Brian G. Smith is an Associate Professor of Public Relations in the School of Communications at Brigham Young University. Following a career in marketing communications and online brand management, Smith earned his Ph.D. from the University of Maryland in 2009. He is also no stranger to Brigham Young University–he earned his M.A. in International Relations (2001) and B.A. in Humanities (2000) from BYU.
Smith is an award-winning scholar and has built recognition for his research on social media engagement and integrated communication. In particular, he specializes in social media influence, activism, and crisis communication. In 2017, he was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship to teach and research in Austria, where he built a research network between students at Purdue University and at Johannes Kepler University in Austria. Smith’s work has been published in leading public relations and communication journals, including Journal of Public Relations Research, Public Relations Review, Computers in Human Behavior, International Journal of Strategic Communication, and many others.
As a professor, Smith enjoys teaching courses in social media engagement, public relations campaigns, content marketing, and communication management. He also enjoys teaching global communication, and has led several study abroad programs in Spain and in Italy. Smith presents regularly at conferences including AEJMC, the International Public Relations Research Conference (IPRRC), and BledCom (in Slovenia), and has been invited to speak at universities and institutes in the US and Europe.
Smith joined the faculty at Brigham Young University after filling faculty roles as an associate and assistant professor at Purdue University (2012-2019), and as an assistant professor at the University of Houston (2009-2012). Prior to his career as an academic, Smith managed communication and public relations in a number of professional capacities, including as an online brand marketing manager, market research director, and managing editor for a business publisher. He has also worked with clients ranging from the U.S. Department of Defense, to Visa, the Discovery Channel, The Methodist Hospital, and many others.
Smith is a co-creator of 4 boys, and is an avid traveler, YouTuber, and adventure-seeker. He is fluent in Spanish, loves basketball and music, and enjoys jam sessions with his wife and their four kids.