UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — A respected communications researcher with expertise in areas such as communication policy and regulation, comparative media systems, and rural broadband — an especially important topic in Pennsylvania — has been selected to join the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications as the Pioneers Chair in the Department of Telecommunications.

Christopher Ali, who has testified before Congress about federal broadband policies and authored two books, will join Penn State at the start of the 2022-23 academic year. He previously served as an associate professor at the University of Virginia.

“I cannot be more excited or more proud to be joining the faculty in the Bellisario College and the Penn State community,” Ali said. “The academic reputation of the program and the research credentials of my new colleagues are impressive. I look forward to collaborating and contributing to the continued success of the Bellisario College and the University.”

Ali’s research interests include communication policy and regulation, rural broadband, critical political economy, critical geography, comparative media systems, media localism, and local news. His current research focuses on broadband policy and deployment in the United States, specifically in rural areas.

His latest book, “Farm Fresh Broadband: The Politics of Rural Connectivity” (MIT Press, 2021), examines the complicated terrain of rural broadband policy in the United Sates. The book unpacks the politics of broadband policy, asking why millions of rural Americans lack broadband access and why the federal government, and large providers, are not doing more to connect the unconnected.