Dr. Ross Dahlke

Biography

Ross Dahlke is an Assistant Professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His research leverages computational social science and data science to study the effects of political information exposure on private communication channels, including text messaging and platforms like WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and Telegram. He has published his findings in prestigious journals such as the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), Nature Human Behavior, and the Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication. Ross earned his PhD from Stanford University, where he was a Knight-Hennessy Scholar and a Stanford Data Science Scholar. Prior to his doctoral studies, he worked as a data scientist for a digital marketing measurement firm, where he developed and deployed Bayesian machine learning models and conducted large-scale A/B testing for major clients, optimizing their digital marketing strategies. Ross has also consulted for numerous political campaigns, helping them implement advanced data analytics techniques. He completed his undergraduate education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, graduating with Comprehensive Honors and receiving the Theodore Herfurth Award for Initiative and Efficiency, recognizing him as the top graduating male student at the university.

Research Interests