She received her Ph.D. in Communication and Society from the School of Journalism and Communication, the University of Oregon in 2005. She is currently completing to McFarland & Co. Inc. her manuscript on Hollywood action-adventure film portrayals of international terrorism, analyzing them in the context of the traditions of the action-adventure film genre, news portrayals of international terrorism, and U.S. policies on and experiences with international terrorism. The research concentrates on the time period from the Iran Hostage Crisis (1979-81) to September 11, 2001. Her research and teaching interests are film, terrorism and media, international communication, international journalism, and TV and video production. She is also a freelance journalist.