Margaret Duffy earned her Ph.D. in mass communication with an emphasis in organizational behavior from the University of Iowa.

She is currently a faculty member at the Missouri School of Journalism and teaches courses in strategic communication, research methods, and media management. Her research focuses on new and interactive media, especially with regard to advertising and the news.

Duffy conducts ongoing research on media use by the Youth and Young Adult market and spent the 2008-2009 academic year focusing on that market as a Donald W. Reynolds Fellow.

Prior to joining the University of Missouri, Duffy was a marketing executive for GTE (Verizon). She specialized in marketing, advertising, and public relations. Currently she conducts research on behalf of the Pew Charitable Trust, the Knight Foundation, the Newspaper Association of America, and the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research.