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"I came to SFU for three main reasons: the opportunity to work with Dr. Wendy Chun and the Digital Democracies Institute, the school's strong history at the forefront of labour activism, and the chance to learn from a wide variety of communications and media scholars."
Anthony Burton
Communications doctoral student in the Faculty of Communication, Art and Technology
Anthony Glyn Burton has worked as a dockmaster, bartender, hockey referee, baby food marketer, driving range ball picker-upper, journalist, editor, cultural events producer, and digital researcher. He is now a SSHRC Joseph Armand Bombardier Ph.D. scholar at Simon Fraser University’s Communications Department and a doctoral researcher at the Digital Democracies Institute. Anthony joined SFU after finishing his master’s degree at York and X University’s Joint Program in Communication & Culture, where he first joined the Infoscape Lab and the Open Intelligence Lab (OILab). He received his H.B.A. in English and Philosophy from Victoria University in the University of Toronto and continues to research computation, politics, code, and rationality.
WHY DID YOU CHOOSE TO COME TO SFU?
I came to SFU for three main reasons: the opportunity to work with Dr. Wendy Chun and the Digital Democracies Institute, the school's strong history at the forefront of labour activism, and the chance to learn from a wide variety of communications and media scholars.
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR RESEARCH OR YOUR PROGRAM TO A FAMILY MEMBER?
I study computation, computing, computers, and the worlds that surround them.
WHAT ARE YOU PARTICULARLY ENJOYING ABOUT YOUR STUDIES/RESEARCH AT SFU?
I've had the chance to learn from a huge variety of people across my field (and outside of it!) and to do some really interesting research with the Digital Democracies Lab. I've had invaluable guidance from every mentor that I've encountered, from my advisor to one-off professors, and the support that the school has provided me is beyond what I could have imagined coming in.
HAVE YOU BEEN THE RECIPIENT OF ANY MAJOR OR DONOR-FUNDED AWARDS? IF SO, PLEASE TELL US WHICH ONES AND A LITTLE ABOUT HOW THE AWARDS HAVE IMPACTED YOUR STUDIES AND/OR RESEARCH.
I'm the recipient of the SSHRC Joseph Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship for my Ph.D., as well as scholarship funding from the school itself. These have set me up for my studies with confidence that my research has the potential to be impactful both within academia and in the broader world of everyday life that inspires my own goals as an academic.
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR PROGRAM/POSTDOC POSITION TO SOMEONE STILL SEARCHING FOR A PROGRAM OR POSTDOC POSITION?
Being a Ph.D. student at SFU in the communications department means being exposed to a pretty good balance of people you've read in your spare time or your syllabi. It also means working with these people--either directly or indirectly--and being able to expand your conception of your own project, aspirations, and academic interests.
IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE YOU'D LIKE TO SHARE?
Providing reparations for past violations should be the first priority of any Canadian institution that is even remotely traceable to the exploitation of Indigenous land, rights, and life.
Contact : anthony_burton@sfu.ca