Adjunct Assistant Professor Shares Election Advertising Insight

Dr. Leo Kivijarv, Ph.D., Mercy College adjunct assistant professor of media studies, teaches and engages students by sharing real-life professional experiences, seeking to provide helpful insight into the media industry as his students chart their careers.

Kivijarv, who has taught media studies at Mercy and other colleges for more than 40 years, is also executive vice president and director of research at PQ Media, a research company that delivers data and analysis to executives at the world’s leading media, entertainment and technology organizations. A reporter recently tapped Kivijarv’s expertise for an article about campaign ad spending that appeared in Broadcasting+Cable, a media industry news outlet.

Citing this year’s dramatic increase in campaign commercials by political candidates , Kivijarv offered his perspective on the enormous expenditures of campaigns aimed at unseating incumbent United States Senator Lindsey Graham and supporting Hispanic voter initiatives in Florida.

“Leo contributes his expertise to Mercy in many ways,” said Lou Grasso, Assistant Professor and head of Mercy’s Media Studies Program.

“He frequently shares insights with his students, both in the classroom and as a keynote speaker on the Mercy campus, including a 2019 talk on multicultural media that he had previously presented at the Association of National Advertiser’s Multicultural Marketing and Diversity Conference in San Diego. He will even use examples from his own company’s audience marketing data if it serves the student experience. It’s just one more way that our students benefit from Mercy’s ongoing relationships with adjuncts.”