About Me

 

I am a researcher, consultant, and speaker working at the intersection of media/entertainment and narrative change. I am a strategic thinker with a passion for using data-driven insights to help advocacy organizations harness the power of media to “change the narrative” on pressing social issues.

My work has been published in peer-reviewed journals such as Media Psychology, Psychology of Men and Masculinity, Sex Roles, and Psychology of Women Quarterly and covered by trade outlets like Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Deadline, and more.

I am a Senior Researcher at the Media Impact Project, the research and evaluation arm of The Norman Lear Center (NLC) and Liaison with Hollywood, Health & Society, the outreach arm of NLC. At NLC, I founded the Pa’lante! Latino Representation Initiative, which aimed to:

  1. Become a resource hub for organizations and individuals working to improve Latino representation across the entertainment industry and bring these parties together.

  2. Disaggregate data around Latino communities— which encompass over 20 countries with diverse ethnicities, racial identities, languages, and cultures.

  3. And to leverage research and evaluation capacities to identify what’s working to improve Latino representation, what’s not, and best practices for moving forward.

I am also on the Board of Directors at Imagen Foundation, an organization focused on uplifting Latino talent in the entertainment industry. Previously, I served as Associate Director of Research at the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media.

I am a proud Latina immigrant from Mexico City, and mom to a pretty rad young adult. I received my B.A. in Psychology from the University of Texas at Austin (Hook ‘Em!) and my M.S. from the University of Michigan (Go Blue!).

For research consultations, collaborations, or speaking requests, contact me at sorayagiaccardi@gmail.com.