dangers of celebrity endorsements in the 2024 US Presidential Election.

“In a world where people are constantly looking for simple answers and solutions (e.g. Is technology good or bad?), the fact is that the impact of technology (and in this study, texting specifically) differs based on the interaction between multiple things (in this study, personality characteristics and people’s motivations for texting),” said co-author Leora Trub, an associate professor of psychology at Pace University.

"When Michael Jordan—the Greatest of all time basketball player—was pressured about providing a political endorsement, he informed the sports media world that 'Republicans buy sneakers, too,'" said Professor Larry Chiagouris, brand marketing and advertising expert at Pace University. "His intent was clearly that his craft was a sports star and not someone who is expert at telling someone who to vote for or who to vote against."