J. Nathan Matias

Associate Professor, Department of Communication

Nathan is an Associate Professor in the Cornell University Department of Communication, where he leads CAT Lab. He works with social media companies, news organizations, and online communities to test ideas for a flourishing internet and evaluate the social impact of online platforms.

Nathan developed CAT Lab as part of his PhD at the MIT Media Lab and MIT Center for Civic Media. Nathan, who is Guatemalan-American, has a background in tech startups and nonprofits. His research regularly appears in the news, and his writing has appeared in The Atlantic, PBS, the Guardian, and many others. [Image credit: Allison Usavage/Cornell CALS.]

Education

Doctorate, Massachusetts Institute of Technology - 2017
Master of Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology - 2013
Bachelor of Arts, Elizabethtown College - 2008
Master's Degree, University of Cambridge - 2008

Courses Taught

COMM 2450: Communication & Technology
COMM 7990: Graduate Research

Contact Information

486 Mann Library
Ithaca, NY 14853

nathan.matias [at] cornell.edu

Additional Links
- Personal Website

Selected Publications

Journal Publications

Matias, J.N., Wright, L. (2022) Impact Assessment of Human-Algorithm Feedback Loops Just Tech. Social Science Research Council.
Matias, J.N., Lewis, N. JR, Hope, E. (2021)
Universities Say They Want More Diverse Faculties. So Why Is Academia Still So White?FiveThirtyEight.
Levine, A.S., Matias, J.N. (2021) How to Generate Research Ideas That Impact Society. Inside Higher Ed
Matias, J. N. (2019). Preventing harassment and increasing group participation through social norms in 2,190 online science discussions. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 116(20)
Zuckerman, E., Matias, J., Bhargava, T., Bermejo, F., & Ko, A. (2019). Whose Death Matters? A Quantitative Analysis of Media Attention to Deaths of Black Americans in Police Confrontations, 2013–2016. International Journal of Communication. 13:27.

J. Nathan in the news

News

May 13, 2026

Regular audits would build trust, confidence in AI

J. Nathan Matias, assistant professor of communication, is a co-author of “Auditing AI,” which offers AI users from all walks of life an introduction into AI evaluation, which is key for developing trust in the technology.

Department of Communication
Communication

News

November 19, 2025

COMM Updates - 11/19/2025

November 19, 2025 Invited Lectures Graduate student Ria Gualano delivered an invited talk titled “Virtual Reality Avatars and Storytelling” as part of Disability and Extended Reality Technologies: A Research Day at the University of Michigan’s...

J. Nathan Matias

Contact Information

Additional Links

Selected Publications

J. Nathan in the news