Dr. Jasmine McNealy
Interview by Aurora Martínez
Jasmine McNealy is an associate professor in the Media Production, Management, and Technology Department (formerly Telecommunication). Her research focuses on privacy, online media, and communities. More recently, she and colleague Stephanie T. Nguyen launched “I, Obscura,” to be a resource to highlight, educate, and engage practitioners and researchers on dark patterns in industries ranging from financial services and smart home devices to related children’s technologies.
1. Car or bike? Bike.
2. Facebook or Twitter? Twitter.
3. What was your favorite movie when you were a kid? Gremlins.
4. What does diversity mean to you? Differences.
5. Why should we care about deceptive design patterns? We should care because these kinds of designs are having significant impacts on people and communities. These kinds of designs can be financially, emotionally, and psychologically harmful.
6. Should people fear technology in the realm of media and communications? No, never fear. Be concerned and be informed.
7. Based on your experiences as a Black woman, which conversations do you wish we were having at UF surrounding topics of race and identity? The conversation we should be having is about whether the university actually wants to change or to only perform change, without really changing.
8. If you could go back to your time in college, is there anything you would like Jasmine McNealy to know ahead of time? Decisions matter.