University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications (UFCJC) Advertising faculty, doctoral students and alumni were recognized at the 2024 American Academy of Advertising (AAA) Annual Conference in Portland, Oregon, from March 14-17.

Yuan Sun, UFCJC Advertising assistant professor, was the co-recipient of a 2024 AAA Research Fellowship to study “Navigating the New Frontier: Understanding Consumer Perceptions of Creative Advertising in the GenAI Age.” Sun and Penn State Advertising Associate Professor Heather Shoenberger will conduct experimental studies to examine how consumers perceive GenAI-created advertising, and how different types of advertising moderate consumers’ attitudinal and behavioral outcomes upon exposure to the ads.

Yang Feng, UFCJC Advertising associate professor in artificial intelligence (AI), was also a co-recipient of a Research Fellowship to study “Unveiling the Paradox: A Comprehensive Examination of the Dual Effect of Disclosure in Synthetic Advertising.”

Feng and Hyehyun Julia Kim, Ph.D. 2023 and University of Tampa Communication lecturer, will study the rise of AI in media content creation which has sparked concerns over its misuse for misinformation and manipulation. They will address the research gap in synthetic advertising by conducting experiments to examine the effects of disclosure types on consumer reactions to AI-generated ads, focusing on perceived transparency and awareness of falsity.

At the AAF conference, Feng and Loyola University of Chicago Associate Professor Jing Yang, co-chaired a preconference session on “Opportunities, Challenges, and Ethical Implications of Generative Artificial Intelligence in Advertising and Mass Communication.” Participants discussed generative AI and its applications of in advertising education and research.

The 2024 AAA Best Conference Paper was awarded to University of Miami Strategic Communication Assistant Professor Sophia Mueller, Ph.D. 2023, UFCJC Advertising Associate Professor Benjamin Johnson, UFCJC Professor Emeritus Jon Morris, UFCJC Advertising Professor Cynthia Morton, and Villanova Marketing Professor Charles R. Taylor for “Can Portraying Empowered Women Really Empower Women? Development and Validation of a Women’s Empowerment Through Advertising (WETA) Scale.”

The 2024 AAA Doctoral Dissertation Grant Competition winner was UFCJC doctoral student Fanjue Liu for her proposal “Being There with My Virtual Gang! Navigating Multi-Actor Digital Engagements: Extending Social Presence and Examining Consumer Responses to Co-Endorsements by Human and Virtual Influencers.” Liu’s dissertation committee is co-chaired by Advertising faculty members Kun Xu and Sylvia Chan-Olmsted

Liu was also selected to participate in the 2024 AAA and Advertising Educational Foundation – In Person Future Visiting Professor Program.

Posted: March 19, 2024
Category: Alumni News, College News, Student News
Tagged as: AAA Research Fellowship, Advertising, American Academy of Advertising, Benjamin Johnson, Cynthia Morton, Fanjue Liu, Hyehyun Julia Kim, Kun Xu, Sophia Mueller, Sylvia Chan-Olmsted, Yang Feng, Yuan Sun