Russell Shepherd is Rappler's resident Data Scientist.  He's not just any other data analyst but a highly passionate one - applying quantitative techniques to complex social problems, particularly the intersection of social movements and digital media.

Russell is able to draw out insights and analysis by combining various methods -  statistics, economics, social network analysis and natural language processing for a wide variety of applications.   His experiences range from international counter terrorism to social media marketing.  His previous clients include the United States Department of Defense and The Carter Center.

Prior to joining Rappler, Russell was a Research Associate at the Naval Postgraduate School doing research in the fields of social movements, violent conflicts, and information and technology dissemination.

Russell graduated magna cum laude with a degree in BA International Studies from the Monterey Institute of International Studies, a Graduate School of Middlebury College.  

He is co-author of "Mining Twitter Data from the Arab Spring" and "The Strength of Tweet Ties: How Twitter Helped Frame the Egyptian Protests".