Colten Meisner

Colten Meisner is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Communication and Media at the University of Michigan. His research examines the changing nature of work in emerging media and technology industries with a focus on the cultures and economies of social media platforms. Trained as a qualitative social scientist, Meisner has studied a wide range of media and technology workers, including traditional print journalists; founders of digital news startups; influencers and live streamers; and workers tasked with refining search engines for global cultural sensitivities.

An expert on the social media creator economy, Meisner’s research has been published in such journals as New Media & Society, Social Media + Society, Media, Culture & Society, Policy & Internet, and Computers in Human Behavior. In addition to academic work, he has disseminated his research to broader audiences through commentary at South by Southwest (SXSW) and analysis in TechCrunch, Business Insider, Fast Company, and the MIT Technology Review. He also serves as a founding member of the academic advisory circle of the American Influencer Council, the leading not-for-profit trade association for U.S.-based content creators.

Prior to joining the University of Michigan in 2026, Meisner previously served on the faculty of North Carolina State University and completed two doctoral internships with the Social Media Collective at Microsoft Research New England. Meisner is currently working on his first book project focused on the transformations in media industry labor brought on by subscription platforms like Substack.