Dr. Anton Shirikov

Anton Shirikov is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science. He earned his PhD in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2022. In 2022-2024, he was a Postdoctoral Scholar in Russian Politics at the Harriman Institute, Columbia University. His research investigates how propaganda helps authoritarian leaders maintain public support and undermine the influence of independent media. In related research, he studies how we can teach citizens to treat propaganda and disinformation more critically and how Russian propaganda spreads in the United States. His other work examines political elites and institutions in Russia and Ukraine and the legacies of communism in the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. His research has been published or is forthcoming in The Journal of Politics, Political Communication, The Quarterly Journal of Political Science, Problems of Post-Communism, The Journal of Legislative Studies, and East European Politics and Societies. His analysis and commentary have appeared in The Washington Post, PBS NewsHour, The Financial Times, Newsweek, Huffington Post, USA Today, Euronews, and other media outlets. Before his PhD studies, he worked as a journalist and an editor in Russian independent media.