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Jason Callahan

Jason Callahan, Sociology Student

Jason Callahan, Sociology Student
Jason Callahan, Sociology Student
Curriculum Vitae

Department of Sociology
Blacksburg, VA 24061
jcallahan@vt.edu

Jason Callahan is a Ph.D. candidate in Sociology at Virginia Tech.  Having completed his preliminary exam areas of study in crime & deviance and culture, Jason has focused his dissertation research around the evolving landscape of media and crime.  His dissertation investigates the ways in which Twitter is used as a platform by news media organizations to report on active shooting events in the United States.  This is a complex issue that blends together important sociological and criminological themes with the news production process of news media organizations.

Prior to returning to study at Virginia Tech, Jason worked in the field of law enforcement for over a decade.  During the bulk of this period, he worked as a police officer in a diverse community located outside of Washington D.C.  Throughout this time, Jason took on several part- and full-time responsibilities including becoming a field training officer, crime scene technician, and detective.  This field experience has proven to be invaluable in the classroom as Jason translates these experiences to connect with students in a unique way.  He has taught courses including criminology, juvenile delinquency, and drugs and society since 2018 at Virginia Tech.  Jason uses his past experiences in the field to help develop a curriculum that reflects real-life issues within the field of criminology.  

  • Crime
  • Deviance
  • Culture
  • Media & Crime
  • Police Culture
  • M.S. in Criminal Justice, Radford University, 2004
  • B.S. in Sociology, Virginia Tech, 2003
  • B.A. in Political Science, Virginia Tech, 2003

Journal Articles

Sedgwick, Donna, Jason Callahan, and James Hawdon.  “Institutionalizing Partnerships: A Mixed Methods Approach to Identifying Trends and Perceptions of Community Policing and Multi-Agency Task Forces.”  In Production, Police Practice and Research: An International Journal.  DOI 10.1080/15614263.2020.1712204.

Book Chapters

Callahan, Jason T.  “Law Enforcement Resources Dedicated to Marijuana.”  In Marijuana in America: Cultural, Political, and Medical Controversies, edited by James Hawdon, Bryan Miller, and Matthew Costello.  ABC-CLIO, LLC.  Forthcoming.

Callahan, Jason T.  “Racial Inequalities in Sentencing.”  In Marijuana in America: Cultural, Political, and Medical Controversies, edited by James Hawdon, Bryan Miller, and Matthew Costello.  ABC-CLIO, LLC.  Forthcoming.

Callahan, Jason T.  “Property and Economic Crime.”  In Criminal Justice in America: The Encyclopedia of Crime, Law Enforcement, Courts, and Corrections, edited by Jeff Bumgarner and Carla Lewandowski.  ABC-CLIO, LLC.  Forthcoming.

  • Callahan, Jason T. “Framing Crime: An Analysis of News Media Twitter Data.”  Presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Society of Criminology, 2019.  San Francisco, CA.
  • Sedgwick, Donna, Jason Callahan, and James Hawdon.  “Institutionalizing Partnerships: A Multi-Methods Approach to Identifying Trends and Perceptions of Community Policing Multi-Agency Task Forces.”  Presented at the Annual Meeting of the Southern Criminal Justice Association, 2019.  Nashville, TN.
  • Callahan, Jason T. “Framing Crime: An Analysis of News Media Twitter Data.”  Presented at the Annual Meeting of the Southern Criminal Justice Association, 2019.  Nashville, TN.
  • Shoemaker, Donald and Jason T. Callahan.  “Visual Comparisons of Tweets and URLs for Ten School Shootings.”  Presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Society of Criminology, 2018.  Atlanta, GA.
  • Callahan, Jason T.  “Measuring and Reinforcing Police and Offender Stereotypes through Film.”  Presented at the Annual Meeting of the Southern Sociological Society, 2018.  New Orleans, LA.
  • Shoemaker, Donald and Jason T. Callahan. “Analysis of U.S. School Shootings Using Big Data.”  Presented at the Annual Meetings of the American Society of Criminology, 2017.  Philadelphia, PA.
  • Sedgwick, Donna, James Hawdon, John Ryan, Stacey Clifton, and Jason T. Callahan.  “Cooperating Across the Blue Line: Barriers and Fascilitators to Inter-Agency Cooperation Among Police Departments.” Presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Society of Criminology, 2017.  Philadelphia, PA. 
  • Ongoing dissertation research: “Framing Crime: An Analysis of News Media Twitter Data.”
  • 2019-Present American Sociological Association, Member
  • 2019-Present Southern Criminal Justice Association, Member
  • 2017-Present Alpha Kappa Delta, International Sociology Honor Society, Member
  • 2017-Present Southern Sociological Society, Member
  • 2017-Present The American Society of Criminology, Member
  • 2004-Present Alpha Phi Sigma, National Criminal Justice Honor Society, Member 

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