Originally from Bulgaria, Denitsa Yotova is an immigrant and a first-generation college graduate who pursued higher education in the United States at the age of 26 following a nearly nine-year career working onboard cruise ships and traveling around the world.

Upon settling in the U.S., she obtained both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in journalism and media studies from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). She earned her Ph.D. in Journalism from the University of Maryland, College Park (UMD).

Yotova’s research interests and expertise are grounded in a wide range of interdisciplinary areas that include American studies; history of philosophy; U.S. history and diplomacy; strategic and political communication; qualitative textual and visual research methods; globalization and global mass communication; history of media, journalism, and news photography; history of media technologies, theories of culture, media, globalization, and visual communication.  

Over the last decade, she has been teaching various journalism and media courses, both in person and online, including Critical Analysis of the Mass Media, Introduction to Mass Communication, Media Literacy, Visual Literacy, Writing for Public Relations, Social Media, Global Media, and Mass Media & Society.

During the course of her academic career, Yotova has also been a researcher, writer, and presenter at a variety of academic conferences. Her scholarship has been featured in several prestigious academic publications. She is also the co-author of the book Pressing Matters: A Chronicle of American Media, published in late 2025.

Outside of academics Yotova enjoys traveling, hiking, photography, and gardening. She resides in Green Valley/Henderson, Nevada with her husband, son, and two dogs.