Dr. Latta is originally from New Zealand and has a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Auckland, New Zealand. He spent a considerable time working as a journalist in New Zealand, Australia, the United States, and England in a variety of formats, from newspapers to magazines. He earned an M.A. and Ph.D. from The University of Alabama, focusing on communication theory and rhetorical criticism. In the Honors College, he teaches “Thomas Paine: a revolutionary writer and his revolutions”; “Gossip and Rumor in the Age of Social Media”; and “The Blues, a cultural history from the Mississippi Delta.” He is working on a book about Thomas Paine and the dissolution of political ideas and events into everyday life in revolutionary America. Dr. Latta is also the senior advisor to the Honors College experimental print and online magazine, Mosaic, and director of a study abroad program, UA Honors in New Zealand: intercultural understanding via global perspectives.