Welcome! I am a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Political Science at the University of Rochester. I am a Graduate Fellow with the Democracy Center. During the 2025–2026 academic year, I was a Graduate Fellow with the W. Allen Wallis Institute of Political Economy.

My research combines formal theory and empirical analysis to study authoritarian regimes’ use of strategic communication. My theoretical work examines how authoritarian governments seek to shape the attitudes and behavior of domestic audiences by managing relatively independent media and of foreign audiences in democracies by sponsoring foreign influencers. My empirical work investigates how citizens perceive the strategic management of information and how changes in the communication environment affect political trust. I also conduct empirical research on political economy and development in China.

Before joining Rochester, I earned an M.Sc. in Management Science from Tsinghua University, an M.Sc. in Innovation, Human Development, and Sustainability from the University of Geneva, and a B.A. in Economics from Central China Normal University.

Contact: xzhou56@ur.rochester.edu