He teaches journalism, Religion & Media, and other courses. He wrote for several N.C. newspapers before becoming an educator, including The Winston-Salem Journal and the Jacksonville Daily News, and was editor of The Clemmons Courier. He is a former religion correspondent for The Charlotte Observer and the Durham Herald-Sun. He is co-editor of a textbook, "Mass Communication in the Global Age." He earned a B.A. in English and M.Ed. in speech communications from UNC-Greensboro; his Ph.D. in mass communication research is from UNC-Chapel Hill.