Tom McPhail is a professor of media studies and chair of the Department of Theatre, Dance and Media Studies at UMSL. (Photo by Myra Lopez)

Tom McPhail, professor of media studies and chair of the Department of Theatre, Dance and Media Studies at the University of Missouri­­­–St. Louis, has accepted an invitation to join an advisory group at the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru.

As part of the advisory group for research evaluation, McPhail will review internal faculty research grant applications in the areas of journalism, communication, media studies and international relations. He’ll also help perform quality assessments of completed research projects. McPhail was one of five foreign experts invited to join the advisory group earlier this spring.

“They consider me one of the preeminent scholars on the subject matters and welcome my participation as long as I have the time,” he said.

Pontifical Catholic University of Peru is a private university in Lima, founded in 1917 by a Catholic priest as Peru’s first nonprofit private institution of higher learning. It’s the only Peruvian university to be listed among the top 500 universities in the world in international rankings.

McPhail is a media analyst, who’s frequently quoted by national and international news outlets. He joined UMSL in 1990 and teaches courses on international media, cultural studies, new media and telecommunication policy. He’s also a fellow in International Studies and Programs at UMSL. His book, “Global Communication: Theories, Stakeholders, and Trends,” is an authoritative text on international communication. The third edition was published in 2010, and McPhail is working on the fourth edition.