2019     Faculty Research Award. Mass Communication & Society Research (MCS) Award from AEJMC for project: The Rise of Populist Journalism.

2018     Wolfgang Donsbach Outstanding Journal Article of the Year (Honorary Mention) ICA / Journalism Studies Division. Article: Mellado, C., Hellmueller, L., Marquez, M., Humanes, M., Sparks, C., et al. The Hybridization of Journalistic Cultures: A Comparative Study of Journalistic Role Performance. Journal of Communication.

2018     Outstanding Research Award. School of Communication, University of Houston, April 25, 2018

2016     First Place Teaching Contest. International Communication Division Teaching Contest, AEJMC.

2016     Top Faculty Paper. Third place in the 2016 Robert L. Stevenson Open Paper Competition of the International Communication Division (ICD) of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC).

2016     Nominee, Global Vision Award (Office of International Affairs to recognize the extraordinary internationalization efforts of individuals at TTU).

2016     Top Paper Award, International Communication Association 2016, Fukuoka (Japan) (Global Communication and Social Change Division)

2014   LU Kaiser Teaching Innovation Award (1st place). Texas Tech University ($800).

2020     Research Progress Grant, University of Houston, Early Career, $ 7,670 (principal PI, co-PI’s Drs. Lindita Camaj and Peggy Lindner), Title: Televised political debates 2020: an analysis of the quality of real-time political discussions on news media’s Facebook pages via supervised machine learning.

2019     Visiting Fellow, Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, University of Oxford (UK), Visiting Fellow, Green Templeton College, University of Oxford

2018     Swiss NSF Short-Term Visiting Researcher Grant for Research Project on Media and Terrorism, University of Zurich (Switzerland)

2015-18 International Collaborator, Swiss NSF Grant on Journalistic Role Performance in Switzerland

2016     Global Media Startup Research Grant: University of Houston

2014     Start-up Research Grant for Junior Faculties, College of Media & Communication, Texas Tech University

2013     Start-up Research Grant for Junior Faculties, College of Media & Communication, Texas Tech University

2013   Recipient of 2013 Swiss NSF Early Postdoctoral Fellowship. Funded Postdoc Position at University of Texas-Austin

2011   Recipient of Swiss NSF Fellowship for Prospective Researcher

2010   Recipient of Fulbright Scholarship